1. Creating Real-time Displays of OOS Data for Classroom and Informal Use Sage Lichtenwalner Rutgers University Institute of Marine & Coastal Sciences Ocean Sciences, February 25, 2010

2. COSEE-Networked Ocean World (NOW)
Linking ocean scientists and educators in the virtual world
265 Members
100 Scientists
COSEE NOW is facilitating Ocean Observing partnerships to:
assess the knowledge & needs of Ocean Observing audiences
improve collaboration & coordination between scientists and educators
increase public awareness to improve society’s ocean literacy

3. Where are we going? The need for Ocean Data Visualization in Education
Visualization Design Strategies
Strategies to improve data visualizations
Design frameworks for using data in education
The power of Narrative
Potential Future Projects

4. What is “Visualization”?
Data Visualization
Info Aesthetics
Visual Analysis
Information Design
Explorative Visualization
Visual Analytics
Infographics
Visualization
Information Visualization
(InfoVis)
Information Art
Data Art
Charting
Infoporn
Bioinformatics
Mapping
Cartography
Chart Junk
Pragmatic Visualization
Artistic Visualization
Graphing
Scientific Illustration
“Visual analysis is not primarily about the pictures, but about finding ways to use our powerful visual systems to analyze data. It's analysis done in a visual way. It's visual exploration, visual data analysis, and visual presentation of results.”
Robert Kosara, eagereyes.org

5. Why is data visualization needed in educational environments?

6. We face numerous global challenges…
But understanding those datasets requires visualization.
Health, Economic, Climate
Also, Genomics, Security / Terrorism, Energy, and many other environmental issues
Other notes:
- Google represents the power of sifting through huge datasets to find relevant answers
- There has been a paradigm shift in researching Social interactions (via Twitter, Facebook)
…that can only be solved by digging into huge datasets for solutions.

7. U.S. Science Majors 2007 % of Bachelor's % of Population All Bachelors
1,541,704
35.4
S&E Bachelors
485,772
31.5
11.2
"Hard" Sciences
244,549
15.9
5.6
Earth/Atm/Ocean
4,077
0.3
0.1
NSF Science and Engineering Indicators: 2010

8. Understanding Data is in the Standards
Abilities necessary to do scientific inquiry:
Grades K-4
Employ simple equipment and tools to gather data and extend the senses
Use data to construct a reasonable explanation
Communicate investigations and explanations
Grades 5-8
Use appropriate tools and techniques to gather, analyze and interpret data
National Science Education Standards (1996)

9. 2009 NJ Core Curriculum Standards
Science Education in the 21st Century
Students’ K-12 lab-science experiences should include the following:
Physical manipulation of authentic substances or systems:
Interaction with simulations
Interaction with authentic data
Access to large databases
Remote access to scientific instruments and observations
21st-Century Life and Careers
Use data accessed on the Web to inform solutions to problems and the decision-making process A.4
Present resources and data in a format that effectively communicates the meaning of the data and its implications for solving problems, using multiple perspectives B.1
21st-Century Life and Careers
Assess data gathered to solve a problem for which there are varying perspectives (e.g., cross-cultural, gender-specific, generational), and determine how the data can best be used to design multiple solutions B.2
Effectively use information technology to gather, store, and communicate data in appropriate formats O.32
Evaluate and demonstrate skill with a range of technological tools designed to manipulate, report, or operate with data acquisition O.33
Science Education in the 21st Century
Use data representations and new models to revise predictions and explanations C.2
Identify patterns in data collected from basic weather instruments F.1
Assess (using scientific, economic, and other data) the potential environmental impact of large-scale adoption of emerging technologies (e.g., wind farming, harnessing geothermal energy) G.6

10. The Need for Ocean Data Visualization
The Interagency Working Group on Ocean Education has developed an implementation plan to guide future planning efforts. The four primary tasks are:
Increase Coordination and Promote Collaboration;
Develop a Coordinated Ocean Education and Outreach Message;
Ensure data from Ocean and Earth Observing Systems are translated to useable forms for teachers, students and the public; and
Ensure a Well-Prepared Ocean Workforce.
Ocean Blueprint - Informal education facilities and the academic community will need to work closely together to facilitate the rapid transfer and translation of the latest scientific discoveries into publicly accessible displays, materials, and programs.
OOI Science Plan - Establish a data management and content translation facility.
A task force of educators, researchers, and technical specialists will investigate the efficacy of various methods for bringing observatory data to the public, students, and educators. The focus will be on facilitating the creation of learning resources for exhibits, multimedia, community programs, and curricula development that use real-time and near real-time data streams, imagery and visualizations.The task will require close coordination among science educators, science visualization experts, technical experts, and science content experts, among others.
ORPP - Establish dedicated mechanisms to translate research results into readily used products. To enhance communication among sectors (e.g., researchers and resource managers) and enable translation of results into readily used information products, communication strategies must be investigated, developed, and enacted. Part of these communication efforts may include the development of professional communicators to assist researchers and end users in developing more accessible, derivative products. These professional communicators would be cognizant of both scientific objectives and management goals. Communicators can also help groups exchange information, including research needs and research results, and enhance communication among disparate sectors.
Federal Report - Effective collaboration is essential when designing and conducting research efforts and effectively translating research results to useful products.
ORPP - Common among the societal themes is the need to develop the tools necessary to pursue research and to effectively translate the results of that research in ways that are useful to resource managers, policy-makers, and the general public.
A healthy relationship between society and the ocean depends on having the scientific foundation to develop and implement new strategies to educate and instill a sense of stewardship in the public and translate research results into effective decision-making tools.
There is a… “need to develop the tools necessary… to effectively translate the results of that research in ways that are useful to resource managers, policy-makers, and the general public.”

