When looking at our assignment schedule for class this week I saw that we were focusing on productivity. I thought to myself that this shouldn't be too bad because generally I'm a productive person. Then, I saw that our activity that we were working on was a spreadsheet. I immediately felt a sense of doom. We were going to be working with Microsoft Excel. Excel is a spreadsheet software program that allows the use to organize numeric data in rows and columns (Shelly, Gunter & Gunter, 2010). In college, when taking the “required” technology course on Microsoft Office, Excel was my nemesis. I couldn't figure it out and I'm still not sure why. So, I approached this assignment with much caution. I took a deep breath, sequestered myself in my home office, and jumped into the world of Excel.
Upon opening up the sample Excel spreadsheet provided for the class, I immediately began to follow the step-by-step instructions given to the class on how to complete our work. I easily completed changing the color of the contents for each column, thinking this was as easy as using Microsoft Word (a program I know well and use often). Inserting new columns and labeling them for more Homework assignments and Tests wasn't too bad after I re-sized the columns to fit the names of their categories. This fear of Excel that I had had for years was disappearing and I was feeling a bit confident.
Next, the instructions require the addition of two columns that are supposed to display student averages for all homework and test averages. My new found confidence began to take a nosedive as I started to fumble around trying to figure out the function formula. A function is a predefined formula for adding up a group of cells (for example – averaging) (Shelly, et al., 2010). After struggling for a small period of time, I began to explore the many different buttons displayed on the screen that help you to perform specific actions. I found the function wizard! For this portion of the assignment, the function wizard became my new best friend. I happily used it!
The last few steps towards completing this assignment were not so terrible once I felt comfortable enough to really explore Excel. Sorting the final grade and bold-facing the names of my fictional students that were failing wasn't a hard thing to do. I had to do a bit of research and use the help function in order to dynamically make the student names appear on the other worksheets. After completing the required tasks, I decided to take a stab at trying to get the additional extra credit points for the assignment. Hopefully, the concept I came up with – that the student's tests should be equal to or preferably higher than their homework assignments is correct. Time will tell.
Once I submitted my sample grade book, I reflected back on this most recent experience with Excel. It was nowhere near as bad as I thought it would be. In fact, I found myself enjoying the challenge and the time it took to complete it. Being an educator that uses a software program on a daily basis that does all the averaging and report producing for me, I found this experience refreshing. Using Excel enabled me to see how a program like the one I use everyday (and does all of the work for me) really works! It was “A-ha!” moment for me. I'm looking forward to exploring Excel further on my own and seeing what else this program has to offer.
References:
Shelly, G. & Gunter, G & Gunter, R. (2010). Teacher Discovering Computers Integrating technology and Digital Media in the Classroom. (6th Ed.) Cengage Learning
You are not alone! As a long time user of Excel, I have known many people who fear the spreadsheet program. They take one look at all the buttons, options, drop down menus and possibilities and go into technology overload. You did exactly the right thing. Take each task one by one. When I teach other teachers to use Excel, I only teach a few buttons at a time and let the teachers use them between training sessions. If you really want to challenge yourself, take the time to learn how to make charts and graphs in Excel. There is a wizard that will help, but you'll feel a great sense accomplishment when you get that first pie chart to display.
ReplyDeleteGreat post!
Pageterner
I know how you feel regarding the automatic grading spreadsheets used in education. It had been quite a while since I'd used Excel for this very reason. While I enjoyed exploring Excel, I must admit I appreciate the convenience of the automatic gradebooks when my plate is always so full.
ReplyDeleteI also agree with you that once I began exploring Excel, all the functions and tasks got much simpler. There are so many thinigs that can be done with these seemingly simple programs, and we often do not take the time to simply explore their powers.
Alyssa
I too felt a, “sense of doom,” when we started the assignment. The last time I used Excel was when I took my intro to technology class back in college. Once I started to re-familiarize myself with Excel, it was as if my brain just clicked and I remembered how to use the program. However, I was not able to figure out how to complete the extra credit part of the assignment as you did.
ReplyDeleteOnce I was done, I also felt, “It was nowhere near as bad as I thought it would be.” I think I will use Excel in my life at some point even though all of my grades are put into a program like Progress Book in OCPS that will tabulate all the students’ data for me.
Great use of the secret word.
I agree that our grade book system can do all the work of excel. Although through program glitch I found my grade book to be over weighting some of the assignments. As a precautionary method at the end of each quarter I simply paste the grades into excel and double check. You never want to give a low grade just because the program isn’t doing its job. Our grade books do a lot, but it’s simply another program. Errors can occur and grades can be lost. I think that we should have a snapshot of grades once a month backed up on excel. If the program fails, and grades go missing it’s the teachers responsibility not the schools, this could spell disaster for an educator.
ReplyDeleteWhen I realized that this assignment was to compelte an Excel spreadsheet, I initially thought that it was going to be pretty easy and not too time consuming. Working at the front desk of a hotel, I use spreadsheets often to keep track of sales and guest data. I have also had some training in Microsoft Office tools such as Excel, so I figured I wouldn't have any problem with this assignment. However, much like your experience, I found myself becoming frustrated and stuck in trying to figure out how to make formulas and text appear in cells and across worksheets. I didn't find the help feature to be very helpful either. After a few hours of struggling through the assignment, I feel that this is a tool that you definately need training to be able to use quickly and efficiently. However, I find it to be very useful in keeping student grade and information well organized. I plan on using this tool when I begin teaching shortly.
ReplyDeleteMegan Smith
I'm glad you had an easier time with this assignment than myself. I am now, after reading several blog postings, wondering why I have no training with excel. Why like yourself, did I not receive any of this type of exposure to Excel as a grade book in Undergrad. Maybe it's because I'm Early Childhood. I have found the use of grade books a waste of my time while teaching Kinder. Progressbook(like your E-sembler), does not match our report card, so we do not have to use it for planning or grading. Yet.
ReplyDelete