How is it that all of these people in here about 15, 16 (im 15) have courses they can take at school for A+, CCNA, and other certifications? The only tech classes my high school has is business and word processing (so fun). It isnt really a small school. It has about 2000 people. The rooms are crap, 14" monitors, keyboards are full of dirt and look like they never bother blowing them out with compressed air. We are still running on office 95. I feel the instructors at my high school really are not that knowledgeable with the stuff they are teaching. It makes me want to go back to 8th grade. The lab had office 2000, nice 17" monitors, and luckily for me, a really good tech instructor. I learned about certifications and fianlly got my MOUS Cert in PowerPoint 2000 (yeah kinda cheap but I worked hard for it) I stayed after school a work and play around with all their great software certification simulations. I wish my high school offered classes like the A+ as I am working really hard on the Core now and hopefully take it in a month or so. I was putting it off now I don't care if I fail the first time. I've been using everything, Computer Prep books and software, Exam Drill, online traiing, and experience. Luckily I was able to pick up an internship back in June after I passed the MOUS cert. I started out cleaning monitors and now I am a sales guy. I am working for free but what I am learning and have learned there is so much and I don't regret it. I become a full time employee this summer when I turn 16. I just laugh when people think I'm crazy to work for free. It ain't the money cuz if it was I wouldnt be there. I'm there to learn. When I am at work, it is fun and doesn't seem like work because I enjoy it. That's what I am aiming at. I don't plan on staying there my whole life...just until I get outta high school and some certs... Well hopefully I will pass the A+ core the 1st time in a month or so but if I don't oh well life will go on. I am off to start my studying for today!

Adam.
MOUS Certified

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Hi Adam:

I know it kinda sucks. I went to a small high school too that didn't offer much in the IT end of things - but then that was back in the early 80's. Really though - there's not much you can do about that - with government cutbacks there isn't really a whole lot of extra money for education even though education should be top priority.

There is something you can do though - keep studying for that A+ exam and pass it. I know you can do it - you got the MOUS certification and I know that you are going to be A+ certified before you know it.

So, the best advice I can give you is to not waste your energy getting angry by your schools offerings - use that energy to boost your studies and do the very best you can do on the exams. After you pass, maybe you could go to the school board and tell them why they should put IT courses in their school and the benefits you have received from certification. Maybe that will sway their thinking. If you need any help putting a presentation together for the board, please feel free to let me know. I would be more than happy to help.

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Paisleyskye

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I think doing a presentation before the school board is a great idea! There's always money for the football team but the actual education gets shortchanged.

(Nothing against football; I think team sports are great for kids. But let's get our priorities straight: the football team doesn't need a new bus nearly as much as classrooms need books & equipment.)

If you want to try and get better equipment for your school, I'd be glad to help, too. But you'll need other students on your side, along with parents and some local business owners to really make an impact.

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My school was kinda cheap also, we had a microsoft office 97 class and a keyboarding class where you learn how to type. BORING!!

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-=PotatoHead=-
A+, CNA, MCP, MCSA, Net+

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Potatohead:

You had it good. When I was in school there weren't any nice GUI interfaces, and my computer classes consisted of learning BASIC and Fortran.

We didn't get to learn Office 97 or anything like that. Oh - sorry there was a Keyboarding class but we had to type on manual typewriters. They wouldn't even spring for electric ones!

That's why I love the new Windows XP commercial. You know - that line in the Madonna song that says "she's trying to remember where it all began" or something like that. We've come a long way baby!!!

I still can't believe it. I have an old 8086-D CPU on my keychain. It reminds how it used to be - and how much better it is now.

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Paisleyskye

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quote:

---

I have an old 8086-D CPU on my keychain. It reminds how it used to be - and how much better it is now.

---

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Peace Out
-=PotatoHead=-
A+, CNA, MCP, MCSA, Net+

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Keep on towards A+, then N+, etc. Don't down the Powerpoint MOUS, as I wish I'd have had the forethought in my early 20s to do what you're working at in your teens. Good luck!!

Paisleyskye, we had BASIC and manual typewriters when I was in HS. Our computer lab consisted of a couple Radio Shack TRS-80 using tape drives to back up our programs. At the time we thought making animated box figures was cool, now it is nothin'

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You are in a better shape than most were at your age.
When i was in highschool there were no computer classes and awsome tech programs, appreciate what you have and get on with your hobby and try to make it a lifelong drive if that is what you want.

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Let The Games Begin!

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It's great to read what is offered over the pond at schools. The school curriculum over here only offers basic IT (ie word, excel, desktop publishing etc).

A lot of people over here, unless they are lucky, don't actually start the track until they have left school (which in the majority of cases is at the age of 16) and have to try and get a job with no qualifications which we all know is hard to do. A lot of people start with A+ as the basis of certification and pay out of their own pocket to get qualified.

As you've all said "it was different in my day" and it always will be. You just have to put up with what you've got(even if you are unhappy with your lot) until it changes.

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One Exam leads to another! Where will it ever end?

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hi Guys,

erm, well...

we didn't have computers at all when I was at school. In fact no-one had computers except the banks and the biggest companies in town!

I learnt to type (I was the only boy in a class full of girls who opted for typing...
I mainly wanted to do it 'cos I was the only boy, etc)and we had these beaten up old machines from about 1930.

I remember hitting the full-stop so hard with my little finger that it fired the pin through three sheets of paper plus two carbon papers and marked the roller. The teacher once held up one of my pages against the window and we could all see the sun shining through these little holes all over the page!

Regards
Peter

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