Course Description
INF2400H — Special Topics in Information: Storytelling with Data
With the exponential growth of data in all aspects of our lives, the need to develop a meaningful narrative with the data is key to effective communication of findings. In this course, we will combine the art of storytelling with data science to develop an engaging and impactful narrative using data. We start the course by learning how leaders like TED and Pixar create their stories to engage the audience.
The students will then choose a project to develop a narrative by applying the concepts and methods learned in the course. The project can be in any area of interest such as information systems, public policy, business where they have access to the required public (or private) data. The students can use their own datasets or use sources introduced by the instructor.
Students will then explore the data to find the insights required to answer questions and provide solutions. This part requires prior experience with data science (INF1340) or programming in Python or R. Additionally, we will review a visualization tool (Tableau) and discuss various considerations in choosing the right visuals.
Once the initial exploration is done, students will work on explanation and developing an engaging narrative based on their findings. This part incorporates learnings from design thinking to present possible solutions to the problems identified and to deliver to the stakeholders.
At the end, the students will present their work to the class.
Pre-requisite: INF1340H or permission from the instructor