what is peer graded assignment in coursera

Center for Teaching

Getting to know coursera: peer assessments.

Posted by Rhett Mcdaniel on Monday, January 7, 2013 in Commentary .

by Katie McEwen, graduate assistant

The answer, for Coursera at least, is other students.  And while peer assessments have garnered a fair bit of attention , they’ve also quickly enough underscored some of the more pervasive, and truly difficult, issues faced by the Coursera model .  Plagiarism is perhaps only the most obvious one.  Peer assessments—the ways they work, they ways they don’t—raise serious issues about creating and cultivating community online; navigating questions of authority  and language proficiency; and about grading as a reflective practice.

Laura Gibbs, an experienced teacher of online courses, provides a thoughtful response to her own experience with peer feedback in the recent “Fantasy and Science Fiction” class on her blog Coursera Fantasy .  There, she also addresses some of deeply problematic aspects of grading in Coursera.

Unlike automatically graded quizzes and programming assignments, peer assessments require a good-faith effort on the part of each student not only to submit original work in the proper format and the proper language (still largely English), but also to then anonymously evaluate the work of others attentively and constructively.  So for each assignment submitted in a course, students are generally then asked to evaluate the work of up to 4 or 5 peers.  That’s not a negligible amount of work or time, especially in those courses with weekly or every-other-week peer-assessed assignments.

For example, students are asked to write short essays in “A History of the World since 1300;” or work through a series of project briefs in “Human-Computer Interaction;” participate in assignments and design challenges in “Design: Creation of Artifacts in Society;” or formulate final projects for “Introduction to Sustainability.”  David Owens, a professor at Vanderbilt’s Graduate School of Management, will try out group projects in his upcoming Coursera course on “Leading Strategic Innovation in Organizations.”

As we can see, peer assessment is a part of the course requirements for a wide spectrum Coursera courses across disciplines, not just those dedicated to literature.  In fact, of the 50 Coursera courses opened between June to October 2012, 14 (or 28%) required at least one peer-graded assessment.  And four of those 14 courses required only peer-graded assessments, with some unexpected titles in the mix: “Health Policy and the Affordable Care Act,” “Fantasy and Science Fiction,” “A History of the World since 1300,” and “Computer Architecture.”

Given this, it’s important to keep in mind that feedback on Coursera is anonymous.  That means you don’t know whose work you’re reviewing or who’s reviewed your work.  This makes any actual discussion of the feedback essentially impossible.  Want to follow up on a comment?  Or continue the discussion?  Not easy in a class of 50,000.  “Modern and Contemporary American Poetry” gets around this structural problem by asking students to post their completed and graded essays in the forum (in addition to the peer-assessment system) for more feedback and more engaging discussion.

But already, this question of anonymity in Coursera—which protects privacy while making it impossible to ask questions, or engage in a direct conversation, about the feedback—points to larger issues of how privacy and pedagogy intersect online.  How do we create sustainable online learning communities in Coursera if students are not accountable to their peers or for their feedback?

And when are students supposed to learn how to grade?

It generally seems that the piece most often missing in peer assessments is not good-faith effort on the part of most students to submit and evaluate work.  Rather, it’s that many (or even most) students simply do not have experience in evaluating the work of others.  And how could they?  While some courses offer peer-assessment training, this doesn’t seem to have yet bridged the skill gap.  So what are students really getting from this peer feedback?  Is it helping them to write better essays or to create more complex projects?

Part of the problem is, of course, that grading is difficult no matter the medium: online or face-to-face, seminar or lecture.  Neither is it a problem limited to students: many instructors likewise lack formal training in evaluating student work.

And, here, we run up against another unspoken assumption at work in Coursera: that grading is a relatively transparent, relatively straightforward process that can be “learned” quickly enough and well enough to be effective online.  To guide students, Coursera encourages instructors to develop detailed rubrics for evaluation.  Coursera also presents some limited data suggesting that their rubrics have improved over time.  This data , or rather the conclusions drawn from it, is far from conclusive.  It could be that it is the students’ ability to grade effectively improves over time, or even that only the more dedicated and skilled students continue to participate in peer grading.

Certainly, I don’t doubt the value of peer grading.  Nor do I doubt the ability of some, perhaps even many, Coursera students to grade effectively and insightfully.  I do, however, doubt that this is what actually happens in Coursera.  And initial anecdotal evidence — drawn from my own research into common practices in Coursera, as well as the experiences of others (see here , here , here , and the comments here ) — would seem to indicate that it is not.

Because as we know, grading is often one of the most difficult aspects of teaching.  It is a reflective practice, like any other we undertake in the classroom, changing over time, and requiring dedication, energy, and engagement.  Ideally, it would also include a commitment to helping others learn and improve.  How do we work to cultivate this kind of community culture online?  And what might we need to do differently to facilitate community online?

The real sticking point, for me, isn’t simply the issue of students grading effectively or ineffectively online.  Rather, it’s that Coursera doesn’t quite acknowledge that there is an implicit pedagogy or ideology at work on the platform.  Which suggests that grading is work to be outsourced, that the division of academic labor operating in most large university programs in the US, like those where the Coursera founders work—in which professors teach, graduate students (or machines) grade—is one worthy of replication online.

By thus separating expertise and grading, Coursera would seem to rely on an impoverished conception of grading, which privileges international perspectives over expert critique.  The model of peer assessment supported by Coursera folds together two assumptions: that peers can approximate or replace the kinds of substantive, constructive expert feedback critical to deeper understanding and that a grade is necessary to learn, full stop.  Even when credit is not granted .

