Course Title: Develop and use complex spreadsheets

Part B: Course Detail

Teaching Period: Term2 2021

Course Code: COSC6185C

Course Title: Develop and use complex spreadsheets

School: 650T Vocational Business Education

Campus: City Campus

Program: C5343 - Diploma of Financial Planning

Course Contact: Doug Gourlay

Course Contact Phone: +61 3 9925 5944

Course Contact Email: doug.gourlay@rmit.edu.au


Name and Contact Details of All Other Relevant Staff

Michael Elliot

michael.elliot@rmit.edu.au

Nominal Hours: 50

Regardless of the mode of delivery, represent a guide to the relative teaching time and student effort required to successfully achieve a particular competency/module. This may include not only scheduled classes or workplace visits but also the amount of effort required to undertake, evaluate and complete all assessment requirements, including any non-classroom activities.

Pre-requisites and Co-requisites

None

Course Description

This unit describes the skills and knowledge required to use spreadsheet software to complete business tasks and produce complex documents.

It applies to individuals employed in a range of work environments who require skills in creation of complex spreadsheets to store and retrieve data. They may work as individuals providing administrative support within an enterprise, or may be independently responsible for designing and working with spreadsheets relevant to their own work roles.


National Codes, Titles, Elements and Performance Criteria

National Element Code & Title:

BSBITU402 Develop and use complex spreadsheets

Element:

1. Prepare to develop spreadsheet

Performance Criteria:

1.1 Organise personal work environment in accordance with ergonomic requirements 1.2 Analyse task and determine specifications for spreadsheets 1.3 Identify organisational and task requirements of data entry, storage, output, reporting and presentation requirements 1.4 Apply work organisation strategies and energy and resource conservation techniques to plan work activities

Element:

2. Develop a linked spreadsheet solution

Performance Criteria:

2.1 Utilise spreadsheet design software functions and formulae to meet identified requirements 2.2 Link spreadsheets in accordance with software procedures 2.3 Format cells and use data attributes assigned with relative and/or absolute cell references, in accordance with task specifications 2.4 Test formulae to confirm output meets task requirements

Element:

3. Automate and standardise spreadsheet operation

Performance Criteria:

3.1 Evaluate tasks to identify those where automation would increase efficiency 3.2 Create, use and edit macros to fulfil requirements of task and automate spreadsheet operation 3.3 Develop, edit and use templates to ensure consistency of design and layout for forms and reports, in accordance with organisational requirements

Element:

4. Use spreadsheets

Performance Criteria:

4.1 Enter, check and amend data in accordance with organisational and task requirements 4.2 Import and export data between compatible spreadsheets and adjust host documents, in accordance with software and system procedures 4.3 Use manuals, user documentation and online help to overcome problems with spreadsheet design and production 4.4 Preview, adjust and print spreadsheet in accordance with organisational and task requirements 4.5 Name and store spreadsheet in accordance with organisational requirements and exit application without data loss or damage

Element:

5. Represent numerical data in graphic form

Performance Criteria:

5.1 Determine style of graph to meet specified requirements and manipulate spreadsheet data if necessary to suit graph requirements 5.2 Create graphs with labels and titles from numerical data contained in a spreadsheet file 5.3 Save, view and print graph within designated timelines


Learning Outcomes



Details of Learning Activities

A range of learning activities are planned for this course including self-paced and collaborative classroom based activities.

The self-paced activities will be delivered thought the Canvas learning management system and include your contribution to discussion threads, project portfolios, quizzes and interactive sessions.

The collaborative classroom based activities will include group discussion, group problem solving activities and opportunities to practice your skills in a simulated/real workplace environment.

We expect you to participate and contribute in all scheduled learning activities.


Teaching Schedule

This course is comprised of one competency: BSBITU402/COSC6185C Develop and use complex spreadsheets

Note: For live class sessions- The teacher will be sending you collaborate-ultra session information via announcements or emails.

