Hi,
I'd say learning qualifies as a (very) valid reason ;-) By all means try using the 24bit ADC but perhaps you should start with interfacing to something "easier" like a EEPROM to begin with so you learn the basics about how the SPI interface works. I haven't looked at the datasheet for your ADC though, perhaps it's pretty straight forward.

As for the oversampling, all you really do is take a bunch of readings and then average them. If you take 16 readings with your 10bits ADC, add them all together and divide the result by 4 you'll get a value ranging from 0-4096.

You can read a bit more about here. Note, you can not use that code with Oshonsoft, the theory behind it obviously applies to any language/compiler though.

Good luck!
/Henrik.