Thesis (M.Ed.)--Memorial University of Newfoundland, 2000. / Bibliography: p. 54-56.

Thesis (M.S.)--University of Florida, 2002. / Title from title page of source document. Includes vita. Includes bibliographical references.

Mode of access: World Wide Web. / Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Hawaii at Manoa, 2005. / Spreadsheet programs are widely used in business and government. Unfortunately, there is strong evidence that many spreadsheets contain errors. In spite of the importance of spreadsheets in decision-making, studies have shown consistently that end-user spreadsheet developers rarely test their models thoroughly after development in the manner that professional programmers test software. One contributing factor to both error rates and the lack of post development testing may be that spreadsheet developers are overconfident in the correctness of their spreadsheets. Overconfidence is a widespread human tendency, and it has been demonstrated among spreadsheet developers. When people are overconfident, their "stopping rules" for error detection during and after development may be premature, causing them to stop checking before they should. This may contribute to the number of errors. At the same time, a research construct that appears to be closely related is self-efficacy, which has been shown that high self-efficacy is positively related to computer task performance, including spreadsheet performance (although not specifically to error reduction performance). The findings from this research concluded that people with high self-efficacy and high confidence make fewer errors than those with low self-efficacy and high confidence. Also, a "think-aloud" protocol analysis of a subset of subjects observed a lack of system design and analysis effort and a minimal amount of testing during the development of spreadsheet tasks. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 96-103). / Electronic reproduction. / Also available by subscription via World Wide Web / ix, 135 leaves, bound .ill 29 cm

Thesis (Ed. D.)--West Virginia University, 1998. / Title from document title page. "April 27, 1998." Document formatted into pages; contains vi, 113 p. : ill. Vita. Includes abstract. Includes bibliographical references (p. 85-92).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Oregon State University, 2009. / Printout. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 232-237). Also available on the World Wide Web.

Spreadsheets are one of the most frequently used applications. They are used because they are easy to understand and values can be updated easily. However, many people try to use spreadsheets for problems beyond their intended scope and end up with errors and miscalculations. We present a new spreadsheet system which uses complex-values and equation code reuse to overcome the limitations of spreadsheets for complex problems. We also discuss the features necessary in order to make these enhancements useful and effective.

Spreadsheets are a widely used end-user programming tool. Field audits have found that 80-90% of spreadsheets created by end users contain textual and formula errors in spreadsheets. Such errors may have severe negative consequences for users in terms of productivity, credibility, or profits. To solve the problem of spreadsheet errors, researchers have presented manual and automatic error detection. Manual error detection is both tedious and time-consuming, while automatic error detection is limited to only finding some formula error categories such as formula reference errors. Both approaches do not provide the optimum result in error detection. We have tested a new error detection approach by detecting bad smells in spreadsheets, which is an indication that an error might be present. Originally developed for object-oriented programming, examples include the large class, and the lazy class. We have adapted the concept of bad smells to spreadsheets. Each bad smell detector might indicate an issue in the spreadsheet, but the indication is not definitive, since the user must examine the spreadsheet and make a final judgment about whether an error is actually present. We evaluated 11 bad smell detectors by analyzing the true positives against the false positives. The result shows that six detectors can highlight some error categories, such as categorical errors and typographical errors. / Graduation date: 2013

M.Ed. / The computer technology can be used as a complementary tool for teaching as well as a learning tool. Whilst not having the same level of computer use as the developed countries, South Africa is increasingly becoming a society of technology users; therefore, one prime goal of education would be to develop a basic knowledge of the structure and operating principle behind the use of computers in teaching and learning. This study was conducted at a selected public secondary school in Johannesburg West District, Gauteng Province. It focuses on the design and implementation of Data Handling lesson through computer-based spreadsheets for Grade 10 learners. The design type of this study is qualitative design experiment method with a small component of quantitative approach. This method is regarded as an educational intervention developed as a way of carrying out formative research to test and refine educational designs on the principles derived from earlier research. The method addressed the curricular content (Data Handling) in the classroom as well as PowerPoint, Microsoft Word and Spreadsheets software design. The design framework is derived from design principles generated from instructional system design theory and constructivist perspective. Design principles are used as a framework for the analysis of the learners’ and teacher’s experiences of a Data Handling lesson through computer-based spreadsheets. Data was collected through observation, interviews and assessment activities Findings suggested that the use of computer-based spreadsheets in teaching and learning had contributed positive effect towards the learning of Data Handling. Both teacher and her learners identified the positive experiences of fun and interest in using computer-based spreadsheets in teaching and learning.

Abstract This study is concerned with the ways mathematical understanding emerges when mathematical phenomena are encountered through digital pedagogical media, the spreadsheet, in particular. Central to this, was an examination of the affordances digital technologies offer, and how the affordances associated with investigating mathematical tasks in the spreadsheet environment, shaped the learning trajectories of the participants. Two categories of participating students were involved, ten-year-old primary school pupils, and pre-service teachers. An eclectic approach to data collection, including qualitative and quantitative methods, was initially undertaken, but as my research perspective evolved, a moderate hermeneutic frame emerged as the most productive way in which to examine the research questions. A hermeneutic process transformed the research methodology, as well as the manner in which the data were interpreted. The initial analysis and evolving methodology not only informed this transition to a moderate hermeneutic lens, they were constitutive of the ongoing research perspectives and their associated interpretations. The data, and some that was subsequently collected, were then reconsidered from this modified position. The findings indicated that engaging mathematical tasks through the pedagogical medium of the spreadsheet, influenced the nature of the investigative process in particular ways. As a consequence, the interpretations of the interactions, and the understandings this evoked, also differed. The students created and made connections between alternative models of the situations, while the visual, tabular structuring of the environment, in conjunction with its propensity to instantly manage large amounts of output accurately, facilitated their observation of patterns. They frequently investigated the visual nature of these patterns, and used visual referents in their interpretations and explanations. It also allowed them to pose and test their informal conjectures and generalisations in non-threatening circumstances, to reset investigative sub-goals easily, hence fostering risk taking in their approach. At times, the learning trajectory evolved in unexpected ways, and the data illustrated various alternative ways in which unexpected, visual output stimulated discussion and extended the boundaries of, or reorganised, their interaction and mathematical thinking. An examination of the visual perturbations, and other elements of learning as hermeneutic processes also revealed alternative understandings and explanations. Viewing the data and the research process through hermeneutic filters enhanced the connectivity between the emergence of individual mathematical understanding, and the cultural formation of mathematics. It permitted consideration of the ways this process influences the evolution of mathematics education research. While interpretive approaches are inevitably imbued with the researcher perspective in the analysis of what gets noticed, the research gave fresh insights into the ways learning emerges through digital pedagogical media, and the potential of this engagement to change the nature of mathematics education.

End-user programmers are writing an unprecedented number of programs, due in large part to the significant effort put forth to bring programming power to end users. Unfortunately, this effort has not been supplemented by a comparable effort to increase the correctness of these often faulty programs. To address this need, we have been working towards bringing fault localization techniques to end users. In order to understand how end users are affected by and interact with such techniques, we conducted a think-aloud study, examining the interactive, human-centric ties between end-user debugging and a fault localization technique for the spreadsheet paradigm. Our results provide insights into the contributions such techniques can make to an interactive end-user debugging process. / Graduation date: 2004