Collaboration with DTP and Word Processing

The Digital Revolution of the 20th century brought about many changes for the world. Since then people have used, and are still using, technology for the majority of the things they do. For instance, we use computers, fax machines, telephones, cellular phones, scanners, radios, cassette players, cd players, vcr players, dvd players, iPods, MP3s, iPads, and the list goes on.

Educators incorporate technology in their classrooms in various ways. This is very significant for students because technology is only going to improve. Students need to be aware of what types of technology are available today so that when newer technology is developed it will be an easier transition for them to make.

Teachers and students utilize multi-media collaboration for projects and presentations. One of the many ways to enhance the visuals of a presentation and make it more appealing is through desktop publishing software. There are various desktop publishing programs, such as: Microsoft Office Publisher, Adobe PageMaker, Adobe FrameMaker, Adobe InDesign, Corel Ventura, and many other programs that offer graphics, web publishing, or presentation software. DTP (Desktop Publishing) is much more convenient and efficient compared to the traditional paper and pencil presentations.

Word Processing is used for typing information. There are many options in word processing, such as: font options, copy, cut, paste, word count, spell check, thesaurus, etc. Word Processing programs, as well as DTP, can be used to create brochures, banners, flyers, posters, newsletters, certificates, etc. One way I have incorporated Desktop Publishing in my classroom is by using Microsoft Office Publisher to create banners and certificates.

One way I have incorporated Word Processing is through Microsoft Office Word. I am a computer lab teacher. Keyboarding plays an important role in my classes. I give students a keyboarding book and assign them typing on Microsoft Office Word in order to improve their keyboarding skills. Another of the various ways I have used word processing is having the students complete stories on Microsoft Office Word. In doing this the students get to practice their keyboarding skills and become familiar with the program at the same time.

One way I have utilized DTP in my classroom is by using Microsoft Office Desktop Publisher. I created several documents for my students, including computer lab rules, the ABCs of Computers (each letter of the alphabet can represent some type of technology in the classroom), and keyboarding certificates. The following is a DTP file that I created of my computer lab rules. I am a big fan of DTP! It makes documents and presentations much more appealing to students and seems to keep students’ focus more.

The bright colors make the document very appealing to students. It’s much more attractive to students than seeing the black and white or even pale colors. The only characteristic of this document that I find distractive is for an 8.5”x11” handout, the spacing of the words is somewhat close. I hope some of you can find my document valuable.