So although there is no shortage of innovative projects assigned in Coursera courses, which ask students to apply and expand their knowledge in exciting, creative, and challenging ways, there is still a lack of sustained conversation around what grading, or peer assessment, means in this online environment.

Next time, we’ll continue our discussion to take a look at one outcome of grading in Coursera: certification.

Image: “ Score Cards ,” Marcus Hodges, Flickr (CC)

Tags: Coursera

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39% of Coursera Courses Have Peer Reviews: Here Are the Best

Unlike multiple-choice questions, peer-reviewed assessments are manually graded by other learners.

An analysis by Class Central has established that, currently, 2704 of Coursera’s 6939 active courses (or 39%) include peer-reviewed assessments — that is, assessments manually scored by other learners.

Online education tends to rely on automation when possible. When it comes to course assessments, this typically translates into courses using (or overusing) multiple-choice questions, since these can easily be autograded.

But multiple-choice questions aren’t always ideal, in particular in disciplines inherently subjective or open-ended. An equation might have one solution. But when it comes to, say, creative writing , there usually isn’t a single “right answer”.

Some learners might prefer the human touch of peer reviews. So we’ve compiled a list of the best Coursera courses that include peer reviews . We’ve broken the list down into subjects. Click on a subject to jump to the corresponding courses:

• Computer Science
• Programming
• Personal Development
• Health & Medicine
• Education & Teaching
• Data Science
• Social Sciences
• Art & Design
• Mathematics
• Engineering
• Information Security (InfoSec)

Peer Reviews: Strengths & Weaknesses

Peer reviews are a type of assignment used in online learning  — though prior to this analysis, we wouldn’t have guessed that more than a third of Coursera’s courses used them.

Peer reviews on Coursera work as follows:

• You complete an assignment , typically involving open-ended questions that you address by writing a few paragraphs of text. You submit it, but you don’t get a score just yet.
• You score other learners’ assignments , according to a specific rubric, giving more or fewer points depending on how well the assignment addressed each rubric item. In addition, you may write comments.
• You get your assignment score back , but only after (1) you’ve scored enough assignments, and (2) your assignment has been scored by enough learners.

Unfortunately, precisely because they introduce a human factor, peer-reviewed assessments come with limitations. Humans can be cunning. Our colleague @pat has written an article on the issues of peer reviews, which include cheating, delays, and inconsistencies .

That said, in our experience, many learners tackle these assignments earnestly, providing fair scores and useful feedback that can help one gain a better understanding of the course topic.

So if you’re looking for a good online course with peer-reviewed assessments, you can find our selection below.

Personal Development Online Courses

• Learning How to Learn: Powerful mental tools to help you master tough subjects from Deep Teaching Solutions ★★★★★(23699)
• Mindshift: Break Through Obstacles to Learning and Discover Your Hidden Potential from McMaster University ★★★★★(7496)
• Apprendre comment apprendre (ACA) : Des outils mentaux puissants qui vous aideront à maîtriser des sujets difficiles from Deep Teaching Solutions ★★★★★(397)
• Aprender from Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México ★★★★★(107)
• Introduction to Public Speaking from University of Washington ★★★★☆(14)
• Creative Thinking: Techniques and Tools for Success from Imperial College London ★★★★★(14)
• Introduction to Negotiation: A Strategic Playbook for Becoming a Principled and Persuasive Negotiator from Yale University ★★★★★(13)
• Story and Narrative Development for Video Games from California Institute of the Arts ★★★★★(9)
• Successful Career Development from University System of Georgia ★★★★★(9)
• How to Get Skilled: Introduction to Individual Skills Management (Project-Centered Course) from State University of New York ★★★★☆(8)
• Teamwork Skills: Communicating Effectively in Groups from University of Colorado Boulder ★★★★★(8)
• Positive Psychology: Resilience Skills from University of Pennsylvania ★★★★☆(7)

Programming Online Courses

• An Introduction to Interactive Programming in Python (Part 1) from Rice University ★★★★★(3360)
• Predictive Modeling and Machine Learning with MATLAB from MathWorks ★★★★★(60)
• An Introduction to Interactive Programming in Python (Part 2) from Rice University ★★★★★(58)
• Introduction to HTML5 from University of Michigan ★★★★☆(51)
• Programming Mobile Applications for Android Handheld Systems: Part 1 from University of Maryland, College Park ★★★★☆(41)
• Object-Oriented Design from University of Alberta ★★★★☆(39)
• Exploratory Data Analysis with MATLAB from MathWorks ★★★★★(38)
• Julia Scientific Programming from University of Cape Town ★★★★☆(30)
• Programming Languages, Part A from University of Washington ★★★★★(27)
• Responsive Website Basics: Code with HTML, CSS, and JavaScript from University of London International Programmes ★★★★☆(27)
• Design Patterns from University of Alberta ★★★★★(27)
• C++ For C Programmers, Part A from University of California, Santa Cruz ★★★☆☆(26)
• HTML, CSS, and Javascript for Web Developers from Johns Hopkins University ★★★★★(25)
• Object Oriented Programming in Java from University of California, San Diego ★★★★★(18)
• Introducción a la programación orientada a objetos en Java from Universidad de los Andes ★★★★★(18)

