Highline College Optical Program Information
9-18-09
Last Minute Notice !!
Are you an apprentice optician who needs to take classes that will
help you pass the licensing exam?
Are you within driving distance of Highline Community College in
Des Moines, WA? (We have had students from all over western Washington.)
Do you have access to a computer so you can do half the classwork online?
You only have to attend the classroom once a week, on Tuesday evenings
from 7:15 to 9:30 PM.
Highline’s series of optical classes begins next Tuesday evening,
September 22, 2009, at 7:15 PM in Room 120 of Building 26. The first
quarter is Basic Optics so it is a good class to begin learning or for
experienced apprentices to brush up on knowledge.
If you register with our Labor and Industries apprenticeship in
addition to your Department of Health apprenticeship you would
qualify for a tuition reduction of about half. Ask the instructor
for details.
You are welcome to attend the first class session to find out more
and get a feel for the program. Hope to see some of you there.
Dennis Prescott, LDO
JATC secretary and Highline instructor
dcp2you@yahoo.com
Did you know that Highline Community College offers quarterly classes that help supplement
an apprentice optician’s education? Our classes are economical (subsidized by L&I reducing
the apprentice’s tuition by nearly ½). We offer one class per quarter and all of our classes
in a “Hybrid” format that allows the student to do ½ of their work Online and to attend face
to face classes one evening a week.
Hybrid courses offer advantages over the conventional learning environment or a complete
online program such as:
Convenience for the work schedule: face to face attendance is one evening a week, so that
it doesn’t interfere with their working schedule.
Increased interaction with the instructor: studies show that a student actually has more
direct communication with the instructor than with conventional face to face classes.
Flexibility: allowing instructors accomplish learning objectives in many different mediums.
Increased learning and increased retention: faculty almost universally report their students
learn more in the Hybrid format than they do in traditional class sections.
Instructors report that students write better papers, perform better on exams, produce higher
quality projects, and are capable of more meaningful discussions on course material.
Qualitative assessments of better student learning are supported by quantitative data from
the University of Central Florida (UCF). UCF reports that students in Hybrid courses achieve
slightly better grades than students in traditional face-to-face courses or totally
online courses.
We offer 9 classes in total: Basic Optics (optical theory), Optical Product Knowledge,
Anatomy/ Physiology/ Pharmacology, Ophthalmic Dispensing, Contact Lens Theory,
Ophthalmic Laboratory, Contact Lens Fitting, Optical Business, Program Overview/Beginning
Refractometry (reviews all 8 classes and helps prepare for the state board exams;
this course also explains basic refractometry).
To read more about Hybrid classes go to:
http://www.worldwidelearn.com/education-articles/hybrid-education.html or
http://flightline.highline.edu/blackboard/bp/hybrid.bps.pdf
For more information about the Apprentice Optician Program at Highline Community College
go to: http://flightline.highline.edu/optician/index.htm