Fall 2017
Course DetailsInstructor
Dr. Betsy Van der Veer Martens Course Experience In my time working at TCCL, I have noticed the rise in the importance in using data and visualization to support and explain decisions in a number of areas. With the encouragement of both Dr. Martens and my work colleague Kat LeFevre, I took this course though the topic felt far out of my comfort zone. The topic fascinated me in spite of my concerns about my math skills and creative abilities; I wanted to stretch myself and learn some new skills. In this course I learned about an entire world of the language of data visualization and its importance for the information professional. Globally, I was introduced to many experts and thought leaders, many of whom I ended up following on Twitter, Instagram, or other platforms. Practically, I learned how to read and critique data visualizations in everyday life: its a key piece of visual literacy! Finally, when it comes to creating my own visualizations, I realized the importance of planning out how your data is set up and collected in order to create an effective data visualization. ALSC Competencies Just days after starting this course, I was hired as the new Youth Librarian at the Herman and Kate Kaiser Library. I. Reference and User Services: II.2, II.4 V. Outreach and Advocacy: V.2, V.8 VI. Administrative and Management Skills: VI.3, VI.5 VII: Professionalism and Professional Development: VII.2, VII.3 |
Samples of CourseworkThe weekly assignments in this class called for analyzing visualization leaders, critiquing existing visualizations, and creating our own visualizations. I eventually turned five of those papers in to posts on the library school student blog Hack Library School. These posts are collected under the tag "visualization" at HackLibrarySchool.com.
For the final project in this class, I could choose to visualize any topic using any platform. Over the course of the semester, I experimented with a number of different visualization tools. Every tool had its pros and cons and none I tried had everything I was looking for (as one might expect from a variety of free software options). No tool emerged as a front runner for the final project, and I eventually chose Google Fusion Tables. I really enjoyed working with this tool, but unfortunately Google is "turning down" this tool and it will no longer function by December 3, 2019. They have some solutions for preserving projects made in Fusion Tables, including simply transferring them to another more stable product, Google Sheets. In this digital age, you never know when a company will stop supporting a platform where you have built or created something.
Further details about this project and my process can be found in the PDF.
The projects and assignments in this course covered a number of different competency categories, but one in particular is from Outreach and Advocacy V.8:
"Communicates effectively when addressing or presenting to large or small groups of children and/or adults, writes proficiently and adjusts content, style, and delivery format to accommodate diverse functions and audiences, and possesses technology skills and cultural competencies that enhance communication." |
Course Description and Goals from Syllabus
Information visualization is becoming increasingly important within LIS, due to the growing need for visual literacy and to the growing demand for data resources in almost all disciplines. The goals of this course are to:
Course Goals and Student Learning Objectives from Syllabus
By the end of this course, students will be able to:
critically discuss information visualizations in light of current theories, practice, and empirical research
plan and implement effective information visualizations
design appropriate evaluative instruments for information visualizations
Information visualization is becoming increasingly important within LIS, due to the growing need for visual literacy and to the growing demand for data resources in almost all disciplines. The goals of this course are to:
- explore information visualization as art and as explanation, as well as for purposes of making decisions and discoveries through data
- examine cognitive and psychological studies relevant to visual perception and information processing
- understand the importance of data accuracy and authenticity for various types of information visualization creation and curation
- develop familiarity with a wide variety of visual representations, with particular emphasis on selecting appropriate representations based on data frameworks and audience
- build skills in planning, developing, and evaluating information visualizations
- experiment with a wide variety of freely accessible information visualization programs
- have fun!
Course Goals and Student Learning Objectives from Syllabus
By the end of this course, students will be able to:
critically discuss information visualizations in light of current theories, practice, and empirical research
plan and implement effective information visualizations
design appropriate evaluative instruments for information visualizations