Nineteenth International Conference on Design Principles & Practices

Abstract

There are so many societal problems to be addressed today. However, polarized thinking has made it harder for people to look at data and understand the questions, and find human-centric solutions. This paper reviews how a design course on data information can allow students to make informed discussions on topics ranging from social injustice to climate change. There is little doubt, that the need to read, evaluate, and digest data is more important than ever. Students explore methods to research, clean, and analyze data using creative methods and media to develop data storytelling. By setting goals, defining audiences, and using qualitative and quantitative data representation, the class helps students develop methods to tell data narratives that reveal human stories in the numbers. Projects include charts, data visualization, data tableau, interactive presentations, and mapping/unmapping. Students learn what effective methods to present data to engage others with the hope that they use these methods to help effect societal change.