The Ballad of the Librarian & The Infographic: A Tale of Data

VisualizationCaitlin Bagley

Gonzaga University

Graphic visual representations of information, data or knowledge. Doug Newsom and Jim Haynes (2004). Public Relations Writing: Form and Style. p.236

PostersMapsSigns

Graphs

What is an Infographic?

Examples

Why visualize data?

The Value of Data Visualization

Information is Beautiful Infographic of the Day Visual.ly Infogr.am

Examples

Ask students about what types of datasets they think there are. The board will quickly fill up.

Narrow it down, and ask them what types of datasets they think there are about THEM!

Teaching students about data

Compare and contrast news sources. Take a current event that is addressed by biased news sources.

Have students discuss how these things differ.

Point the facts that BOTH articles agree on.

Discussing Bias in Infographcis and News Sources

Infographics are easy! You just need a little creativity.

Pick a data set, preferably one with a lot of information that can be compared to one another.

Think about what you want to show. This is the perfect time for brainstorming!

But how can I create one?

Brainstorm

Use Post-Its!

Form small groups!

What’s most important to depict?

What colors will stand out the most?

How much information should you depict?

Who is your audience?

Use markers!

Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter What information do students willingly give out

about themselves? Age, gender, place of birth, who their friends are, etc.

Things relevant to students lives Cost of living data, Minimum Wage Laws,

Tuition Teach them how to access it.

What data should I use?

For long term classes, considering having students find and research their own datasets for greater interest and motivation. Use data centers like the Pew Research

Center and the Census to help them find data sets of interest.

A Twist!

Now What?

Markers, Highlighters, Colored Pencils

Scissors, GlueConstruction Paper

Materials Needed

What about the most important part?!

THE SOURCE

But wait!!!

If you haven’t already gone over citation styles, now may be the time to go over your style of choice.

Stress the need to have them cite their source of information. Why? So that others can look at the actual data, and

see if they’ve interpreted it correctly.

Proper Citation

Common problems on infographics are difficulty in reading the linked sources Web based links are often not clickable. The font size is frequently illegible.

Sourcing an Infographic

Do infographics need keys??? No, but …. they’re helpful.

The Key to Happiness

Time

Walk around the classroom and offer guidance.

Answer questions. Help guide ways to depict information.

In Class

Line graphs and bar graphs – are they infographics? For the purposes of this activity, NO!

How do you avoid them? Urge creativity Give concrete examples of what NOT to do.

Uh-oh! Problems!

Components Total Points = 10 points 5 points 0 PointsCreativity Infographic is colorful and

visually interesting. Displays understanding of the concept. 4 Points

Infographic displays information, but does not have visual appeal.  2 Points

Infographic displayed no creativity or was not completed.  0 Points

Timeliness Assignment is turned in before the start of class on due date.   2 Points

Assignment is one week late.   1 point

Assignment is more than one week late or uncompleted.  0 Points

Data Accuracy Data represented is presented correctly and without error. 2 Points

Data is mostly correctly represented but contains some errors. 1 Points

Data is incorrectly represented and/or not factual. 0 Points

Citation All data is correctly cited in APA format. 2 Points

Data contains some errors. 1 point

No citations or citation completely incorrect. 0 Points

Sample Rubric

Bring students to front of class to present their infographics.

Give them 5 minutes to speak Encourage students to ask questions. Prompt students with questions about why

they chose certain depictions, etc.

Presentation Time

Judging creativity in non-creative students is DIFFICULT.

My Oops! I forgot to put in a presentation grading scale. Many students’ presentations were lackluster.

Issues with Grading

YOUR TURN!

Data SetLibrarians Other Paid

StaffTotal Paid Staff

Academic Libraries

26,706 62,238 88,944

Public Libraries

48,015 96,247 144,261

Public School Libraries

59,760 22,160 81,570

Private School Libraries

15,490 6,080 21,570

Bureau of Indian Education School Libraries

90 80 170

Total 150,061 186,805 336,865Source: http://www.ala.org/tools/libfactsheets/alalibraryfactsheet02

Expand into a long term project Work in tandem with a Business professor

(Statistics, Economics, Marketing)

Potential with Embedded Librarians

Explain Concept Show concrete examples Give plenty of time and materials Have relatable datasets HAVE FUN!

Review

Questions? Feel free to contact me at bagley@gonzaga.edu

Thank You!