Skillbuilding Mastery

Skillbuilding Masteryis an advanced keyboarding course designed to increase keying speed and accuracy to employment levels of 50+ WPM. Timing drills include 15-second, 30-second, 1- to 5-minute timings, with emphasis on longer timings. Prerequisite: 32-35+ WPM by touch (without looking at keys). Students not keying this quickly should take the Keyboard Short Course or the Keyboard Mastery course to first bring up their skills to the pre-requisite requirements.

There are 517 timed drills that are automatically scored and recorded when the student meets the standards set by the instructor (the instructor sets his/her own grading and accuracy standards). Every lesson contains timed drills and students are encouraged to meet the standards applied by the instructor beginning right with Lesson 1. All 1- to 5-minute timings are taken from the best human relations books. While taking timings, students learn how to handle irate customers, read tips on being an effective speaker, learn how to get people to like them, learn how to handle mistakes, how to be successful, etc. The alphabetic and punctuation keys, keyboard numbers and symbols are covered.

The course is divided into twelve (12) sections. Each section can be applied separately or all encompassing.

1. Lessons 1-13 (Alphabet A to M) reinforce and improve key reaches that should already be known. This section contains 15-second, 30-second, 1-minute, and 2-minute timings. The purpose of short timings in the beginning is to work as a 'warm-up' and to train the fingers and the mind to work together at a rapid rate.
2. Lessons 14-26 (Alphabet N to Z) reinforce and improve key reaches that should already be known. This section contains longer timings: 15-second, 30-second, and 1-5 minute timings.
3. Lessons 27 (All Letters) Skillbuilding practice of all key reaches.
4. Lessons 28-29 (Punctuation) Punctuation review and practice.
5. Lessons 30-34 (Numbers & Symbols) Numbers and Symbols with alphabetic mix.
6. Lessons 35 (All Letters) 5-minute timing: A Good Leader Is Not A Log.
7. Lessons 36 (All Letters) 5-minute timing: The High Cost Of Getting Even.
8. Lessons 37 (All Letters) 5-minute timing: How To Handle Mistakes.
9. Lessons 38 (All Letters) 5-minute timing: Tips On Being An Effective Speaker.
10. Lessons 39 (All Letters) 5-minute timing: The Most Valuable Personality Traits Of A Good Manager.
11. Lessons 40 (All Letters) 5-minute timing: More Tips On Being An Effective Speaker.
12. Lessons 41 (All Letters) 5-minute timing: Who Was The Father Of Our Constitution.

Standards can be individualized to each type of student so that each student is challenged: the special needs, beginning students, and experienced students can all be graded differently by applying different profiles appropriate for each student type. In additional to individualizing goals, accuracy standards, minimum speeds, etc., the number of lessons can also be individualized depending upon how much time is allowed for this course.

For experienced typists, use the 5-minute Course Entry timing. If a student already can type 50+ WPM, apply a higher grading scale of 60 WPM as the goal for each timed drill in each lesson. When the course is finished, the Course Exit timing should be taken. The Course Entry score, Course Exit score, and Improvement score will show on the Final Grade Report.

Is there any document processing or formatting included (letters, memos, tables, reports, etc.)? Yes, and it is free! Nuts 'n' Bolts Formatting is an eBook that is available to all Ellsworth Publishing and Keyboarding online customers. Most keyboarding textbooks are expensive, thick, quickly outdated textbooks with more formatting than can be used, and the instructions change everytime the office software changes (usually every 3 years). This leaves instructors with expensive keyboarding books with outdated instructions. Ellsworth Publishing releases this eBook in PDF format and keeps up with the version changes at no charge. It makes perfect sense. Instructors can download the sections they wish to cover, use a copy center to run off a classroom set--free! Ellsworth Publishing also provides its eBooks at a minimal charge if you desire to purchase a bound, pre-printed copy.

Does your keyboarding course require an "exposure" to the Ten Key pad? You can have the "exposure" free by requesting that we add the Ten Key Mastery course to your other courses on your online account. The Ten Key Mastery course will run in a 'demo' mode with only limited lessons available, but usually enough to satisfy an "exposure" requirement.