Numbers always have a story to tell. The key is knowing which story to tell and how to tell it.
Numeric information is often best communicated visually, but creating tables and charts can be intimidating. Even when you know how to use the software (for example, Excel, Google Charts or Tableau), you might not know how to create data visuals that are easy to read and understand, have an obvious story to tell, serve the needs of your reader and support your objectives.
Often, we create visuals that are cluttered, confusing and sometimes even misleading. The world is full of bad tables, charts and data visualizations, but we can fix that. This course will provide practical guidance on how to design tables and charts that turn confusing data into useful and compelling visualizations.
Each week you will complete readings and exercises and apply what you are learning to your work in the real world, both at work and in your personal projects. In the real-time virtual classes, you will review the lessons, apply the learning, and preview the upcoming week.
This course is for anyone who works with data but has never been taught how to effectively communicate numbers. Researchers, writers, editors, journalists, designers, business professionals and students can all benefit from this course.
There is no required textbook for this course, but it has been developed from the work of Sally Bigwood and Melissa Spore. You will be encouraged to read their book Designer’s Guide to Presenting Numbers, Figures, and Charts (2013, Allworth Press).