Health & Medicine Online Courses

• Understanding Clinical Research: Behind the Statistics from University of Cape Town ★★★★★(759)
• De-Mystifying Mindfulness from Leiden University ★★★★★(95)
• Severe to Profound Intellectual Disability: Circles of Care and Education from University of Cape Town ★★★★★(25)
• Positive Psychiatry and Mental Health from The University of Sydney ★★★★★(22)
• Organ Donation: From Death to Life from University of Cape Town ★★★★★(14)
• Herbal Medicine from University of Minnesota ★★★★☆(11)
• Community Change in Public Health from Johns Hopkins University ★★★★☆(10)
• Introduction to Breast Cancer from Yale University ★★★★★(8)
• Managing Your Health: The Role of Physical Therapy and Exercise from University of Toronto ★★★★☆(8)
• Living with Dementia: Impact on Individuals, Caregivers, Communities and Societies from Johns Hopkins University ★★★★☆(7)
• Science of Exercise from University of Colorado Boulder ★★★★★(7)
• Diabetes – a Global Challenge from University of Copenhagen ★★★★☆(7)
• Chemicals and Health from Johns Hopkins University ★★★★☆(6)

Business Online Courses

• Marketing in a Digital World from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign ★★★★★(514)
• The Digital Marketing Revolution from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign ★★★★★(333)
• FinTech Foundations and Overview from The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology ★★★★★(173)
• Preparing to Manage Human Resources from University of Minnesota ★★★★★(145)
• FinTech Security and Regulation (RegTech) from The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology ★★★★★(94)
• FinTech Risk Management from The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology ★★★★★(88)
• Financial Markets from Yale University ★★★★☆(37)
• Becoming a changemaker: Introduction to Social Innovation from University of Cape Town ★★★★★(36)
• Digital Marketing Analytics in Theory from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign ★★★★☆(35)
• Digital Marketing Analytics in Practice from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign ★★★★☆(24)
• The Science of Success: What Researchers Know that You Should Know from University of Michigan ★★★★★(21)
• Foundations of Business Strategy from University of Virginia ★★★★☆(21)
• Protecting Business Innovations via Strategy from The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology ★★★★★(20)

Humanities Online Courses

• A Life of Happiness and Fulfillment from Indian School of Business ★★★★★(508)
• Miracles of Human Language: An Introduction to Linguistics from Leiden University ★★★★★(95)
• Philosophy, Science and Religion: Religion and Science from University of Edinburgh ★★★★☆(65)
• English for Career Development from University of Pennsylvania ★★★★★(24)
• Philosophy, Science and Religion: Philosophy and Religion from University of Edinburgh ★★★★☆(23)
• The Modern and the Postmodern (Part 1) from Wesleyan University ★★★★★(21)
• Getting Started with Essay Writing from University of California, Irvine ★★★★☆(19)
• Sharpened Visions: A Poetry Workshop from California Institute of the Arts ★★★★☆(19)
• Creative Writing: The Craft of Plot from Wesleyan University ★★★★☆(17)
• Magic in the Middle Ages from University of Barcelona ★★★★☆(16)
• English for Journalism from University of Pennsylvania ★★★★☆(15)
• Tricky American English Pronunciation from University of California, Irvine ★★★★☆(15)
• Writing in the Sciences from Stanford University ★★★★★(14)
• Big History: Connecting Knowledge from Macquarie University ★★★★☆(13)
• Writing for Young Readers: Opening the Treasure Chest from Commonwealth Education Trust ★★★★☆(13)
• Ancient Philosophy: Plato & His Predecessors from University of Pennsylvania ★★★★★(12)
• English for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics from University of Pennsylvania ★★★★★(12)
• Creative Writing: The Craft of Setting and Description from Wesleyan University ★★★★☆(12)

Education & Teaching Online Courses

• Uncommon Sense Teaching from Deep Teaching Solutions ★★★★★(408)
• Uncommon Sense Teaching: Part 2, Building Community and Habits of Learning from Deep Teaching Solutions ★★★★★(91)
• Uncommon Sense Teaching: Teaching Online from Deep Teaching Solutions ★★★★★(31)
• Teaching Character and Creating Positive Classrooms from Relay Graduate School of Education ★★★★★(22)
• American Education Reform: History, Policy, Practice from University of Pennsylvania ★★★★★(9)
• Learning to Teach Online from University of New South Wales ★★★★☆(8)
• Disability Inclusion in Education: Building Systems of Support from University of Cape Town ★★★★★(7)
• Get Organized: How to be a Together Teacher from Relay Graduate School of Education ★★★★☆(6)
• ICT in Primary Education: Transforming children’s learning across the curriculum from University of London International Programmes ★★★★★(5)
• What future for education? from University of London International Programmes ★★★★★(5)
• Teach English Now! Second Language Listening, Speaking, and Pronunciation from Arizona State University ★★★★★(5)
• Foundations of Teaching for Learning: Learners and Learning from Commonwealth Education Trust ★★★★☆(5)
• Assessment for Learning from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign ★★★★★(4)
• Aboriginal Worldviews and Education from University of Toronto ★★★★★(4)

Data Science Online Courses

• Reproducible Research from Johns Hopkins University ★★★★☆(27)
• Data Visualization from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign ★★★☆☆(21)
• Developing Data Products from Johns Hopkins University ★★★★☆(18)
• Finding Hidden Messages in DNA (Bioinformatics I) from University of California, San Diego ★★★★★(17)
• Process Mining: Data science in Action from Eindhoven University of Technology ★★★★☆(17)
• Data Visualization and Communication with Tableau from Duke University ★★★★☆(9)
• Quantitative Methods from University of Amsterdam ★★★★★(7)
• Introduction to Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis from Johns Hopkins University ★★★★★(6)
• Genome Sequencing (Bioinformatics II) from University of California, San Diego ★★★★★(5)
• Social Network Analysis from University of California, Davis ★★★★★(5)
• Qualitative Research Methods from University of Amsterdam ★★★★☆(5)
• What is Data Science? from IBM ★★★★☆(4)

