Visualization and Data Storytelling

Full course description

Google’s Chief Economist Dr. Hal R. Varian stated in 2009 “the ability to take data—to be able to understand it, to process it, to extract value from it, to visualize it, to communicate it—that’s going to be a hugely important skill in the next decades.” This course will focus on the last steps in this process, namely how to give numbers a clear and convincing visual voice; how to share understanding visually. Visuals are processed 60,000 times faster than words alone and remembered by 80% of the people (contrary to 20% for reading). Data storytelling is a structured approach for communicating data insights, and it involves a combination of three key elements: data, visuals, and narrative. In this skills training students will get an introduction into how one combines the right visuals and narrative with the right data, as this drives change in real life. People hear statistics, but they feel stories. Great data storytelling allows someone who’s never heard of data science to understand what information one wants to transmit.