Tag: elearning
My Adventures With Excel…Part 1
Hi, my name is Chad. I am the Accounts Receivable and Human Resources Manager at LearnKey. My adventures with Excel actually started many years ago. I have used Excel in school, work, and home since Office 95.
Late last year, I decided to prove my knowledge in both Excel and Word and get MOS certified in each. I kept putting it off because end-of-year is a busy time for me. Then earlier this year our CEO, Jeff Coruccini, asked each of us to get at least one certification by the end of May. He even offered us a bonus for each certification that we achieve. And I thought, “This will be the easiest money that I ever made. I know Excel and Word. I can pass these tests easily.” I even teamed up with Kim Johnson, Director of Client Services and Marketing. We could study together and pass the Excel exam…piece of cake.
I started to watch LearnKey’s Excel 2013 training, but decided that I already knew Excel, and I could just watch the parts that I am unfamiliar with to brush up on my skills. I watched a few sections of training and did a few labs.
As test day approached, I still felt confident that I would pass. I’ve taken and passed CompTIA’s A+ and Network+ exams, a couple of Windows 2000 exams, Certiport’s IC3 exam, and the QuickBooks exam. I even passed the HR Institute’s Professional in Human Resources exam which is the hardest exam I have ever taken. My coworkers asked if I was nervous. I confidently told them, “No.”
On test day, I went into our in-house testing center and signed in with our proctor. As I started the exam, my confidence remained high. I worked my way through the test, but soon my confidence began to falter. I thought I was familiar with formulas, but I encountered formulas that I have never used. Concatenate? I don’t even know what that means. How do I use a formula when I don’t even know what the word means? Well, Excel kind of walks you through formulas, so I think I figured it out.
But, wait…where did all my time go? I’m not finished. I rushed through as much of the test as I could in the few minutes remaining. When the clock ran out, I anxiously awaited my test score. Well, I’m sure you can guess why there will be a Part 2 to this blog post. I FAILED. I immediately thought, “What? I have never failed a certification exam. That has to be wrong.” But, yes. I failed. I scored a 691. I needed a 700.
I decided to go back to the Excel 2013 training. Thank goodness for LearnKey’s self-paced training. I can fit it into my schedule when I have some free time. I will soon take the Excel exam again and this time I will pass. I will let you know how it turns out in My Adventures with Excel…Part 2.
New Course Release – Excel 2013 Formulas
Like many people, I use Microsoft Excel everyday. I use it to make lists, to keep track of expenses, record sales statistics, create travel itineraries, and plan trade shows. I find Excel to be one of the best and easiest ways for me to keep track of information. Those of you who have used Excel before know that there is more than one way to accomplish a task in Excel. There are even formulas that you can use to accomplish tasks faster and more accurately.
Our newest course release is our Excel 2013 Formulas course. This course should be used in addition to our Excel 2013 course and will teach students about the formulas they can use to help them in their everyday use of Excel.
Join LearnKey expert Michael Meskers in our new Excel Formulas course. If you use Microsoft Excel for data analysis, reporting, or day-to-day tracking, this course will teach you helpful formulas and hints that will bring ease and accuracy to your work.
Our hope is that through our courseware we may continually provide learners with the guidance, preparation, and skills they need to succeed.
For more information visit our website.
New Course Release – Routing and Switching Fundamentals 2013 Part II
Last month I posted about our production team’s goal to release two courses every month. I am excited to announce that they met that goal! Last week we released our Routing and Switching Fundamentals 2013 Part II course. This course is the second part to our Routing and Switching Fundamentals 2013 Part I we released earlier this year. Our Routing and Switching Fundamentals 2013 Part II course will prepare students to take exam 200-101 ICND2 and will test a students skills in LAN switching technologies, troubleshooting, and other technical skills that are essential in obtaining the certification.
Routing and Switching Fundamentals 2013 Part II
In LearnKey’s Routing and Switching Fundamentals 2013 Part II course, users will gain the skills necessary to prepare for and take exam 200-101 ICND2. Users will learn VLSM, IPv6, OSPF and EIGRP protocols as well as learning to use access lists using NAT and DHCP. This course also covers 2800 and 3800 routers using various standard protocols and how ACL’s are used to protect networks. At the completion of this course users will be prepared for the CCNA Routing and Switching certification.