Social Sciences Online Courses

• Protecting Business Innovations via Patent from The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology ★★★★★(159)
• Social Psychology from Wesleyan University ★★★★★(88)
• Protecting Business Innovations via Copyright from The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology ★★★★★(64)
• Protecting Business Innovations via Trademark from The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology ★★★★★(53)
• Greening the Economy: Sustainable Cities from Lund University ★★★★★(53)
• EU policy and implementation: making Europe work! from Leiden University ★★★★★(51)
• Chinese Politics Part 1 – China and Political Science from The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology ★★★★★(36)
• The Science of Well-Being from Yale University ★★★★★(29)
• Introduction to Psychology from University of Toronto ★★★★★(27)
• Introduction to Sustainability from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign ★★★★☆(16)
• Security & Safety Challenges in a Globalized World from Leiden University ★★★★★(16)
• Understanding Research Methods from University of London International Programmes ★★★★☆(15)
• Chinese Politics Part 2 – China and the World from The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology ★★★★★(15)
• America’s Written Constitution from Yale University ★★★★☆(10)
• Risk in Modern Society from Leiden University ★★★★★(8)
• Positive Psychology: Applications and Interventions from University of Pennsylvania ★★★★★(7)

Computer Science Online Courses

• Computational Social Science Methods from University of California, Davis ★★★★★(115)
• Computer Simulations from University of California, Davis ★★★★★(42)
• Computational Social Science Capstone Project from University of California, Davis ★★★★★(31)
• Fundamentals of Reinforcement Learning from University of Alberta ★★★★★(24)
• Algorithmic Thinking (Part 1) from Rice University ★★★★☆(15)
• Introduction to the Internet of Things and Embedded Systems from University of California, Irvine ★★★★☆(13)
• Algorithmic Thinking (Part 2) from Rice University ★★★★☆(9)
• Interfacing with the Arduino from University of California, Irvine ★★★★☆(7)
• C for Everyone: Programming Fundamentals from University of California, Santa Cruz ★★★★☆(5)
• The Unix Workbench from Johns Hopkins University ★★★★★(4)
• Programming Languages, Part B from University of Washington ★★★★☆(4)
• Machine Learning for Data Analysis from Wesleyan University ★★★★☆(4)
• Machine Learning with Python from IBM ★★★★★(4)
• Leading Change in Health Informatics from Johns Hopkins University ★★★★★(3)

Art & Design Online Courses

• Gamification from University of Pennsylvania ★★★★★(58)
• Fundamentals of Music Theory from University of Edinburgh ★★★★☆(25)
• Songwriting: Writing the Lyrics from Berklee College of Music ★★★★★(25)
• Fundamentals of Graphic Design from California Institute of the Arts ★★★★☆(22)
• Guitar for Beginners from Berklee College of Music ★★★★★(22)
• The 3D Printing Revolution from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign ★★★★★(19)
• Design: Creation of Artifacts in Society from University of Pennsylvania ★★★★☆(18)
• Developing Your Musicianship from Berklee College of Music ★★★★★(16)
• Introduction to Game Design from California Institute of the Arts ★★★★★(14)
• Roman Architecture from Yale University ★★★★☆(13)
• 3D Printing Software from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign ★★★★★(13)

Mathematics Online Courses

• Introduction to Mathematical Thinking from Stanford University ★★★★☆(53)
• Probability and Statistics: To p or not to p? from University of London International Programmes ★★★★★(3)
• Introduction to Complex Analysis from Wesleyan University ★★★★★(3)
• Estadística aplicada a los negocios from Universidad Austral ★★★★☆(2)
• Bayesian Statistics: Techniques and Models from University of California, Santa Cruz ★★★★★(1)
• Improving your statistical inferences from Eindhoven University of Technology ★★★★★(1)
• Introduction to Linear Algebra and Python from Howard University ★★★★★(1)
• What are the Chances? Probability and Uncertainty in Statistics from Johns Hopkins University
• R을 사용한 확률 및 데이터 소개 from Duke University
• Inferenzstatistik from Duke University

Science Online Courses

• Climate Change Mitigation in Developing Countries from University of Cape Town ★★★★★(31)
• Understanding the Brain: The Neurobiology of Everyday Life from The University of Chicago ★★★★★(28)
• Astronomy: Exploring Time and Space from University of Arizona ★★★★★(23)
• Introduction to Forensic Science from Nanyang Technological University ★★★★☆(17)
• Disaster Preparedness from University of Pittsburgh ★★★★☆(13)
• Epigenetic Control of Gene Expression from University of Melbourne ★★★★★(10)
• Gut Check: Exploring Your Microbiome from University of Colorado Boulder ★★★★☆(10)
• Global Warming I: The Science and Modeling of Climate Change from The University of Chicago ★★★★☆(9)
• Water Supply and Sanitation Policy in Developing Countries Part 1: Understanding Complex Problems from University of Manchester ★★★★★(8)
• Greening the Economy: Lessons from Scandinavia from Lund University ★★★★☆(7)
• Visual Perception and the Brain from Duke University ★★★★☆(6)

