Digital Savvy REVIEW

I was so excited to have the chance to review Digital Savvy by CompuScholar, Inc. (previously known as Homeschool Programming).  Anyone who knows me knows how much I love computers and all things computer.  I really think that my 7th grader would love to learn some programming and this was the perfect chance to begin that process. Digital Savvy is recommended for grades 6-12.  Prerequisites to the program require minimal computer skills to include mouse, keyboard, and basic web browsing abilities.  It is available on Mac (OS version 10.7 or higher) or Windows (7, 8 or 10).



Digital Savvy is a general broad level course that introduces the student to the basics of the computer and some basic HTML programming and scratch. There area several options for this program.  There is a student led or teacher led option.  The student led option still comes with a parent account that includes lesson plans and answer keys. The teacher led option is completely hands off to you.  With the teacher led option, the company provides all monitoring of your student and grading. The program is available as a one-year or monthly subscription. There is a reduced price for additional students in the home.

There are 25 chapters that include a final project using the skills the student has learned. Topics include:

• Fundamentals of Computer Hardware and Software
• Operating Systems, Computer Files, Maintenance & Troubleshooting
• Networks, Search Engines, and Security
• Word Processing Programs
• Spread Sheet Programs
• Presentation Programs
• Database Technology
• Project Management and Teamwork
• Digital Images, Internet Communications, and Social Media
• Creating Web Pages, Web Page Design, Web Links, Images and Animation
• Programming Concepts and Digital Logic
• Careers and Professional Skills

Once your student logs in they will come to their homepage screen that has any and all of their purchased courses.  Once the course is selected they will see the listing of all their chapters (the course syllabus is in the first chapter).

Student Lesson Screen

Your student can easily review their grades as they progress.

The lessons consist of a short lesson video, lesson text that reinforces what was covered in the video, and a short lesson quiz.

There are also activities and chapter exams.  You can generally cover a chapter per week and the course is designed to be covered over one year (two semesters).  The final project at the end is designed to take approximately 2-3 weeks for the student(s) to complete.

The teacher account included with the student led option includes lesson plans and answer keys to the quizzes and tests.

Teacher Lesson Plans

The Teacher Menu on the teacher account has some extra options in the menu that include viewing the grade book, editing your profile, changing your password, reporting issues, getting help and managing logins.

My 7th grade son has been able to keep up with the pace of one chapter per week pretty well.  Chapters take 5 to 11 days to complete with most just being 5 days.  We just had a few sick days but he got right back on track and is enjoying the lessons.  They are short enough to keep his attention and I know that once he gets into the more in depth subjects that he is going to like it even more. I looked ahead and checked out the future lessons and they look to be pretty simple but do a good job of introducing the student to simple HTML programming and scratch.  The introduction to computer programs and social media is also nice.  He should have a good basis to build from once he completes the course.  It should set him up pretty good to be able to tackle the more in depth programming modules CompuScholar Inc. currently has to offer. What's even more exciting is that they have plans to continue to expand their course options.

We give Digital Savvy by CompuScholar Inc. two thumbs up!  The only thing to be aware of is that, just as the company states, if you have absolutely no computer knowledge and are generally afraid of computers this is not the place to start.  They do expect that you are familiar with a computer, keyboard, and mouse.  If you have just a few simple basic skills, you will find this program to be extremely helpful in furthering your computer skills and knowledge.  We will definitely be continuing on with this course to completion and look forward to choosing the next subject of theirs to work on, Be sure to check out the other reviews from the Homeschool Review Crew through the link below.  The two other programs reviewed were WEB DESIGN (grades 6-12) and JAVA PROGRAMMING (grades 9-12).
You can connect with CompuScholar, Inc. through the following media links:
Homeschool Programming: Facebook  or Twitter @hsprogramming
CompuScholar, Inc.: Facebook   or   Twitter   @compuscholar