11. What Do Educators Want? Top requested features:
Data visualization tools (ability to graph, map, chart data)
Inquiry-based lessons/activities
Lesson plans for teaching science concepts with RTD
Locally relevant data sets
Map interfaces
Stories or case studies that show how scientists use real-time data.
Middle-school teachers were more likely to have students use:
Computers at school as part of their lessons
The Internet/websites at school as part of their lessons
Real-time data (mostly student-collected data) as part of their lessons
Educator Survey:
Q3: What characteristics are important when you teach using RTD? Data presented visually 4.3 (#3/11)
Q8: What RTD related activities are you likely to engage in? Finding data in visual formats 73%
This study’s results show a gap between stakeholders’ views that high-school should be the primary target and teachers’ and other data that indicate that middle-school would be the better primary target, especially for NERRS. Although more high-school teachers attended the focus groups than middle-school teachers (56% vs. 43% respectively), in comparing the two groups’ responses to the online survey we found that middle-school teachers were more likely to:
have student use computers at school as part of their lessons
have students use the Internet/websites at school as part of their lessons
have students use real-time data (mostly student-collected data) as part of their lessons (see the full report).
Main point: middle school students are more likely to collect their own data, while high school students will spend more time on data analysis.
NERRS Real-Time Data Needs Assessment 2006
COSEE NOW Educator Survey 2008

12. 1) Increase the effectiveness of data visualizations
effective visualization and intuitive user interfaces

13. Follow Visualization Design Theory
Ben Fry’s seven stages of visualizing data:
Acquire
Parse
Filter
Mine
Represent
Refine
Interact

14. How to Approach a Problem
Iterative Development Cycle

15. Usability Testing Why this Approach? Verify appeal of current design
An digital media evaluation method that measures the effectiveness of your digital [Web] product with members of your target audience.
Test Subjects:
Fishermen/woman: n = 7
Ages: all 45+
Professions: varied
Fish at least weekly, mostly offshore for tuna and shark
Use of Internet: 5 of 7 daily
Why this Approach?
Verify appeal of current design
Verify effectiveness of current design
Modernize existing design
Determine usefulness of content
Determine how best to display data so that it’s useful to the data users

16. Real-time Surface Currents
5/7 users recognized the arrows as the flow of water, but many were not sure. [3] did not realize this until the animation.
3/7 users identified the colors as temperatures, even after noting the colorbar axis showing velocity
Some users wanted to click on the image to zoom in to see smaller regions
Users did not like the units (cm/s). Because of the range of values (0-50), one user mistook them as wind speeds (i.e. mi/hr).
Note: This image was chosen to demonstrate how sometimes real-time data is not always consistent. The small region of data allowed users to try to determine the representation before seeing the full field in the animation example.

17. 2) Consider How People Learn
Putting data into the proper context

18. Incorporate Learning Sciences Theory
Learning-for-Use
Motivation
Experience demand
Experience curiosity
Knowledge Construction
Observe
Receive communication
Knowledge Refinement
Apply
Reflect
(Edelson 2001)
Visualization for Learners
Inquiry-based learning units must include:
Motivating context
Learner-appropriate activities
Appropriate datasets
Scaffolding interfaces
Support for learning
(Edelson & Gordin 1998)

19. COOL Classroom Pilot Evaluation
design proper visualizations to meet learning objectives
Pilot Results - data was not front and center, only 2 teachers used it
The Hudson River Plume Adventure
2008 Pilot - 18 teachers
For more, see C. Ferraro’s poster this evening

20. 3) Use Data Visualization to tell a story

21. Pilot Program: RU27 Site & Education
For more, see D. Goldinger’s poster this evening

22. The Future Formal: Real-Time Worksheets of IOOS Data
Using the Learning-for-Use framework
Example: Heat Capacity
Curiosity - RT Buoy Data
Observe - Air/Sea temps over a week
Apply - Air/Sea temps over a year
Reflect - Compare with land station
Other possibilities: The Seasons, Climate & Weather, Ocean Currents, Wind Energy transfer
Informal: New Stories for
GAIA &
The Global Microscope /
Science on a Sphere
These efforts will require collaborative “design teams” of educators and scientists

23. Summary
Data from Ocean Observing Systems provides a great opportunity to connect learners with real-world ocean science
Design frameworks do exist for developing data displays, often for “public” consumption, though most do not (yet) consider the specific needs of learners in formal and informal environments
Understanding how people learn can aid in the development of effective data displays
Like a good storyteller, good visualizations engage viewers and motivate them to explore further

25. Elements of Data Translation Usability Science Art Storytelling
(Interface Design)
Science
(Cool Content)
Art
(Information Aesthetics)
WISE Design Team
Classroom teachers
Technologists
Discipline experts
Pedagogy researchers
Curriculum designers
Pedagogical specialists
Scientists
Science teachers
Technology designers
Wise Design for Knowledge Integration (Linn et al., 2002)
Natural Scientist
Instructional Science Educator
Classroom Teacher
Storytelling
(Persuasive Visualization)
Programming
(Technical Feasibility)

26. Pilot Program: GAIA Rutgers COOLroom Liberty Science Center
Informal Science Education Center
with ~1,000,000 visitors per year, serving the NY/NJ school systems including urban largely minority schools facing challenges.
Cutting-edge OOS Research
& Real-time Data

27. Telling RTD Stories with LSC’s “GAIA”
“Students appreciate the fact they’re getting straight-out data. They can come up with their own conclusions. It becomes more personal and they take a greater interest.”
- Katie Gardner, LSC Educator