Engineering Online Courses

• Our Energy Future from University of California, San Diego ★★★★★(7)
• Introduction to Systems Engineering from University of New South Wales ★★★★★(5)
• BIM Fundamentals for Engineers from National Taiwan University ★★★★☆(3)
• Introduction to GIS Mapping from University of Toronto ★★★★★(2)
• Imagery, Automation, and Applications from University of California, Davis ★★★★★(2)
• GIS Data Formats, Design and Quality from University of California, Davis ★★★★★(2)
• Geodesign: Change Your World from Pennsylvania State University ★★★★☆(2)
• Global Energy and Climate Policy from SOAS University of London ★★★★★(2)
• Solar Energy Basics from State University of New York ★★★★★(1)
• Solar Energy System Design from State University of New York ★★★★★(1)
• GIS, Mapping, and Spatial Analysis Capstone from University of Toronto ★★★★★(1)

Information Security (InfoSec) Online Courses

• Cyber Threats and Attack Vectors from University of Colorado System ★★★★☆(2)
• Introduction to Cybersecurity for Business from University of Colorado System ★★★★★(2)
• Proactive Computer Security from University of Colorado System ★★★★★(1)
• Hacking and Patching from University of Colorado System ★★★★★(1)
• Cybersecurity Capstone: Breach Response Case Studies from IBM ★★★★★(1)
• Security Operations and Administration from (ISC)² ★★★★★(1)
• Systems and Application Security from (ISC)² ★★★★☆(1)
• Identifying, Monitoring, and Analyzing Risk and Incident Response and Recovery from (ISC)² ★★★★☆(1)
• Introduction to DevSecOps from Johns Hopkins University
• Personnel & Third-Party Security from University of California, Irvine

Suparn Patra

Manoel cortes mendez.

Allison 1/25/2023 at 7:13pm

These are great suggestions. While I appreciate the idea behind collaborative grading (learning from others, helping fellow classmates by providing constructive feedback, etc.), the overall process is still highly subjective and often creates unnecessary roadblocks to efficient, timely online learning. I would love to see a similar article highlighting top-ranked courses that omit the peer review component (or tips on how to more easily identify these courses while searching the Coursera site!). Thanks!

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Peer-graded Assignment: Final Assignment

Peer-graded assignment: final assignment >> what is data science.

In this Assignment, you will demonstrate your understanding of the videos and the readings by answering open-ended questions, defining data science and data scientist, and describing the different sections comprising a final deliverable of a data science project. Please note that this assignment is worth 10% of your final grade.

Assignment Solution :

Based on the videos and the reading material, how would you define a data scientist and data science? (3 marks)

Based on the videos and the reading material, what are the ten main components of a report that would be delivered at the end of a data science project? (5 marks)

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Work Smarter with Microsoft Excel

This course is part of Microsoft 365 Fundamentals Specialization

Taught in English

Some content may not be translated

Instructor: Microsoft

Financial aid available

144,153 already enrolled

(1,938 reviews)

Recommended experience

Beginner level

Understanding of the basics of using a Windows-based computer. Experience with printing and using a web browser are an asset, but not required.

What you'll learn

You will learn how to create a spreadsheet, work with formulas and functions, make your spreadsheets look professional, and print a spreadsheet.

How to manage worksheets, workbooks, tables table data, data cells and ranges, and charts

How to perform operations by using formulas and functions

Skills you'll gain

• Microsoft Excel

Details to know

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There are 5 modules in this course

This course is intended for learners with some experience using Microsoft Windows, who are seeking to build presentation skills with Microsoft Excel. To be successful in this course you should have an understanding of the basics of using a Windows-based computer. Experience with printing and using a web browser are an asset, but not required.

Knowing how to use Microsoft Office products is essential in any professional setting. Whether you want to expand your expertise to apply for a new role, start your own business, or simply develop a new personal skill this course is for you. This course will introduce you to Microsoft’s powerful and easy-to-use spreadsheet program, which provides you with an extensive set of tools to organize, analyze, present, and store data. If you are familiar with Excel’s basic features you can take your skills to the next level. If you are a beginner you will get the opportunity to develop basic Excel skills. In this course, you will become comfortable with creating a new spreadsheet, working with basic formulas and functions, making your spreadsheets look professional and presentable, and saving and printing a spreadsheet. By the end of this course, you will be comfortable creating advanced formulas, analyzing data with functions, analyzing data using functions and PivotTables, working with tables, visualizing data with charts, working with graphical objects, and enhancing workbooks. This course will help you prepare for Exam MO-200: Microsoft Excel (Excel and Excel 2019). You will get opportunities to demonstrate the ability to create and edit a workbook with multiple sheets and use a graphic element to represent data visually. You will also show that you can apply the correct application of the principal features of Excel and complete tasks independently.

Getting started with Excel

In this module, you will get started with some entry-level basics in Microsoft Excel. By getting to know Excel, what it does, its interface, and general layout and features. You will get to start creating workbooks and working with data. Before exploring how to modify workbooks, format data, apply layout and prepare to print.

