© 2006 Ken Baldauf, All rights reserved. Computer Literacy What do Employers Want? Ken Baldauf Florida State University.

© 2006 Ken Baldauf, All rights reserved. Motivation for Survey Knowing the level of competency of your incoming students provides a starting point, determining what will be expected of them in their careers defines the goals of the curriculum....and ultimately opens doors for students while better satisfying employers START

© 2006 Ken Baldauf, All rights reserved. Survey Participant Profiles National Building Supply Supplies lumber and building materials as well as value added services to the house builder and professional contractor. There are 255 branches in 30 US states.The US arm of a large Global Corp. National Home Building A FORTUNE 200 company with operations in 54 markets and 27 states. In 2005, the company delivered 45,630 homes in the U.S. and generated consolidated revenues of $14.7 billion. Global Paint and Coatings has more than 2,600 company-owned stores in 50 states, Canada, Mexico and is the U.S. market leader in distribution and sales of coatings and coating-related products with yearly revenues exceeding $5 billion and is ranked among the top U.S. Fortune 400 companies Global Healthcare IT Solutions focused on developing healthcare information technology (HIT) solutions. Our 870 clinicians, 1,360 engineers and 2,100 consultants have deployed more than 4,300 applications to clients across the globe Global Communications IT an international communications and information technology company serving government and commercial markets in more than 150 countries - annual sales of over $3 billion and has more than 13,000 employees – including 5,500 engineers and scientists Local CPA Firm a full range of traditional accounting, auditing and tax services complemented by comprehensive consulting resources Real names withheld for privacy

© 2006 Ken Baldauf, All rights reserved. 17 Conclusions Windows, Web, Email & MS Office skills remain desirable to all Web development skills are highly valued by some, not at all by others Participants have little use for Apple skills

© 2006 Ken Baldauf, All rights reserved. 25 Conclusions Four of the six participants found the understanding of these concepts to be useful if not essential Of those four, Global/Ethical Issues, Security, Internet, and Information Systems were of most importance Participants found media to be least relevant (relates to Mac indifference)

© 2006 Ken Baldauf, All rights reserved. Freeform Response What computer and/or information technology skills do you value most when evaluating job applicants? Microsoft Office is a must. Experience with and knowledge of MicroSoft PC tools, particularly MSWord, Outlook, and PowerPoint. Basic windows skills, Word, Excel, etc.

© 2006 Ken Baldauf, All rights reserved. Freeform Response What important computer and/or information technology skills do you feel are lacking in today's college graduates? Many people are not familiar with the basics of excel. They don't know pivot tables, sorting, filtering, etc. That is something that anyone in any role of our company will use. None. Most grads I've seen are computer literate.

© 2006 Ken Baldauf, All rights reserved. Freeform Response How important are mobile technologies (cell phones, Blackberries, mobile PCs) in your company's business practices? extremely important These are becoming more important with us. Each of our sales reps uses a Treo and needs to be able to use this decive effectively on a daily basis. We have started to use these technologies, so if students know them, it would be an added bonus. Mobile phones and mobile PCs are very important as many of our employees travel frequently.

© 2006 Ken Baldauf, All rights reserved. What do businesses want? The majority of businesses want...  strong MS Office skills including Outlook  an understanding of technology concepts including information systems  familiarity with mobile communications and computing technologies

© 2006 Ken Baldauf, All rights reserved. What do businesses want? Questions to consider...  Should curriculum cater to the average, least, or most demanding businesses?  What other considerations impact curriculum design?

© 2006 Ken Baldauf, All rights reserved. IT Fluency Computer Literacy rote learning of specific hardware and software applications IT Fluency understanding the underlying concepts of technology and applying problem- solving and critical thinking to using technology “Literacy is too modest a goal in the presence of rapid change, because it lacks the necessary "staying power.“ As the technology changes by leaps and bounds, existing skills become antiquated and there is no migration path to new skills. ”

© 2006 Ken Baldauf, All rights reserved. IT Fluency IT Fluency emphasizes three types of knowledge: concepts, capabilities, and skills Contemporary skills “ Skills provide a store of practical experience on which to build new competence” Foundational Concepts “ Concepts are the raw material for understanding new information technology as it evolves” Intellectual capabilities “ The ability to apply information technology in complex and sustained situations, …fosters more abstract thinking about information and its manipulation”

