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ERIC Number: EJ720376
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2005
Pages: 6
Abstractor: ERIC
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1076-2175
EISSN: N/A
Technology: An Introduction to Using Spreadsheets to Increase the Sophistication of Student Projects
Siegle, Del
Gifted Child Today, v28 n4 p50-55 Fall 2005
Very young students can begin to use technology to organize and analyze their data in sophisticated ways. The National Center for Education Statistics (2005) reported that 67% of nursery school students and 80% of kindergarten students were using computers in 2003. By the early elementary grades, some of these students are ready to begin using spreadsheet programs. The purpose of this column is to introduce readers to two simple procedures available in Microsoft Excel that can be used with gifted and talented elementary students. The first can be used with primary students to create simple column (bar) graphs. The second can be used beginning with middle elementary students to plot and calculate simple relationships (correlations). Upper elementary students can begin the research process by reading about the topic they are investigating. Researchers call this conducting a review of literature. This process serves three purposes. First, students develop background on what they are interested in studying. Second, it helps students focus their interest and helps them to refine research questions that they will answer by collecting data. While data collection techniques become more complex for older children, spreadsheet programs are powerful and versatile enough to aid the most sophisticated student researchers. Many advanced statistical procedures can be calculated with Excel, whose powerful functions have often been ignored.
Prufrock Press, P.O. Box 8813, Waco, TX 76714-8813. Tel: 800-998-2208 (Toll Free).
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: Elementary Education; Middle Schools; Preschool Education
Audience: Students
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A