Articles about Infographics & Data Visualization by Ryann Warlick

Teaching & Learning in the new information landscape…

100 Years of Change

Argumentatively, more has changed in the past 100 years, than in any 100 year period before, as this infographic shows. The first step in teaching this infographic, and teaching any part of history, is to consider the cause and impact of these changes. While most students, and many administrators, may argue the unimportance of studying history, at least in comparison to other subjects related to technology. However, these technologies have shaped the past 100 years, and it is important to understand the past impact of these technologies, in order to understand the future impact of other technologies.

In addition to the importance of history, it is important to teach it in the best way. Aside from citing the year 1913 to compare (being exactly 100 years ago), there are no dates mentioned in this infographic, and yet the importance of this infographic is still obvious. It shows the impact that 100 years has made. When I was in grade school, just 10 years ago, The most important things I was taught were the dates of major events, and a little bit about the impact. While a general idea of the dates is important (knowing that The Civil War happened after The Missouri Compromise) the exact dates are not terrible important. The most important part of history is understanding the importance of a certain event (that The Missouri Compromise put off The Civil War, but recognized the increasing tensions).

While a the knowledge of a detailed history of the United States is not important for many fields, understanding the impact that people and events have made on this country is very important. If one of your students decides to go into software development of some sort, in order for them to develop the best software possible, they must understand the past impact of other technologies. What was the impact of the discovery of electricity and the following development of the lightbulb? How have people’s lives changed for good, and for bad, as electronic devices increasingly took over our lives? How can this particular student develop software that can mend the transgressions of previous technologies, but still create a positive impact on our future?

Blog: http://visual.ly/100-years-change

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Ten Most Spoken Languages

When your students are deciding what language to specialize in, this infographic may come in handy, and may hold some surprises. This infographic shows the ten most spoken languages in the world, and where they are spoken. However, students shouldn’t just factor in the most spoken language all over the world when they choose a language, they should also factor in where they will be speaking the language? Will it just be here in the US, or are they going to travel. And don’t forget to remind them, they can always learn a new language as their dreams change.

First of all, it was interesting to discover that English is not the most spoken language. It is easy to assume that every educated person in the world has learned English, but English fell to number three, after Chinese and Spanish. With the Chinese increasing in their power across the world, this would be a good language to learn if your students plan to go into international business, if they were willing to put in a great amount of effort. Also with so many Spanish immigrants coming into the United States, this would be a great language if your students planned to work with the general public.

It is also interesting to speak with students from other countries and find out what languages they learn. I visited a peer in Germany when I was in high school, and was amazed to find out that these students were learning their third, and even fourth language, when I hadn’t even mastered a second. Challenge your students to become bilingual, to be esteemed by their peers in their future endeavors, and if they plan to travel, to be a more acceptable tourist.

blog:http://goo.gl/bN7JV

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Stephen King Flow Chart

While you may not be introducing Stephen King into your classroom, this is a great example of how to create a flow chart while reading books by the same author, or by similar authors. It is important to make connections as you read in order to help you remember and comprehend what is read, and this is a great way to promote this in the classroom.

Create a bulletin board or a wall just for this, and use yarn to make various connections. Introduce some fiction with connections, such as Shakespeare’s plays or the Harry Potter series. Have different students read each play or book, and then report on it to the class. As classmates read the different books, have them discuss the connections that are made, and show them on the board. This may even encourage your students to read the rest of the literature in their spare time.

You can make connections based on characters (for instance, I am currently actively reading Jane Austen, and certain characters are present in many of her novels), based on locations, or based on events that occurred or themes. Try to create a bio about the author, or write a story that the author may have written based on what is known about him or her.

Blog: http://goo.gl/cK42U

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How to Rock Social Media in Thirty Minutes a Day

Social Media can be daunting and addicting. Someone can spend hours following Twitter feeds, catching up with friends on Facebook, and planning projects on Pinterest. However, this infographic by Pardot shows how you can efficiently get all of the above done, and still produce work that others will want to follow.

Some of the tips included publishing using one site, and having it set up to publish to other sites. For instance, if you publish a tweet, it will also post to Facebook. You can also schedule tweets to publish later in the day. So if you have a brilliant thought at 2 am, you can set it to publish at 2pm, or during another peak time. Also, use google plus to see how people are reaching your site. If they are using google search, pinterest, or another site that has linked something to your.

The key to social media, just like another other action, is consolidating time. Do as much as you can in as small amount of time as possible. And have fun with it!

Blog: http://visual.ly/how-rock-social-media-30-minutes-day

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Write your Paper like a Pro

Today’s infographic is simple and to the point. A big part of grade school and even college and onward, is writing papers. Some professions write more papers than others, but it is still an important skill in order to get your point across. This infographic uses venn diagrams to convey the importance of different parts of papers, and to show how they interact with one another. It also shows how much of your paper should include each part.

Of course every paper should begin with an introduction and end with a conclusion. It should also include several point in the middle, that are introduced and concluded in the introduction and conclusion. But how should the middle be laid out? That is up to the author, but it should there is a bit of a formula.

This infographic does a great job of showing that there should be pros and cons. You should always share how your paper may be argued against, and go ahead and prove some of these points wrong. In addition, a good paper should show why the information is important. Why should someone read your paper?

