Charts and graphs

[23 minutes total]

These seven tutorials show how to make charts and graphs in Excel. Visual displays of data can help school stakeholders understand patterns and trends quickly and easily.

After viewing the tutorial(s), use the back key in your browser to return to this web site.

• Using Chart Wizard (selecting chart type and defining titles and labels) (2:54)
• Examining Chart Wizard options in more detail (2:45)
• Using Chart Wizard with nested tables (2:54)
• Comparing table layouts and the charts they generate (2:57)
• Comparing different chart types (line, pie, doughnut) (3:11)
• Changing chart format options (font size, scale, tick marks, borders, patterns) (4:41)
• Creating chart templates(3:23)

Trace cell references

[2 minutes total]

Excel spreadsheets often contain a number of calculations and it is easy to lose track of which data are feeding into a particular calculated cell. These two tutorials show how to visually display the data items that are being used in particular calculated cell values.

After viewing the tutorial(s), use the back key in your browser to return to this web site.

• Activating trace cell references to determine all cells that reference to a single cell (1:00)
• Activating trace cell references to determine all cells to which a single cell references (1:16)

Protection

[5 minutes total]

Once Excel data are formatted, calculated, and/or displayed to facilitate data collection and analysis, it often is useful to protect the data so that another user cannot delete or alter them. These three tutorials show how to protect Excel data so that they are not lost to accidental or intentional deletion.

After viewing the tutorial(s), use the back key in your browser to return to this web site.

• Protecting cells (2:08)
• Turning protection off (0:37)
• Demonstrating cell protection with an example (2:01)

Pivot tables and charts

[24 minutes total]

The Pivot tables and chartsfeature in Excel lets educators begin disaggregating and analyzing data within seconds (literally) of receiving original data files from state departments, testing companies, and/or school districts. These ten tutorials show how to use what is perhaps the most powerful data analysis tool within Excel (note: dynamic pivot charts do not work in Macintosh versions of Excel, but pivot tables do!). Before viewing these tutorials, it is recommended that you view the Charts and Graphs tutorials if you do not already know how to use Excel’s charting features.

After viewing the tutorial(s), use the back key in your browser to return to this web site.

• Introducing pivot tables (1:49)
• Setting up and formatting pivot table data fields (1:48)
• Setting up pivot table categories (2:46)
• Correcting common mistakes, like removing data fields and making the field list and pivot table toolbar reappear (2:02)
• Understanding your data and its suitability for a pivot table (1:21)
• Determining suitable categories for a pivot table and using page fields (4:28)
• Dragging in a category twice to break out the count by category (2:19)
• Creating pivot charts (2:09)
• Understanding the relationships between pivot charts and tables and hiding buttons during printing (1:07)
• Reviewing pivot tables and charts(2:46)

Formulas and functions

[23 minutes total]

These eight tutorials show how to work with Excel’s various formulas and functions, which are used to calculate totals, averages, etc. While the mathematical aspects of Excel often intimidate users, some basic knowledge in this area is often necessary to work with school and student data.

After viewing the tutorial(s), use the back key in your browser to return to this web site.

• Adding, subtracting, multiplying, and dividing numbers in cells (1:38)
• Using sum, count, countblank, counta, countif functions (6:21)
• Using AutoSum and calculating and copying cells with relative cell references (2:47)
• Calculating and copying cells with absolute cell references (1:23)
• Using average, median, mode, minimum and maximum functions and copying to other ranges (3:54)
• Using standard deviation, variance, and correlation functions (2:10)
• Calculating weighted averages(2:47)
• Graphing results(2:03)

You may need to turn off your browser’s pop-up blocker or install the latest Flash plug-in to view these tutorials.