(The following schedule is subject to change)

Course Schedule: Develop and Use Complex Spreadsheets, Semester 2, 2021

Week

Topic

Readings and Activities

Assessment

Elements and Performance Criteria

Week 1

July 5th

Introduction to the course including:

  • Course requirements and support documents/resources
  • Course Canvas access
  • Accuracy of enrolment
  • Assessment requirements/Cover Sheets
  • Reminder re Plagiarism/Appeals
  • Extensions/Re-submissions
  • Feedback in this course
  • Getting help
  • Completing Hands-on Exercises

 

Topic - Introduction to Complex Spreadsheets

Read pre-class content


Read:

Week 2 Learning materials information

 

Complete exercises:

 Introduction Excel - Complete Activity 1 and Activity 2



1.1

1.2

1.3

1.4

Week 2

July 12th

Topic 1 - Spreadsheet skills reviewed

Topic 2 – Formula in Excel

Download excel Files



Read:

 Week 2 Learning materials information - Relative and Absolute cell references

Book reading, Pages 1 -20

Complete exercises

Consolidation Task 1 pg. 12

Consolidation Task 2 pg.14

 Hands-on exercises

ex-1,pg.16, ex.-2, pg.17 ex-3, pg. 19


Portfolio of Assessments-Task 1

Due end of this week

Use Planning Spreadsheet Example PDF for AT1

1.1-1.4

2.1 – 2.4

4.1

4.3

4.5

Week 3

July 19th

Topic 3 – Functions in Excel

 Topic 4 – Using Statistical functions

Topic 5 – Viewing and adjusting worksheets 

Read:

Week 3 Learning materials information -

Book reading, Pages 21 - 42

 Complete exercises:

Hands-on exercises 4 ,5, 6,7,8,9,10,11 & 12

Consolidation Task 3 pg. 21

Assessment 2

Consolidation Task 4 pg. 22

Portfolio of Assessment task 1 should have been submitted


Portfolio of Assessment task 2: Due 25/7/21

Students will receive feedback in week 4.

1.1-1.4

2.1-2.4

4.1

4.3

4.5

Week 4

July  26th

Topic 6 - Using data and time function

Topic 7 - Using logical functions

Topic 8 – Creating and editing templates

Read:



Book reading, Pages 43 - 59


Complete exercises:

Hands-on exercise 13-19

Consolidation Task 5, Page 54 

Consolidation Task 6, Pages 58-59

Assessment 3

Portfolio of Assessment task 2 should have been submitted


Complete Consolidation Task  3, Page 21,  Due 01/8/21

Students will receive feedback in week 5.

1.1-1.4

2.1-2.4

3.3

4.1

4.3

4.4

4.5

Week 5

August 2nd

Topic 9 - Using Lookup functions

Topic 10 – Using maths functions


Read:


Book reading, Pages 60 - 68

Complete exercises:

Hands-on exercises 20,21,22 & 23

Portfolio of Assessments Task 3 should have been submitted

Due 08/8/21

Students will receive feedback in week 6.

1.1-1.4

2.1-2.4

4.3,4.5

Week 6

August 9th

Topic 11 – Charting and pictures in Excel

Working on Major Assignment– Part A- Cash Flow

Read:


Book reading, Pages 69 - 83


Complete exercises:

Hands-on exercises 24 -32

Consolidation Task 7, Page 64

Consolidation

Task 8, Page 83

Portfolio of Assessments Task 4

Complete Consolidation Task 7, Page 64 Due 15/8/21

Students will receive feedback in week 7.

1.1-1.4

4.3-4.5

5.1-5.3

Week 7

August 16th

Topic 12 – Using financial functions

Topic 13 – Useful text functions

Topic 14 – Working with data in tables


Working on Major Assignment– Part A-  Balance sheet


 Read:


Book reading, Pages 84 - 102


Complete exercises:

Hands-on exercises 33, 34 & 35

Portfolio of Assessments Task 5

Consolidation Task 8

Page 83 Due: 22/8/21

Students will receive feedback in week 8.

1.1-1.4

2.1-2.4

4.3,4.5

Week 8

August 23rd




Working on Major Assignment – Part A

Superannuation Model


 

Portfolio of Assessments Task 6

Hands-on exercise 34, pages 89-90 Due 12/9/21

Students will receive feedback in week 10.


 1.1-4.5


 


Mid-Semester Break (August 30th  to September 5th)

Week 9

September 6th

Working on Major Assignment  – Part A

Assets  Allocation

Financial Functions PPT

Financial Functions xlsx


1.1-4.5

Week 10

September  13th

Topic 15 – Creating PivotTables & Pivot Charts

Topic 16 - Useful database functions

Topic 17 – Importing and exporting data


Read:


Book reading, Pages 103 - 121


Complete exercises:

Hands-on exercises 36 – 44

Consolidation Task 9, Page 121

Portfolio of Assessments Task 7

Consolidation Task 9, Page 121

Due 26/09/21

1.1 - 1.4

2.1 – 2.4

4.1- 4.5



Week 11

September 20th


Topic 19 - Tools for summarising data

Read:


Book reading, Pages 128 - 147

Complete exercises:

Hands-on exercises 45 – 58

Consolidation Task 10, Page 147

Portfolio of Assessments Task 7 was due 26/09/21

Complete Consolidation 

Students will receive feedback in week 13.

