Class Notes

This page presents the detailed agenda for each class session, and lecture notes used in some of the class sessions. The notes are provided in two formats: full-page slides, and slides with instructor's notes.

SES # TOPICS AND AGENDAS LECTURE SLIDES & NOTES
Finding and telling stories with data
1

Introduction

  • Fill out the application for enrollment
 
2

Course overview & asking questions

  • Course overview
  • Crit practice
  • What is climate change data?
  • Do a data sculpture
  • Review homework
  • WTFcsv question brainstorming activity

Lecture 1 slides (PDF - 1.3MB)

Lecture 1 notes (PDF)

3 Course overview & asking questions (contd.)  
4

Getting and cleaning data

  • Review data logs, data storage and cleanliness
  • Grad students present open data papers
  • How the web works
  • Defining the tools space, tool demos
  • Homework review and prep
     

Lecture 2 slides (PDF - 1.3MB)

Lecture 2 notes (PDF)

5

Analyzing data

  • Basic statistics
  • Grad reading presentation
  • Tool demonstrations
  • WordCounter story-finding activity
  • A taxonomy of story types
  • Homework prep

Lecture 3 slides (PDF - 2.1MB)

Lecture 3 notes (PDF - 1.1MB)

6

Telling a data-driven story

  • Critique practice
  • Grad reading presentation
  • Talk about readings
  • A taxonomy of techniques
  • Remix activity
  • Homework prep

Lecture 4 slides (PDF - 2.2MB)

Lecture 4 notes (PDF - 1.3MB)

Sketch 1: Charts and creative charts
7

Overview

  • Inspirational examples
  • Viz Zoo activity
  • Tool demos
  • Project datasets
  • Group forming

Lecture 5 slides (PDF - 1.5MB)

Lecture 5 notes (PDF)

8

Studio (in-class work time)

  • Grad reading presentation
  • Reading review
  • Open work time for your group
  • Each group has a 5–10 minute check-in with Rahul for questions and advice
 
9

Presentations and discussion

  • Present sketches for critique
  • Assign next grad reading presentations
 
Sketch 2: Data sculptures
10

Overview

  • Readings review
  • Inspirational examples
  • Physical visualization review activity
  • Tools and techniques, datasets
  • Group forming

Lecture 6 slides (PDF - 1.2MB)

Lecture 6 notes (PDF)

11

Studio (in-class work time)

  • Open work time for your group
  • Each group has a 5–10 minute check-in with Rahul for questions and advice
 
12

Presentations and discussion

  • Present sketches for critique
 
Sketch 3: Personal stories
13

Overview

  • Storytelling pair & share
  • Readings review
  • Examples, tools & techniques, datasets
  • Group forming
  • Word-web activity (supplies: big papers and markers)

Lecture 7 slides (PDF)

Lecture 7 notes (PDF)

14

Studio (in-class work time)

  • Open work time for your group
  • Each group has a 5–10 minute check-in with Rahul for questions and advice
 
 

Optional: evening round-table with Emerson College and Northeastern University students

  • Share with undergraduate and graduate students taking a very similar course in a journalism school. See and react to their projects, and share your own projects for feedback or collaborative brainstorming on how it might turn into a final project for this course.
 
15

Presentations and discussion

  • Present sketches for critique
  • Assign next grad reading presentations
 
Sketch 4: Participatory data games
16

Overview

  • Inspirational examples
  • Readings, tools, datasets
  • Team-forming

Lecture 8 slides (PDF)

Lecture 8 notes (PDF)

17

Studio (in-class work time)

  • Open work time for your group
  • Each group has a 5–10 minute check-in with Rahul for questions and advice
 
18

Presentations and discussion

  • Present sketches for critique
  • Pick who will do Tableau and who will do CartoDB tutorials
 
Sketch 5: Maps and creative maps
19

Overview

  • Fundamental concepts
  • Sharing activity
  • Inspirational examples
  • Tools, datasets and team-forming

Lecture 9 slides (PDF - 1.9MB)

Lecture 9 notes (PDF)

20

Studio (in-class work time)

  • Open work time for your group
  • Each group has a 5–10 minute check-in with Rahul for questions and advice
 
21

Presentations and discussion

  • Present sketches for critique
 
Final project studio
22

Group forming

  • Group work time
  • Review homework
 
23

Mentor feedback and studio (in-class work time)

  • Short intro to assessing impact (logic models, pre/post interview, interviews)
  • Work in your final project groups
 
24

Studio (in-class work time)

  • Review the final project requirements
  • Work in your final project groups, consult with Rahul
 
25

Final project presentations and discussion

  • Each group has 10 minutes to present their final project and discuss it
  • Fill in the course evaluation