© 2006 Ken Baldauf, All rights reserved. Information Literacy Competency Standards for Higher Education Endorsed by:  American Association for Higher Education  Council of Independent Colleges  Accrediting Agencies The Middle States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE) Western Association of Schools and College (WASC) Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) One of 11 Initiatives in FSU’s LEAD Plan Leaders Educated to Make A Difference, or LEAD, is part of Florida State University's overall Quality Enhancement Plan. While it is a requirement of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) reaffirmation process, LEAD will be a sustained and ongoing initiative that will result in a better student experience and, ultimately, a better university.

© 2006 Ken Baldauf, All rights reserved. Information Literacy Competency Standards for Higher Education The information literate student… 1. determines the nature and extent of the information needed 2. accesses needed information effectively and efficiently 3. evaluates information and its sources critically and incorporates selected information into his or her knowledge base and value system 4. individually or as a member of a group, uses information effectively to accomplish a specific purpose. 5. understands many of the economic, legal, and social issues surrounding the use of information and accesses and uses information ethically and legally.

© 2006 Ken Baldauf, All rights reserved. Information Literacy Competency Standards for Higher Education Information literacy is related to information technology skills, but has broader implications for the individual, the educational system, and for society. IT Fluency focuses on Technology itself Information Literacy is an intellectual framework for understanding, finding, evaluating, and using information

© 2006 Ken Baldauf, All rights reserved. Know Your Students FSU Students Technology Survey  http://lit.cs.fsu.edu/survey/results Most incoming Freshmen have had previous training in Windows, Web, Word, and PowerPoint Information Technology Fluency levels in graduating high school students will continue to increase

© 2006 Ken Baldauf, All rights reserved. Know Your Institution What discipline-specific tech courses are being taught? What degrees are represented by students taking your course? What skills are required of those degree programs? What are your Computer Literacy accreditation requirements? Are there other special needs such as boosting enrollment?

© 2006 Ken Baldauf, All rights reserved. Developing a Local Profile Includes:  assumptions about incoming student competency levels and capabilities  statements of fact regarding Institutional needs  opinions of experienced teachers

© 2006 Ken Baldauf, All rights reserved. Curriculum Possibilities Business Needs Beef up Excel, include lessons in Outlook, discuss concepts such as business information systems, ethics, and security, and study mobile communications technologies Intro Course Curriculum IT Fluency Use case-based projects from a variety of disciplines, include a team project, cover IT concepts and discuss the use of IT through case studies. Information Literacy Provide training in college level research including those skills listed in the Information Literacy Competency Standards for Higher Education - consider collaborating with your College Librarians Local Profile Consider eliminating skills from your curriculum that most students already have, push students to acquire more advanced skills, provide topics of interest in elective courses to boost enrollment

© 2006 Ken Baldauf, All rights reserved. Ken Baldauf Florida State University baldauf@cs.fsu.edu 850-644-5832 http://lit.cs.fsu.edu http://www.kenbaldauf.com Try Ken’s 10-minute Tutors with your students! Excel: http://lit.cs.fsu.edu/assignments/a2.html Access: http://lit.cs.fsu.edu/assignments/a3.html PPT: http://lit.cs.fsu.edu/assignments/a4.html Try Ken’s 10-minute Tutors with your students! Excel: http://lit.cs.fsu.edu/assignments/a2.html Access: http://lit.cs.fsu.edu/assignments/a3.html PPT: http://lit.cs.fsu.edu/assignments/a4.html Presentations, Survey Results, Assignments, and More! Thanks for your time. Sources “Being Fluent with Information Technology” Report http://books.nap.edu/html/beingfluent/ Information Literacy Competency Standards for Higher Education http://www.ala.org/ala/acrl/acrlstandards/inform ationliteracycompetency.htm FSU’s LEAD Plan http://lead.plan.fsu.edu/index2.html ISTE NETS http://cnets.iste.org/index.shtml

© 2006 Ken Baldauf, All rights reserved. Computer Literacy What do Employers Want? Ken Baldauf Florida State University.

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© 2006 Ken Baldauf, All rights reserved. Computer Literacy What do Employers Want? Ken Baldauf Florida State University.

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