What was the Earliest Application Software Available for Microcomputers?

The answer is...spreadsheets! A spreadsheet is software designed to store data (usually numeric) by row-column positions known as cells. Spreadsheets can also do calculations on the data. The word 'spreadsheet' can describe the program or the product that is created. "A spreadsheet helps users manage numbers in the same way that word processing helps manage words" (Roblyer, 129). Spreadsheets are often credited for beginning the microcomputer revolution.

Teachers use spreadsheets to keep budgets and gradebooks as well as to help teach math concepts. Spreadsheets save time by making calculations very quickly. They also organize displays of information in charts such as schedules and lists. In addition, spreadsheets help people visualize the impact of changes in numbers by posing "what if" questions. Finally, spreadsheets can help increase student motivation because they make working with numbers more graphic and fun.

Although the teaching role of spreadsheets primarily focuses on mathematics, they can also support teaching in science, social studies, and language arts. Students can use spreadsheets to create timelines, charts, and graphs. They can also help organize data from classroom experiments for example. Lastly, students can be taught to use spreadsheets to project their own grades. This helps students take more responsibility for school work and goal setting.