What's included

16 videos 16 readings 5 quizzes 1 discussion prompt

16 videos • Total 64 minutes

• Introduction to Work Smarter with Excel • 2 minutes • Preview module
• Navigating this course • 3 minutes
• Get to know Excel • 4 minutes
• Create a workbook • 4 minutes
• Save and share a workbook • 5 minutes
• Get help in Microsoft Excel • 2 minutes
• Work with data • 6 minutes
• Work with rows and columns • 3 minutes
• Format text • 5 minutes
• Format cells • 3 minutes
• Align cell content • 2 minutes
• Search for and replace data • 5 minutes
• Spell check a worksheet • 2 minutes
• Define the basic page layout for a workbook • 5 minutes
• Refine the page layout and apply print options • 5 minutes
• Module summary - Getting started with Excel • 1 minute

16 readings • Total 141 minutes

• Course syllabus - Work Smarter with Excel • 10 minutes
• How to be successful in this course • 5 minutes
• How to use the video settings on Coursera • 5 minutes
• Exercise: Creating workbooks • 10 minutes
• Exercise: Getting help in Excel • 10 minutes
• Additional resources • 10 minutes
• Exercise: Working with data • 10 minutes
• Exercise: Working with rows and columns • 10 minutes
• Exercise: Formatting text • 10 minutes
• Regional number formatting • 10 minutes
• Exercise: Formatting cells • 10 minutes
• Exercise: Aligning cell content • 1 minute
• Exercise: Searching for and replacing data • 10 minutes
• Exercise: Spell checking a worksheet • 10 minutes
• Exercise: Previewing a workbook before printing • 10 minutes
• Exercise: Refining the page layout and applying print options • 10 minutes

5 quizzes • Total 90 minutes

• Module graded quiz: Getting started with Excel • 30 minutes
• Knowledge check: Get started with Excel • 15 minutes
• Knowledge check: Get started with data • 15 minutes
• Knowledge check: Modifying a worksheet • 15 minutes
• Knowledge check: Printing workbook content • 15 minutes

1 discussion prompt • Total 5 minutes

• Share your experience and objectives • 5 minutes

Working with functions

In this module, you will start working with Excel's core features: functions and formulas. You will learn how to implement and use formulas and functions with data in Excel. You will also learn how to use Sorting and Filtering tools, and define data sets by applying range names. Finally, you will explore an array of specialized, text, and logical functions that can boost your abilities in Excel.

14 videos 10 readings 7 quizzes

14 videos • Total 54 minutes

• Module introduction - Working with functions • 2 minutes • Preview module
• A closer look at formulas and functions • 6 minutes
• Using formulas and functions • 5 minutes
• Sort and filter Data • 5 minutes
• Add range names • 4 minutes
• Use range names in formulas • 1 minute
• Function categories and syntax • 6 minutes
• Using specialized functions • 2 minutes
• Manage text with functions • 4 minutes
• Trim and case text functions • 1 minute
• Join and transpose text functions • 3 minutes
• Logical functions and operators • 1 minute
• Using logical functions with conditions • 6 minutes
• Module summary - Working with functions • 1 minute

10 readings • Total 100 minutes

• Exercise: Getting started with formulas • 10 minutes
• Exercise: Using formulas and functions • 10 minutes
• Exercise: Sort and filter data • 10 minutes
• Exercise: Using range names in formulas • 10 minutes
• Exercise: Using specialized functions • 10 minutes
• Exercise: Analyzing data using text functions • 10 minutes
• Exercise: Analyzing data using logical functions • 10 minutes

7 quizzes • Total 120 minutes

• Module graded quiz: Working with functions • 30 minutes
• Knowledge check: Working with formulas and functions • 15 minutes
• Knowledge check: Sorting and filtering data • 15 minutes
• Knowledge check: Apply range in Excel • 15 minutes
• Knowledge check: Specialized functions • 15 minutes
• Knowledge check: Text functions • 15 minutes
• Knowledge check: Logical functions • 15 minutes

Organizing and visualizing data

In this module, you will move on to how to organize and visualize data in Excel. You will learn all about tables and charts, how to create, format, and modify them to store organize and display data in the way that you need. You will also learn how to manage large workbooks. Finally, you will be introduced to analyzing data, using Excels pivot tables and slicers.

16 videos 14 readings 6 quizzes

16 videos • Total 66 minutes

• Module introduction - Organizing and visualizing data • 0 minutes • Preview module
• Create tables • 4 minutes
• Format tables • 3 minutes
• Modifying tables • 8 minutes
• Name tables and use structured references • 5 minutes
• Database functions and convert to range • 4 minutes
• Format worksheet tabs • 2 minutes
• Manage worksheets • 5 minutes
• Manage the view of worksheets and workbooks • 4 minutes
• Create charts • 4 minutes
• Modify and format charts • 4 minutes
• Advanced chart elements • 1 minute
• Create a PivotTable • 6 minutes
• Summarize data in a PivotTable • 5 minutes
• Filtering data using slicers • 2 minutes
• Module summary - Organizing and visualizing data • 1 minute

14 readings • Total 140 minutes

• Exercise: Creating and modifying a table • 10 minutes
• Exercise: Modifying tables • 10 minutes
• Subtotal function arguments • 10 minutes
• List of database functions • 10 minutes
• Exercise: Using table references • 10 minutes
• Exercise: Formatting worksheet tabs • 10 minutes
• Exercise: Managing worksheets • 10 minutes
• Exercise: Managing the view of worksheets and workbooks • 10 minutes
• Exercise: Creating charts • 10 minutes
• Exercise: Modifying and formatting charts • 10 minutes
• Exercise: Create a trendline • 10 minutes
• Summary of DAX categories of functions • 10 minutes
• Exercise: Creating PivotTables • 10 minutes
• Exercise: Filtering data using slicers • 10 minutes

6 quizzes • Total 105 minutes

• Module graded quiz: Organizing and visualizing data • 30 minutes
• Knowledge check: Create and modify tables • 15 minutes
• Knowledge check: Table references • 15 minutes
• Knowledge check: Managing large workbooks • 15 minutes
• Knowledge check: Visualizing data with basic charts • 15 minutes
• Knowledge check: Analyzing data • 15 minutes

Advanced Excel features

In this module, you will have the opportunity to try out some of the Advanced features that Excel has to offer. These include customizing formulas, proofing, and interface options, as well as applying conditional formatting. How to customize, manage, enhance and automate large workbooks, and how to export data and use data sources.

