Fujio Matsuda Technology Training and Education Center – Providing low anxiety, high technology computer training

Has learning about computers either been intimidating or inadequate for you? Either the fear of a mouse or frustration from a turtle-paced class lecture have been the culprit of poor computer skills and you want to do something about it right?

How about attending a non-credit, computer training course at the Fujio Matsuda Technology Training and Education Center, Windward Community College’s Office of Continuing Education training center?

Originally established to provide educational training for the Windward Oahu community in 1985, the Matsuda Center has quickly become known as the friendly, low anxiety, high touch environment to meet the educational needs of individuals and businesses interested in computer training.

The Center is supported by a five year, one million dollar contribution from a group of donors, and provides a “high tech, high touch” approach to computer education and training.

Courses are plentiful and includes Windows ’95 and Macintosh intros, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Claris Works, and FileMaker Pro intros, as well as an abundant number of Internet-related courses.

The Matsuda Center also provides personal advising, workshops, and special follow-up activities that can be tailored to meet the needs of students. You can also reap the benefits of using the Center (equipped with both PC Macintosh computers) during open lab hours, repeating classes as a refresher course for free, and becoming a member of the Matsuda Center’s User Group.

For more information contact Roy Fujimoto at 235-7433 or r_fujimoto@wccada.wcc.hawaii.edu or visit Windward Community College’s Office of Continuing Education homepage at http://www.wcc.hawaii.edu/commsvcs/default.html.

Leeward Community College – Hands-on training for Hawaii’s working adult

If hearing the word ‘Internet’ makes you shudder in fear and lose sleep at night, then maybe it’s about time to do something about it. Why not take a computer training course from Leeward Community College’s Continuing Education Program?

LCC? Yes, through the Office of Continuing Education & Training (OCET), LCC not only offers computer training courses that cover Internet topics such as creating a web page, but they also have courses that teach PC basics/applications, the Windows operating system(s), Computer Repair, Networking and even Computer Aided Design software.

Ramona Taitano, OCET’s Computer Education Program Coordinator & Assistant Professor explains, “Traditionally most people think of education, particularly at a college, as being full of lectures and reading assignments. Continuing Education focuses on hand-on training in all aspects of computer technology for the working adult.”

Presenting these types of classes in a college environment helps the “hand-on” aspect of what Taitano mentioned because of the small class size and abundant computer/facility count. In addition, there is also an ample amount of qualified instructors here.

“All instructors are skilled in their area of expertise with the required credentials and years of work experience. All of the instructors work in their field and almost all are employed in Hawaii’s leading industries or are consultants and therefore know what employers need. Usually most have years of teaching/training experience before even being considered for the LCC Continuing Education Computer Program.”

Courses however, are not limited to the individual adult learner. Taitano routinely offers classes to employees of a company who wishes to be trained for their everyday business applications. And with the highly competitive prices and varied topic coverage, it is a cost-effective alternative that many companies have looked into.

“Currently I think we are priced quite reasonably compared with other institutions. In fact, in some cases, we may have the lowest priced classes. Although almost all training companies in Hawaii offer Intro to Windows 95, Word, Excel, and Beginning Internet, we feel that we offer a comprehensive array of computer technology subjects from basic office software for the end user to Computer Repair, AutoCAD and Microstation PC, and LAN Basics and Telecommunications. The curriculum for all the courses in the Continuing Education Computer Program were developed specifically for continuing education students with their unique needs in mind. The curriculum for each class focuses on the things students will need on the job and to the learning methods of adults so all skills are reinforced through hands-on training.”

There is also ETF funding available to businesses without a training department for their employees that will subsidize the training. Quite a few businesses in the area have already taken advantage of this (Contact MARICAR at Workforce Development Division @ 675-0017 for more information).

Extremely advanced students looking for Microsoft or Novell certification however, will not be able to find it at LCC. The curriculum attempts to cover the majority level of skill, and Taitano says that most people will be able to find something of interest in the OCET program.

For more information on Leeward Community College’s OCET program, visit the web site at http://www.lcc.hawaii.edu/ocet/.

Computer Training Company – Personalized training for a unique experience

Lately, it seems as though every career involves some level computer expertise. And with the ever-growing popularity of the Internet, more and more companies are finding themselves scrambling for employees with the skill-set necessary to compete.

Some companies may train internally with employee-to-employee knowledge base transfers, while individuals may do the 500 page cramming method to learn the latest in computer technology. However, the most common and effective means by which to improve one’s computer skills is to get professional help from training companies like the Computer Training Company, Inc. (CTC).

Les McCarter, CTC Principle Owner, explains how they help, “The Internet is big… real big. When people look at the Internet, they see many different things because it is so many different things. That is what makes it both wonderful for experienced users and frustrating to new users. CTC recognized the Internet’s diversity and has developed training styles to accommodate different users. Our Internet classes for business users are quite different than the ones for home users. A business wants their employees to know how to use the Internet for serious reasons. A non-business user wants to know how to tap the wondrous world of the Internet. Since CTC develops their own curriculum, we can accommodate a class for any set of user needs.”

When browsing their web site (http://www.ctchawaii.com/), a special emphasis seemed to be placed on the client-trainer relationship.

McCormick reiterates, “Every customer is important. We treat our one-class customers with as much respect as our corporate customers. However, we actually have two sets of customers with our corporate clients: the employer and the employee. And we service them both. For the employer, we work with them in creating a curriculum that meets their needs. Having worked with eight of the top ten Hawaii businesses, we know what to ask and suggest to our business clients. We help them create a training plan that gets the most out of their training dollars. In the classroom our trainers understand that we are teaching people, not showing off our computer expertise. What counts is not how much our instructor knows at the end of the class, but how much the student knows! Each student in our classroom is the customer and they deserve our respect and the best service that we can provide”.

Unlike some of the other training companies, CTC offers the full range of courses and certification training from the introductory level, all the way up to the upper advanced levels. Whether it be taking a simple word processing course like “Introduction to Word 97”, or learning the intricacies of “IntraNetWare NetWare 4.11 Advanced Administration”, CTC has got the course for you.

On the web site, you can also view class prices and mini profiles of CTC’s staff members. In addition to an abundant list of course offerings, rates and training staff are what separates CTC from the pack.

McCarter articulates these vital issues. “By keeping our class sizes to 10-students or less, we customize the level of training to the students that are attending. CTC’s professional trainers will make each class work for everyone in the room. Every person counts. Obviously, technical knowledge is a given trait needed by our computer trainers, but especially with the Internet, we are teaching a new way of viewing and exploring knowledge and it is CTC’s personal touch that makes Internet training a unique experience.”