Mathematical Computations

Introduction:

Perhaps the most valuable feature of Excel is its ability to produce mathematical outputs using the data in a workbook. Week Two reviews mathematical outputs that you can produce in Excel through the construction of formulas and functions. Beginning with the construction of formulas for basic mathematical computations, you will then learn to use functions, such as SUM, and COUNTA, which can be applied to a range of cells.

These skills will be demonstrated in the context of creating an inventory budget, which is a vital tool for financial decision-making. The inventory budget objective will also provide you with several opportunities to demonstrate Excel’s what-if scenario capabilities, which highlight how formulas and functions automatically produce new outputs when one or more inputs are changed.

Course Competencies:

1. Understand and describe what Excel is and how it is used to work with quantitative data
2. Design, construct, format, and edit workbooks and worksheets for professional use
3. Create and apply formulas and functions to calculate data using appropriate mathematical principles
4. Construct and design charts and tables to effectively visualize and manipulate data
5. Identify and assess the suitable printing and presentation of workbooks and worksheets
6. Utilize data analysis in determining the best possible outcomes of business-related decisions

Learning Objectives:

Each Outcome shows in parenthesis which Course Competency it aligns with.

1. Perform the entering, editing, and formatting of data in an Excel worksheet (2)
2. Perform the insertion and deletion of rows and movement of data between rows in modifying a worksheet (2)
3. Apply formatting to cells and data using the Format Painter, Border Style, Cell Style, and Merge and Center tools (2)
4. Apply the Currency and Comma number styles to data and format decimal places of data (2)
5. Create basic formulas using relative references to calculate totals (3)
6. Apply the SUM and COUNTA functions to calculate totals and count cell locations with numerical and textual values (3)
7. Utilize the Paste Special menu to copy and paste functions and formulas (3)
8. Insert Headers and Footers using the Page Layout tab for printing (5)
9. Evaluate the printing setup of a worksheet and apply corrections using the Backstage View and Scaling of Columns in correcting worksheet formatting (5)

To-Do List:

1. Week 2 KnowledgePath
2. Week 2 Learning Materials
3. Week 2 Discussion
4. Course Lab Project – Exercise 2  *download the starting file from the Canvas Module

Sources:

Image attribution: Adapted from How to Use Microsoft Excel: The Careers in Practice Series, adapted by The Saylor Foundation without attribution as requested by the work’s original creator or licensee, and licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 3.0.