Major Assignment  – Workplace Simulated Project - Part A Due 3/10/21

Students will receive feedback in week 13.

1.1 - 1.4

4.1-4.5



Week 12

September  27th

Topic 20 – Conditional formatting

Topic 21 - Creating macros

 


Read:


Book reading, Pages 148 - 168

Complete exercises:

Hands-on exercises 59 – 70

Consolidation Task 11, Page 169

Portfolio of Assessments Task 8 

Consolidation Task 11, Page 169

Due 10/10/21

1.1-1.4

2.1-2.4

3.1-3.3

4.3,4.5

Week 13

October 4th

Working on Major Assignment  – Part B

Workplace Simulated Project

Read:

Assessment Help- How to lock formulas and protect data


Topics:

-Lock formulas and protect data

-Create template

-Create Charts

Portfolio of Assessments Task 8 was due on the 10/10/21


Students will receive feedback in week 15.

3.1-5.3

Week 14

October 11th

Working on Major Assignment  – Part B

Workplace Simulated Project


Working on Major Assignment  – Part B

Workplace Simulated Project

Due 17/10/21

Students will receive feedback in week 16.

3.1-5.3

Week 15

October 18th

Re-submissions




Week 16

October  25th

Re-submissions





Week 17

November 1st

Grade Entry



The nominal hours associated with this are a guide only and represent the total teaching time and student effort required to successfully complete the course. This may include not only scheduled classes but also the amount of effort required to undertake, evaluate and complete all assessment requirements, including any non-classroom activities including the self - paced activities in the workbooks. 


Learning Resources

Prescribed Texts


References


Other Resources

Online learning materials can be accessed by going into the RMIT's Learning Management System, Canvas. 

The online learning materials listed may include: 

  • Course outlines
  • Power point Presentations
  • Supporting Reading material
  • Industry relevant articles
  • Activities.


Overview of Assessment

In order to achieve competency in this unit, you must provide:

Performance Evidence

Evidence of the ability to:

  • follow organisational and safe work practices including:
    • ergonomic requirements
    • energy and resource conservation techniques
  • adhere to organisational requirements for:
    • ensuring consistency of style, design and layout
    • saving and printing documents within designated timelines
    • naming and storing documents
  • adhere to identified or task requirements when producing documents including:
    • editing macros and automating some tasks
    • using appropriate templates
    • creating graphs to represent data
  • resolve issues by referring to user documentation and online help
  • use appropriate data storage options
  • evaluate tasks to improve efficiency
  • apply knowledge of functions and features of contemporary computer applications
  • communicate with relevant personnel

Knowledge Evidence

To complete the unit requirements safely and effectively, the individual must:

  • explain advanced functions of spreadsheet software applications
  • describe impact of formatting and design on presentation and readability of data
  • explain organisational requirements for ergonomics, work periods and breaks, and conservation techniques.

Assessment Conditions

Assessment must be conducted in a safe environment where evidence gathered where evidence gathered demonstrates consistent performance of typical activities experienced in the information and communications technology – IT use field of work and include access to:

  • organisational policies and procedures
  • relevant workplace documentation and resources
  • industry software packages and user instructions.

You are advised that you are likely to be asked to personally demonstrate your assessment work to your teacher to ensure that the relevant competency standards are being met.

Feedback

Feedback will be provided throughout the semester in class and/or online discussions.  You are encouraged to ask and answer questions during class time and online sessions so that you can obtain feedback on your understanding of the concepts and issues being discussed. Finally, you can email or arrange an appointment with your teacher to gain more feedback on your progress.

You should take note of all feedback received and use this information to improve your learning outcomes and final performance in the course. 


Assessment Tasks

You will demonstrate competency by undertaking two assessments. You must successfully complete all assessments to be deemed competent in this unit.  


Assessment Task 1: Portfolio of Complex Spreadsheets these will be completed by submitting a series of tasks that are (8) exercises These will help you illustrate your ability to complete various tasks using Excel and to prove your competency

Summary and Purpose: This practical assessment will allow you to demonstrate your ability to plan, create and use spreadsheets; develop linked spreadsheet solutions and represent numerical data in graphic forms. 