Our hope is that through our courseware we may continually provide learners with the guidance, preparation, and skills they need to succeed.
For more information visit our website.
CompTIA’s CASP – A Fast Track to an IA Career?
As the Veteran Services Manager at LearnKey, I work with Veterans from all over the world who are looking for ways to get into the security side of IT when whey separate from the military. Everyone knows about the CISSP certification and what that means to those who are looking to go big in an IA (Information Assurance) career. Everyone looks at the benefits of the CISSP yet they also know that it comes with an extensive exam. Don’t get me wrong, I am pro-CISSP and we help a lot of Veterans to achieve that level of certification. I do, however, want to talk about the CompTIA CASP certification and how it can jump-start the IA career you have been dreaming of.
The Advanced Security Practitioner certification from CompTIA (CASP) is a relative newcomer to the IA world. It is CompTIA’s first certification at the professional level and it was designed to fill the gap between their Security+ and the ISC2 CISSP certifications. The CISSP is often described as being a “mile wide and an inch deep” which perfectly describes every manager I have ever worked for. Yes, the CISSP is a management level certification which is great, but probably not the place you will likely start out in your new career. The CASP on the other hand is where the rubber hits the road. It includes the skills and objectives needed to keep everything running with the good guys on the inside and the bad guys put out in the cold. Here is a great video that CompTIA put together to illustrate what I am talking about:
CASP covers the latest in cryptographic applications, vulnerabilities, virtual storage, secure DNS, network design, firewalls, risk management, VoIP, and more. Those who possess the CASP certification work on the front lines, protecting and defending their networks. This is certainly the reason why the DoD directive 8570 was recently updated and they pushed the CASP certification up to the mid and high levels within their baseline approval structure (https://iase.disa.mil/eta/iawip/content_pages/iabaseline.html).
Although the CASP exam is not easy, it is much less strenuous of an exam than the CISSP. It also doesn’t come with the difficult-to-prove prerequisites. Listen to what Tom Carpenter, published author and consultant, has to say about the CASP certification and what it means to you:
The bottom line here is that both certifications are great but you really need to consider taking things in a logical order. I am excited to help our Veterans to (metaphorically) kick down the doors between them and a great career in IA, starting with the CASP certification.
Global eLearning Company Receives “Green Light” from the New York state Department of Labor
I am excited to announce that LearnKey courseware has been approved by the New York State Department of Labor and been added to the Eligible Training Provider List.
The purpose of the Eligible Training Provider List is to provide community members with a central list of a broad range of training options that are available in communities throughout the state of New York.
“LearnKey is pleased to have met the expectations set by the New York State Department of Labor.” said Kimberly Johnson, Director of Client Services and Support. “I believe that LearnKey offers the most comprehensive and accessible online educational courseware. Our expert-lead project based courseware is interactive and contains labs that will train individuals to be prepared for industry certifications exams such as A+, Net+, Certified Associate Project Management, and prepare them with the skills they need to succeed or advance in their careers.”
Inclusion in the New York State Eligible Training Provider List required LearnKey to submit all courses to the New York State Department of Labor to make sure it complied with their high standards. Being added to the list puts LearnKey into a broad pool of training providers, who are in support of the training and employment goals of the individuals who access the list.
Learning Photoshop CS6
Last month I was presented with what seemed like a daunting task. I was asked to learn Photoshop CS6 and take the ACA certification exam, so I could assist with Photoshop CS6 training for teachers in New York. I had never used Photoshop before so I was really nervous about having to learn this new skill and then assist in training others in this program. I am not ACA certified yet, but I have learned first hand how valuable our training is when learning Photoshop CS6.
As I prepare to take the ACA exam to become Photoshop CS6 Certified I want to share six things I have learned that will help anyone who is using LearnKey training to prepare for certification exams.
eLearningPlanner.com – Try our new career and leadership tool
We recently released a free tool for job seekers: elearningplanner.com – a leadership trait and career pathway assessment that identifies your specific leadership talents and recommends career paths based on your answers to a short (about 2 minutes) survey.
We couldn’t just leave it at that though – we LearnKeyed it up a notch by matching eLearning bundles with your selected career paths, and to top it all off, every user receives a free Career Readiness 101 course at the end! So not only do you have a prescribed eLearning plan to become career-ready for your chosen path, but we give you some free Microsoft Office basics to get you started!
