The OCR CLAIT suite of exams is well known in the business world and is one of the main qualifications for computer literacy.

Our extended CLAIT Level 3 course is ideal for those who wish to develop their basic computer skills to an advanced level in one course.

This course is suitable for those who have only basic computer skills but who wish to cover more than one level in one course, extending their studies to the advanced level.

OCR (Oxford, Cambridge and the RSA) qualifications are well recognised in businesses and in addition to vocational qualifications they also provide GCSEs, A Levels, and Teaching qualifications.

Upon successful completion you will be awarded the OCR CLAIT Advanced Level 3 Diploma in IT.

You can study this course by distance learning, which means you can study at home or work and complete your lessons at times to suit yourself to fit in around other commitments.

You will receive your lessons via email from your course tutor(s) who will send you the relevant courseware for that lesson plus some exercises/assignments to complete.

You will be able to return your completed work to your course tutor via email, who will then mark this and provide feedback and additional tutoring if required.

Gradually you will build your knowledge and skills and work your way through your course and complete your individual assessment portfolios as you progress. 

We are very keen to develop your confidence as you progress through the course, and it is important that we develop a close working relationship with you to ensure the course is both enjoyable and effective.

All courseware provided is written and designed specifically for our courses and is the copyright of Lewis College.

Topics you will cover on this course

You will cover the key Microsoft Office applications covering Outlook, Word, Excel, Access, and PowerPoint.  You will also develop your IT solution skills by creating and designing a computerised project suitable for an office based procedure.

You will also cover keyboarding and speed development.

Outlook

This program is not assessed, but it is useful for you to know about its features as you will find this helpful to organise your work whilst completing the course.  You will learn how to use the different email features, create folders within Outlook for file management, and use the to do list and notes section as well as the digital diary features.

Word

You will learn how to use the basic Word features eg setting margins, copying/moving and pasting text, headers and footers, indenting, formatting, as well as creating forms, complex tables, hyperlinks, bookmarks and comments, importing files from other applications into Word documents, creating table of contents and indexes, macros, style palettes, templates, using desktop publishing features, tracking changes as well as design a complex multi page document in both draft format and final publishing standard.

PowerPoint

You will learn how to create a multi slide presentation using a range of different slide types eg tables, bulleted items, organisation charts, graphs and charts, create hyperlinks to other presentations and documents, set up master slides and templates, animated GIFs, importing audio and video clips, create transition and animation facilities, apply timings and rehearse slide presentations.  You will also learn how to create macros, speakers notes, save presentations in different formats eg for viewing on the WWW, in a non-application format, print handouts, slides and speakers notes.

Access

You will first of all learn how to create simple databases, then relational databases, including input masks, error messages, and data validation rules.  You will then develop your knowledge in creating queries to cover a range of simple queries to complex queries including logical operators, range operators, combining different database tables.  You will also learn how to create forms, formatting the style and producing printed forms.  Finally you will learn how to produce a range of reports using data from more than one table, grouped reports, formatting reports, add labels and summaries.

Excel

You will cover how to create simple spreadsheets, develop your skills in formatting the display, link spreadsheets, add comments, protect cells and sheets, hide cells and sheets, create more complex spreadsheets, use a wide range of formulas and functions including named range, multi-stage calculations, nested functions, array formulas, use auditing tools, apply conditional formatting, use concatenate text strings and cell references.  You will learn how to create macros, pivot tables, and use data validation.  You will also produce a range of different graphs/charts from different data sources including pivot tables, and produce a range of different reports.

IT Solutions

This unit will develop your skills in being able to develop an IT solution to a manual procedure in a typical office, including identifying the aims of the solution, the needs and preferences of the solution and resources available, the constraints, skills required and end user needs.  You will also identify the benefits and drawbacks and justify your choices for the solution. 

You will then produce a detailed planning report before creating the actual solution in your chosen software.  You will also produce support documentation for users and maintainers of the solution.

Finally you will develop your ability to test and review your solution and evaluate the solution and the success of the project.

A typical solution scenario would be to design a database to record information for a college, showing details of students attending, the course they are studying, exam results etc using Access as the key program or perhaps designing a spreadsheet solution to record stock control for a firm supplying stationery using Excel.

Qualifications

You will complete 5 separate assessment portfolios which will be submitted to us for initial marking and then passed onto OCR for final verification.

You will be awarded an individual certificate for each module and upon successful completion of all 5 modules, you will be awarded the OCR Diploma Level 3 for IT Users (CLAIT Advanced).

Equipment you will need for this course

You will need to be able to access the Internet – either at home or work to receive your lessons via email.

You will also need a computer – a tower or laptop, plus a printer to enable you to print off the courseware (if preferred) and practice papers.

You will need either Office 2003 or Office 2007 including Word, Excel, Access, PowerPoint and Outlook.

You will also need a folder with plastic pockets if you would wish to print off your courseware to create a hardcopy of the manual for each program.