Excel - Microsoft
What is Microsoft Excel
Microsoft Excel is a spreadsheet program available for Windows and MacOS as a desktop application as well as a mobile and web application. Excel allows for the creation of calculations, graphs and pivot tables. It can be used for presenting complicated information to students, as well as being used in many different types of assignments
What is the purpose of Microsoft Excel
The purpose of Microsoft Excel is to provide users a way to find relationships between peices of data, and to make those relationships clear. It provides many ways of viewing the data in order to tell different stories.
How to use Microsoft Excel
In order to use this tool, identify the row and column values that will best suit your project. Enter the data for those rows and columns and use the available tools, calculations and pivot tables to best suit your project. From a teaching and learning perspective, instructors can gather information relevant to their discipline and display it in a variety of ways. They can also assign projects to students in which the student may use excel to produce reports, correlations or display data.
Where to find Support
This tool is centrally supported
Support
For help, you can contact the WTS Helpdesk
Documentation
Additional information on Microsoft Excel can be found on the Excel Help Center
Tool Evaluation
Functionality
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ScaleThe tool can scaled to accommodate any size class but lacks flexibility to create smaller sub-groups or communities of practice |
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Ease of UseThe tool has a learner interface that may be confusing to some; there is limited opportunity for personalization |
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Tech Support/Help AvailabilityIn-person or email based technical support is readily available and aids users in troubleshooting tasks or solving problems experienced |
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HypermedialityThe tool allows users to communicate through different channels (audio, visual, textual) but is limited in its ability to provide non-sequential, flexible/adaptive engagement with material |
Accessibility
| Rating | Rationale |
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AODA FriendlyThe tool has some limited capacity to be fully accessible for users or for materials to be made AODA-friendly. See information on accessibility in Excel. |
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User-focused participationThe tool has some limited capacity to address the needs of diverse users, their various literacies, and capabilities |
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Required EquipmentProper use of the tool does not require equipment other than a computer and access to the internet |
Technical
| Rating | Rationale |
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OWL IntegrationThe tool can only be offered in OWL through a link or static representations of the tool (i.e. PDF), rather than a functional version of the tool itself |
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Operating Systems Users can effectively utilize the tool using the Windows or MacOS operating systems. There is also a web app and mobile app which allow for access from other systems |
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Web BrowserUsers can effectively utilize the tool with any standard, up-to-date web browser (i.e. Google Chrome, Safari, Firefox, Internet Explorer 10 etc.) |
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Additional Tech RequirementsUsers can effectively utilize the tool without any browser extensions or downloaded software |
Mobile Design
| Rating | Rationale |
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Mobile Operating SystemsThere are moble applications available for Android, iOS and Windows phones. |
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Mobile FunctionalityBasic features of the main tool are functional on the mobile app but advanced features are limited |
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Offline AccessThe platform can be used offline, maintaining tools and learning content |
Usage and Account Set Up
| Rating | Rationale |
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Sign Up/Sign InWestern faculty, staff and students can use their institutional login to access Microsoft Excel. |
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Cost of UseAlthough there would normally be a licence fee to access Microsoft Excel, it is available free of charge to Western faculty staff and students as part of our Microsoft 365 licence. |
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Archiving, Saving, and Exporting DataUsers can archive, save, or import and export content or activity data in a variety of formats |
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Data Privacy and OwnershipUsers maintain ownership and copyright of their intellectual property/data; the user can keep data private and decide if/how data is to be shared |
Social Presence
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CollaborationThe tool has the capacity to support a community of learning through both asynchronous and synchronous opportunities for communication, interactivity, and transfer of meaning between users |
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User AccountabilityInstructors cannot control student anonymity but the tool provides some solution for holding students accountable for their actions. eg: version history |
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DiffusionThe tool is widely known and popular, it’s likely that most students are familiar with the tool and have basic technical competence with it |
Instructor Presence
| Rating | Rationale |
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FacilitationThe tool has limited functionality to effectively support an instructor’s ability to be present with students via active management, monitoring, and engagement |
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CustomizationLimited aspects of the tool can be customized to suit the classroom context and learning outcomes |
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Learning AnalyticsAs a spreadsheet tool, Microsoft Excel is not intended to support the collection of learning analytics |
Cognitive Presence
| Rating | Rationale |
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Enhancement of Cognitive Task(s)The tool enhances engagement in targeted cognitive task(s) that were once overly complex or inconceivable through other means |
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Higher Order ThinkingThe tool may engage students in higher order thinking skills (given significant consideration to design, facilitation, and direction from instructor) |
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Feedback on LearningOpportunities for receiving formative feedback on learning are available, but infrequent or limited (i.e. poor opportunities for tracking performance, monitoring improvement, testing knowledge on a regular basis) |
Security and Privacy
This tool has been formally reviewed by Western’s Technology Risk Assessment Committee
Security and Privacy Flags
Information Collection
- Application collects information that could identify the user specifically (email address, class schedule, etc..)
EULA
- Application's Terms of Conditions or End User License Agreement poses a risk of binding the institution to an agreement thereby requiring legal counsel to review the application. However, this is mitigated as it has undergone legal review during the Technology Risk Assessment process.
Last Updated: September 16, 2020
Rubric
The eLearning Toolkit Evaluations are made available under the terms of the CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 licence
Feedback
Leave feedback to comment or request that the tool be re-reviewed
Topic at a Glance
Microsoft Excel is a spreadsheeting program ideal for communicating complicated connected information and building charts. It is a tool commonly used in the business world and as such may have to be taught to students.