To give you an idea of what kind of results you can get from the assessment, I decided to be the test subject and go through it myself and post my results.
My Leadership Talent: Patience
With the leading talent as patience, you will naturally be a dependable, persistent leader. You will be most efficient in leadership when you can manage to a process or system. You value making a difference for others and therefore naturally earn respect and create harmony in a group or team. Naturally, you will like support and serve your team, allowing them to have the praise and recognition for their accomplishments. You will do well when you have clearly defined deadlines for meeting team goals and objectives.
My Recommended Career Paths
Finance & Accounting Professional
Administrative Professional
Graphic Design Professional
Now for accuracy: notice how “Graphic Design Professional” is on my list of recommended career paths? While I manage LearnKey’s online marketing and social media, my strengths lean toward graphic design and layout. As for my leadership style – a structured, clearly defined environment has always been where I thrive the most. Scheduling projects all willy-nilly throws off my workflow and I’m nowhere near as productive as I could be. My results show exactly that!
If you’re interested in finding out what your ideal career paths and leadership talents are, be sure to visit elearningplanner.com and take the survey for yourself. Be sure to sign up for the free Career Readiness 101 course at the end!
Photoshop CS6 for Mac Released
The first of our Adobe CS6 courses has been released – Photoshop CS6 for Mac. In this course, LearnKey expert and Adobe Certified instructor Chad Chelius walks you through the features and tools of Photoshop CS6, while also covering the topics required for the ACA Visual Communication using Adobe® Photoshop® certification exam.
- Demonstrate knowledge of project management tasks and responsibilities
- Learn and understand terminology of digital images
- Demonstrate knowledge of Patch Tool in Content-aware fill mode
- Learn to adjust or correct the tonal range, color, or distortions of an image
- Demonstrate knowledge of preparing images for Web, print, and video
This version of the course was shot using Adobe Photoshop CS6 for Mac OS X. Don’t worry, Windows users – your version is coming up soon!
Visit the product page for more information about the course, including a full course outline and purchasing information.
Giving Back to Those Who Gave So Much
eLearning company forms partnership with foundation that provides assistance for Veterans in need.
St. George, UT- November 16, 2012- LearnKey Inc, in partnership with Our Home Transitional, have recently begun working together to give assistance to female Veterans and their children. LearnKey has donated video based training through their learning management system OnlineExpert, to those in OHT as a way to help our Veterans to obtain the civilian credentials they need to re-enter the workforce.
Carrie Miller, Executive Director of OUR HOME TRANSITIONAL explains: “This is a place where our female veterans and their kids come to when they are facing challenge & are in need of a place to call home.”
Women Veterans in need of OHT services are not limited to the Flint, Michigan area. As long as there are rooms available any woman hero from anywhere in the US will be assisted, says Miller. “One of the most integral parts of this program for our female Veterans is the LearnKey training component. We are very excited to be working with LearnKey in our endeavor to help women heroes who are in need of help while transitioning successfully to civilian society and self-sufficiency,” explains Miller.
LearnKey’s extensive course library has courses that will help learners pass certification exams, build resumes, and prepare for a career. Some valuable LearnKey tools for Veterans are the recently released Career Readiness Bundle and Job Hunting in a Digital World course.
LearnKey regularly releases new courses. Follow this link to view the 2012-2013 course release schedule.
About LearnKey, Inc.
LearnKey is self-paced video courseware for corporate, education, government and personal users. Established in 1987, LearnKey offers decades of experience with engaging, interactive, and flexible training that is accessible anytime, anywhere.
Network+ 2012 Certification released (with video)
Good news, everyone! We recently released the latest version of our Network+ certification courseware – Network+ 2012 Certification. Just like our A+ Certification 2012 course, it features course author Tom Carpenter covering CompTIA’s certification objectives, this time taking students beyond tech essentials and guiding them through the world of Networking.
This course covers the current CompTIA Network+ N10-005 exam. It includes 5 sessions and roughly 14 hours of training, tests, interactive labs, and projects.
If you want to see more, check out the promo at the beginning of the post, and after visit the product page for more info on the course including a full course outline and purchasing info.