Assessment Instructions: For this assessment task you are required to produce a progressive individual portfolio comprised of eight practical exercises from your workbook: “Tilde Skills Develop and use complex spreadsheets: Excel 2013”

The aim of the practical activities is to enhance your understanding and skills with advanced spreadsheet functions using Excel, including spreadsheet skills, formulas, creating and editing templates, using lookup functions, charting and pictures, importing and exporting data, tools for summarising data and creating macros.

You must successfully complete all of the practical topics for this portfolio by the due date specified in the weekly schedule in order to satisfactorily achieve the criteria covered in this portfolio.


Assessment Task 2: Workplace Simulated Project

Part A Due: as per course syllabus

Part B Due: as per course syllabus

Summary and Purpose: The workplace simulated project consists of 2 tasks - Part A and Part B. 

You will have access to a simulated client file, which will incorporate financial planning advice in Superannuation by producing  financial planning spreadsheets that includes client(s) cash flows, assets and liability, superannuation account, assets allocation variance and recommended superannuation strategies  to achieve client's goals.

Assessment Instructions: You are required to present a linked spreadsheet solution for your clients in the form of reports, tables, charts and create a macro which setup each report/sheet for printing.

The purpose of the assessment is to enable you to demonstrate a breadth of understanding across all of the course material at an independent level. It assesses the knowledge you have obtained through the undertaking the concepts of superannuation to prepare financial planning documents for the simulated clients in Ms Excel workbook using various of Ms Excel functions and features.

You must successfully complete all Parts: A and B by the due date specified in the weekly schedule in order to satisfactorily achieve the criteria covered in this project.



Assessment Matrix

The assessment matrix that maps all the assessment is available on Canvas.


Other Information

Submission Requirements

  • Ensure that you submit assessments on or before the due date.
  • Always retain a copy of your assessment tasks. (hard copy and soft copy)
  • When you submit work for assessment at RMIT University you need to use the Assessment task document that includes a declaration and statement of authorship.
  • Each page of your assessment should include a footer with your name, student number, the title of the assessment, unit code and title and page numbers.

Resubmissions (VET Programs)

If you are found to be unsuccessful (Not satisfactory/Unsatisfactory) in a Course Assessment Task you will be allowed one resubmission.  Your teacher will provide feedback regarding what you need to do to improve and will set a new deadline for the resubmission.

If you are still not meeting the assessment requirements you must apply to your Program Manager in writing outlining the steps you will take to demonstrate competence in your course. Your submission will be considered by the Program Team and you will be advised of the outcome as soon as possible.

Penalties for Late Submission 

Late submissions of assignments without special consideration or extension will automatically be considered a re-submission (see above).

Extensions, Special Consideration and Adjustment to Assessments

Extensions:

Extensions are available for unforeseen circumstances of a short-term nature.

An application form must be submitted to the school at least one working day before the due date of the assessment.

Extensions can be approved for a maximum of one week (seven calendar days) past the due date for an assessment. (Where students need an extension exceeding one week they must instead apply for special consideration.)

Special consideration:

Special consideration is available for unexpected circumstances outside students’ control. These include but are not limited to: unexpected short-term ill health, and unavoidable family, work, cultural or religious commitments.

An application for special consideration is made in advance of an assessment wherever possible but will normally be accepted within five working days after the assessment date

For more information, see the Special Consideration page of the RMIT website.

Adjustments to Assessment:

RMIT provides several adjustments to assessment for students experiencing ongoing or long-term circumstances. Find the right one for your circumstances here.

Changes to the Assessment Scheme

Where a change to assessment approved by the dean/head of school changes an assessment due date, students will be given at least five working days’ notice of the new due date.

Feedback

You can expect to receive marks and feedback on in-course assessment work in time to improve your performance in related assessment tasks later in the course.

Academic Integrity and Misconduct

Students demonstrate academic integrity in their assessment practices by:

  • engaging with assessment activities in an honest way;
  • providing accountability for the authorship and originality of work submitted;
  • acknowledging the work of others and the re-use of original work.

Academic misconduct is addressed in accordance with the Student conduct policy

Assessment involving research with human participants, their information or their tissue, or animal subjects is carried out in accordance with the Staff ethics and integrity policy.

For further information see the Academic Integrity website.

Review and Appeal

A student may request a review of an assessment result or appeal a final course grade in accordance with the Conduct of assessment and appeals section of the Assessment Processes.

Grade Criteria

You must demonstrate that you have all the required skills/knowledge/elements in the unit of competency you are studying.

The following grades are available for this course.

Vocational education grades:

CA - Competency Achieved

NYC - Not Yet Competent

DNS - Did Not Submit for assessment

Course Overview: Access Course Overview