Sharif Robinson, Resource Teacher
240-497-6348
There is a technology class well suited for all students. Students must complete a year of one of our foundational technology class to earn their technology credit for graduation and after that we have many higher level technology courses to enhance our students in the field of technology.
Foundational Technology Courses: 
Foundations of Technology
Students are at a critical period of personal, social, physical, and intellectual development. In Foundations of Technology students will develop the attitude, knowledge, and skills they need to participate in the world. Students will recognize relationships between school subjects and the world outside, and learn to combine relevant knowledge, experience, and critical thinking to solve authentic problems. Students will explore and develop a deep understanding of the characteristics and scope of technology, the influence of technology on history; along with the relationships and the connections between technology, and other fields of study. Students will develop an understanding of the attributes of design while developing skills in using the design process to problem solve.
Introduction to Engineering Design (Project Lead the Way) (Prerequisite completion of Algebra 1 with a C or better)
 An introductory course which develops student problem solving skills with emphasis placed on the development of three-dimensional solid models. Students will work from sketching simple geometric shapes to apply a solid modeling computer software package. They will learn a problem solving design process and how it is used in industry to manufacture a product. The Computer Aided Design System (CAD) will also be used to analyze and evaluate the product design. The techniques learned, and equipment used, is state of the art and is currently being used by engineers throughout the United States.
Upon completion of this course with a B or better students are eligible to apply for 3 college credits through Rochester Institute of Technology.
Read more about the course and Project Lead the Way
Advanced Technology Courses:
IT Essentials
This course prepares students for the industry recognized COMPTIA A+ certification test. The A+ certification is the entry level certification that employers look for in the Information Technology field. Successful completion of this class gives the student an advanced technology credit.
Learn More about CISCO
IB Information Technology in a Global Society (offered again in 2011-12)
Evaluates the social and ethical issues of information technology (IT) as seen through the lenses of business, education, health, arts and leisure, science and the environment, and politics and government. Issues such as government taxation and regulation of the Internet, terrorist use of IT, disposable DVDs, and the security of electronic health records are in the newspapers everyday. These topics are all relevant in our lives and will affect us in the future. After completion of this class you will be able to have working knowledge of current IT systems, you will be able to identify the social impact of IT and how it develops the global society, and you will have analyzed the ethical issues that IT will challenge.
Learn More about the IB program
Computer Programming 1 A/B
In this class, students will learn how to create interactive programs using the Java programming language. Students will be learning all levels of the Java language including basic syntax, declaration of variables, if-else statements, for, while, and do-while loops, library classes, and GUI (graphical user interface) tools. This course is especially helpful to students contemplating pursuing a computer-science oriented major in college.
AP Programming 2 A/B
This course serves as an introduction to the Java programming language. Students learn the basic principles of object oriented programming including issues such as class design, inheritance, dynamic binding and interfaces. At the completion of this class the students will understand and be able to implement intermediate Java programming techniques in order to independently develop complex applications using the Java language. This class provides an extensive review of all the concepts covered on the College Board’s Advanced Computer Science examination. Students that complete this class will be fully prepared, and are expected to take the Computer Science examination.
Students will also learn how create basic games using Applets. An applet is a special kind of Java program that is embedded inside a web-page and runs in the context of the browser.
Web Design
This course begins with students creating web sites using basic html code. From there, the students are introduced to Dreamweaver. The Dreamweaver software is used to create exciting web sites with brilliant color, images, and interactivity. Students will also use the Fireworks software to enhance the images created for their web sites.
Flash is introduced during the last quarter of this class. Flash is the most popular animation tool used by web designers. Students start out by creating basic animated graphics, and eventually move developing full animated scenes.
OTHER INFORMATION
ATMS
MCPS Computer Science Page
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