Show this to your students whenever a paper is assigned. Make sure your students are ready to write a good paper, and know what is involved in writing such a paper.

Blog: http://visual.ly/write-your-paper-right

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WARNING added later by David Warlick: This is one of those really useful and appealing infographics with embed codes for posting on your own blog or english class web site – that, when you go to the source, you find a quite well-implemented paper mill. We should all be aware that infographics have become the new BAIT to get you to the web sites that make money for people who are often providing unscrupulous and fraudulent services.

History of Infographics

I may be biased, being an amateur historian, but I strongly believe that exploring the history of something you are interested in helps to strengthen your knowledge of it. This infographic shares a rudimentary history of the infographic, going over major events in history, beginning with Ancient Egypt, that helped form the modern day infographic. I challenge you and your students to go back to the basics of what infographics are to help create better infographics.

According to this infographic, the first infographic was created around 500 BC. But it doesn’t share any information on it. Go out and find a photograph of it, or challenge your students to do so. Following this, in the late 18th century, a Scot named William Playfair created charts that we commonly use in infographics today. In the 1970s infographics, as we use them today, were finally born.

Follow the source at the bottom of the infographic to see what these basics looked like. Help your students get away from the frills and decoration of infographics, and get back to the basics. At the most basic level an infographic should share information. Help your students make sure they are doing this well, before they add extras.

Blog: http://visual.ly/history-infographics-0

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How Storms Affect Businesses

Application of information is the only reason to gain information, and thus it is a very important skill that was not adequately taught when I was in school. It is useless to make students memorize and recall information, if they don’t know how they can use it later in life. This is why I have chosen today’s infographic. Part of the fifth grade curriculum is weather in North Carolina, and in my own experience, many students do not know why they are taught this information. However, this infographic is a great example of why it is important to learn something that can be sought otherwise.

Hurricane Sandy affected many businesses. Many were forced to close their doors, and those who served the entire country were greatly affected, and greatly affected others. For instance, I worked in a stationery store for a few months this past winter. Several major stationery companies were forced to close during the winter months because they were based in the Northeast. There was no way to call about questions, and production time was increased due to these closures. Another example involves a friend of mine here in North Carolina, who works in the marketing department of a major supplier of electronic supplies. When Japan was hit with the earthquake and tsunami in 2011, many plants were forced to rebuild their machinery, and she noticed a drastic spike in sales. So companies can be affected in two ways, by weather where they are located, as well as by weather to their suppliers.

Challenge your students to make other correlations. How will they use other skills in their future lives? How do politicians use history? How do marketing analysts use science and math? In the end, why are your students learning this information?

Blog: http://visual.ly/how-storms-affect-businesses

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How Far is it to Mars?

With all of this hype about Mars and the exploration of Mars, there have been many infographics about Mars and space exploration. I have found yet another that is very interesting. Using pixels, this infographic shows how far away Mars is. However, it is not as far away as it used to be.

Most people who remember SPUTNIK and America’s landing on the moon are retiring, so in order to get a first hand experience, most teachers will have to speak with parents or grandparents. But the goal is to get first hand memories of this momentous event that can be related to your students today. For instance, what was someone doing when they found out about these momentous events, what were their thoughts? What did children play with and what were children excited about?

Then have your students imagine what it would be like to walk on Mars. Write a news article about the first Mars landing, or a diary entry as though they were the first person to walk on Mars. Have students discuss what landing on Mars would mean, and what they think will be the next goal after we do land on Mars.

Infographic: http://www.distancetomars.com

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The Most Amazing Construction Projects

Constructing a building takes into consideration a great deal as this infographic shares. To begin with, the materials, climate, and foundation must sustain the structure, there must be enough men and women to complete the project with enough knowledge to put into the construction, finances are a major consideration, and of course time.

These construction projects take these into consideration, and a great deal more. Do research into various construction projects your students find interesting and find out how these ideas were factored in. For instance, the Leaning Tower of Pisa, what could have been done then, and what can be done now to prevent a building from leaning.

What other things must be considered during construction? What simple machines are used during construction? How is the climate and the soil under the building a factor when choosing a location? How do people finance the building of these massive projects?

Blog: http://visual.ly/most-amazing-construction-projects

Infographic: www.rockanddirt.com

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2,000 Years of Continental Climate Changes

This infographic, found on Cool Infographics, shows how the climate has changed over the past 2,000 years in seven regions of the world (nearly all five continents, but not quite). Each color change represents the 30 year mean, and the increase and decrease of the temperature over time can be viewed. How do you think the mean was found before modern technology?

First of all, the infographic shows that North America and Antarctica share a similar temperate trend, and the five remaining regions share an opposite trend. On top of this, the arctic regions are experiencing a warm up and the other regions are showing a cool down. What could cause each of these phenomenon?

Share this with your classroom while studying global warming and other long term weather changes. This is a good example of what global warming can lead to. However, it can also be noticed that the major changes in temperature in North America and Antarctica began around 1200, long before the modern chemicals that are blamed for these changes. What are other explanations?

Blog: http://goo.gl/MFlTU

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Photo taken by Ewan McIntosh in a Taxi in Shanghai

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Cultivating Your Personal Learning Network
2nd Edition (2012)
Redefining Literacy 2.0 (2008)
Classroom Blogging
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Raw Materials for the Mind
(2005)

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