11 videos 9 readings 5 quizzes 2 discussion prompts

11 videos • Total 38 minutes

• Customize formula options • 2 minutes • Preview module
• Customize proofing and save options • 2 minutes
• Customize the ribbon and Quick Access Toolbar • 2 minutes
• Conditional formatting • 3 minutes
• Conditional formatting rules • 5 minutes
• Customize workbooks • 6 minutes
• Manage workbook properties • 3 minutes
• Export data • 3 minutes
• Use data sources • 6 minutes
• Module summary - Advanced Excel features • 0 minutes
• Course wrap up - Work Smarter with Microsoft Excel • 1 minute

9 readings • Total 85 minutes

• Exercise: Customizing formula options • 10 minutes
• Customizing proofing and save options • 10 minutes
• Exercise: Customizing the Quick Access Toolbar • 10 minutes
• Exercise: Apply conditional formatting • 10 minutes
• Exercise: Customizing workbooks • 10 minutes
• Exercise: Managing workbook properties • 10 minutes
• Exercise: Exporting worksheet data • 10 minutes
• Exercise: Using data sources • 10 minutes
• Next steps • 5 minutes
• Module graded quiz: Advanced Excel features • 30 minutes
• Knowledge check: Customize the Excel environment • 15 minutes
• Knowledge check: Conditional formatting • 15 minutes
• Knowledge check: Enhancing and managing workbooks • 15 minutes
• Knowledge check: Exporting and sourcing data • 15 minutes

2 discussion prompts • Total 20 minutes

• Why use conditional formatting? • 10 minutes
• Reflect on learning • 10 minutes

Honors: Hands-on practice using Microsoft Excel

In this module, you will undertake a hands-on project with Microsoft Excel. In this project, you will use the knowledge and experience that you’ve gained from the previous modules by applying your spreadsheet skills to analyze and present sales data, before reviewing and leaving comments.

1 video 1 reading 1 peer review 1 discussion prompt

1 video • Total 2 minutes

• Project introduction • 2 minutes • Preview module

1 reading • Total 10 minutes

• How to submit assignment link • 10 minutes

1 peer review • Total 60 minutes

• Task 1: Analyze and present data with Excel • 60 minutes

1 discussion prompt • Total 10 minutes

• The benefits of using Microsoft Excel • 10 minutes

Instructor ratings

We asked all learners to give feedback on our instructors based on the quality of their teaching style.

Our goal at Microsoft is to empower every individual and organization on the planet to achieve more. In this next revolution of digital transformation, growth is being driven by technology. Our integrated cloud approach creates an unmatched platform for digital transformation. We address the real-world needs of customers by seamlessly integrating Microsoft 365, Dynamics 365, LinkedIn, GitHub, Microsoft Power Platform, and Azure to unlock business value for every organization—from large enterprises to family-run businesses. The backbone and foundation of this is Azure.

Recommended if you're interested in Business Essentials

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Learner reviews

Showing 3 of 1938

1,938 reviews

Reviewed on Jul 21, 2023

For a Mac user like me, I need to figure out how do some features function on Mac myself and all contents are based on Windows version of Excel.

Reviewed on Jan 6, 2023

Good for beginners to understand excel. I finished the honors assignment too but the honors tag has not been added to my certificate.

Reviewed on Mar 8, 2024

This course gives me more comprehensive insights to get along with Microsoft Excel apps. There are many implementation that I just knew from learning this course. It benefits me a lot. Thank you.

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Frequently asked questions

When will i have access to the lectures and assignments.

Access to lectures and assignments depends on your type of enrollment. If you take a course in audit mode, you will be able to see most course materials for free. To access graded assignments and to earn a Certificate, you will need to purchase the Certificate experience, during or after your audit. If you don't see the audit option:

The course may not offer an audit option. You can try a Free Trial instead, or apply for Financial Aid.

The course may offer 'Full Course, No Certificate' instead. This option lets you see all course materials, submit required assessments, and get a final grade. This also means that you will not be able to purchase a Certificate experience.

What will I get if I subscribe to this Specialization?

When you enroll in the course, you get access to all of the courses in the Specialization, and you earn a certificate when you complete the work. Your electronic Certificate will be added to your Accomplishments page - from there, you can print your Certificate or add it to your LinkedIn profile. If you only want to read and view the course content, you can audit the course for free.

What is the refund policy?

If you subscribed, you get a 7-day free trial during which you can cancel at no penalty. After that, we don’t give refunds, but you can cancel your subscription at any time. See our full refund policy Opens in a new tab .

Is financial aid available?

Yes. In select learning programs, you can apply for financial aid or a scholarship if you can’t afford the enrollment fee. If fin aid or scholarship is available for your learning program selection, you’ll find a link to apply on the description page.

More questions

Financialization of Housing

Gaurav Menon

Note — this was as a part of my peer graded assignment in a course I took with Coursera.

“February 1997 to October 2006 was a period of intense speculative enthusiasm — for houses and for financial instruments based on mortgages as investments — and it was also a time of great regulatory complacency… That boom ended disastrously.” — Robert Schiller

On 1 March 2017, the Special Rapporteur on the right to housing of the UN Human Rights Council, Leilani Farha, issued a report on the financialization of housing. The report discussed a paradigm shift that occurred over recent years in global housing markets. It particularly covers the growing disconnect between housing as a human right, and housing as a financial vehicle for investments.

Farha stated in the report, that, residential financialization (in the form of mortgage-backed securities) caused housing prices to spike, resulting in a crisis of unaffordability, displacement, and homelessness across the globe.

Thereafter, Farha elaborated upon her research and observations of the widening wealth gap in two countries: India and Portugal. Farha stated that in India, over 58.6 Million families did not have adequate housing. She also stated the lack of affordable housing in Portugal was exacerbated by that country’s austerity measures in response to the Great Recession.

Farha’s report to the UN made the following assertions with respect to Financialization:

· It undermines democratic governance and accountability

· Exacerbates inequality and social exclusion

· Detaches housing from its connection to communities and to the human dignity and security that are at the core of all human rights

Whilst stating the aforementioned points, Farha urged governments to “redefine their relationship with private investors and international financial institutions” to provide housing for all their citizens, with the goal of eliminating homelessness by 2030.

Financial markets and housing prices:

Investment firms have always been inclined towards the particularly, so called high-quality collateral investments, and housing is one of those that could be classified under this category. Now that we have established this point, we could fairly conclude as to why in recent years housing as a subject is under speculation for being financialized. Over the course of the last two decades we have witnessed an increasing dominance of financial players, policies, increased availability of financial measures, etc. in the market. It would hence be fairly safe to conclude that housing would not only play its core role as a social function to many a people but would also serve as an investment strategy to those who would perceive it to be one.

Consumption of commodities, infrastructure and housing, and stock markets are perceived to be economic indicators. While we cannot pinpoint and establish a conclusive relationship that the relation in fact exists, we could infer from past observations that variability in the stock market does tend to affect the housing sector directly or indirectly. When the effect is negative i.e. the portfolios lose money, then net worth of investors would decline and so would their willingness to invest. Investors also tend to be influenced by some psychological factors whilst investing in instruments.

Most people would perhaps overlook the positive side of the story with regards to financialization, the advent of IT and Technology, combined with innovation and demand trickling in through various sectors had driven the demand for a new generation of financial products and services. A plethora of examples exist to substantiate this point viz. insurances, equities, etc. Who would have thought that one could insure her/his assets like house, car, property against any calamities. Naysayers would nevertheless claim that mortgage-backed securities have negative image, but this could be so, due to their tie to the onset of the global financial crisis of 2008. They have also had positive effects; Particularly, they have ensured a higher supply of capital to potential lenders, making housing much more affordable.

A great example of a financial product that impacts individuals positively is home insurance wherein a homeowner would pay a regular fee and receives a pay-out when house prices fall below a certain level. Thus, while Farah’s report argues that financialized housing markets have caused displacement and evictions at an unparalleled scale, financial products like home equity insurance may in fact counteract this displacement and protect homeowners against catastrophes like the global financial crisis (2008).

The merits and demerits of ‘financialization’ could be up for debate. With factions emphasizing on the positives and negatives of the concept. The report clearly underlines the need for additional regulations in place to counteract the negatives of the current concepts of financialization, one cannot overlook the fact that in due course of time, innovation, regulations, policies and introduction of new financial products might altogether impact the housing markets, moreover in a positive way, making it more accessible to people across the globe.

In 2019, Farha followed-up her 2017 report with letters to six nations expressing concern about policies which “undermine the enjoyment of housing as a human right.” These letters were a plea to regulate investment in residential real estate in support of adequate housing.

[Note: The right to housing is a human right, protected by a number of fundamental declarations: Article 25 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights; Article 11 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights; Article 27 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child; Article 5 of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination; Article 14 of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women and Article XI (11) of the American Declaration on Rights and Duties of Man. ]

Housing prices, as with any other commodity are subject to variability in prices, which are influenced by its demand and supply. These prices would not be artificially bloated (increased or kept high) due to sheer speculation. Hence, it should not be the sole focus of governments and authorities to ensure that everyone, irrespective of income or access to economic resources, has access to an affordable home with protection from forced eviction.

The primary focus should be on the factors, the policies, and regulations that can be influenced and make a substantial difference in fighting poverty and enriching the lives of the underprivileged.

Aalbers, M. (2016). The financialization of housing: a political economy approach. London: Routledge Taylor & Francis Group.

Ehrlich, P. R. (1975). The population bomb. Rivercity, MA: Rivercity Press.

Malthus, T. R. (2017). Essay on the principle of population. New York: W W Norton.

Shiller, R. J. (2016). Irrational exuberance. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.

Stibel, J. (2009). Why We Can’t Predict Financial Markets. Boston, MA: Harvard Business Review.

https://www.ohchr.org/en/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=21264&LangID=E

https://documents-dds-ny.un.org/doc/UNDOC/GEN/G17/009/56/PDF/G1700956.pdf?OpenElement

Written by Gaurav Menon

A product enthusiast with a background in business and marketing, I write about concepts, case studies and tools from the product & technology domain.

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