Teaching Sequence

Work through this resource material in the following sequence:

15 minutes – Part A: Introduction - Data is the new bacon!
30 minutes – Part B: Transforming data through art
90 minutes – Part C: Project - Sending a message through art
15 minutes – Reflection

Part A: Introduction - Data is the new bacon!

Step 1.

Distribute one printed copy of the Transforming Data Worksheet to each student.

Begin the lesson by writing on the whiteboard the thought-starter, 'Data is the new bacon - there is literally an unhealthy obsession with data right now'.

Ask students to explain what they think this quote means. Invite students to respond to the following questions (also available on the Transforming Data Worksheet):

Bacon is unhealthy but still so popular. What does this say about data?
Bacon is a popular addition to any restaurant menu; it’s everywhere and in demand. What about data?
Bacon is served hot and sizzling. What about data?

Step 2.

Now that students have addressed data as ‘everywhere and in demand’, invite them to think about ways data can be viewed to make an impact. As a class, watch the video below which shows the photographic mosaic art of Chris Jordan and how he has used data to send powerful messages. Watch until 6:00.

Chris Jordan: Turning powerful stats into art (https://youtu.be/f09lQ8Q1iKE)

Alternatively, you could project images from Chris Jordan’s website which slowly zooms in or out of each photo to see reveal the true picture. Each image has a short description outlining the statistics revealed in the artwork.

Now, ask students to reflect on Chris Jordan’s photographic art. Prompt your class with the following:

What stood out to you the most in this video/in these photos?
How did these images make you feel?
What do these images make you think about?
Can you explain how the data has been transformed by these photographic artworks?

Part B: Transforming data

Note: In this section of the lesson, students are going to practice ‘transforming’ data in a similar way to Chris Jordan, but through the use of pixel art. You may choose to alter the topics or data provided in this section (regarding feral cats) to better suit the interests of your class.

Step 1.

Explain to your class that pixel art is where an artist uses many small squares (or pixels) to create an image. Now, show students the images below (also available on the Transforming Data Worksheet). Some students may be familiar with pixel art and may have created their own images using drawing programs or apps. If this is the case, you could also ask these students to share their creations.

Step 2.

Further explain to students that they are to produce their own pixel artwork to represent a real issue, in a similar way to Chris Jordan has with his photography. Direct students to read the information box below regarding feral cats in Australia (also available on the Transforming Data Worksheet).

Step 3.

Split your class into appropriate groups and explain that each group will be creating a pixelated image using post-it notes on a wall of the classroom. Encourage students to complete the following steps (also available on the Transforming Data Worksheet):

Decide on a statistic. Recommend groups select just one number for their artwork and only allow groups who have experience creating pixel art to select more than one.
Use post-it notes to represent your chosen statistic (e.g. each post-it note represents one species that is endangered due to feral cats)
Decide on an image to create to match your chosen statistic (e.g. a cat face)

Most pixel art uses around 100 boxes to outline the main features of an image, and more boxes to colour or shade the image. For this reason, it is best for students to select '124' as their statistic for the feral cats topic, to ensure they have enough boxes to product an image.

Allow groups time to complete the planning stages and encourage students who have devices to use relevant programs or apps to assist with the sketching component. It may also be helpful if students are able to use an image search, or are provided with example images to inspire ideas or help guide their pixel art.

The following Pixel Art Example may be a good scaffolding tool to guide groups that are struggling with the task.

Step 4.

Once each group has finished their planning stages, designate a wall of the classroom to each group as the space to create and present their artworks. Ensure that each group includes a few extra post-it notes outlining the rationale for their artwork. You may also choose to photograph each finished artwork in case shared classrooms do not allow the artwork to remain on the wall. If artworks are being taken down during the lesson, ensure post-it notes are collected for reuse or recycling to avoid wastage.

Part C: Project - Sending a message through art

Note: Now that students have had a go at representing data in a new way, they will be tasked with conducting an investigation and reflecting on findings in their own creative way. The topic outlined in this section refers to the accumulation of litter in Australia and will be used as a worked example throughout the section. If you prefer to choose a different topic to suit your class’ interests, consider the following:

Data collection: Ensure that chosen topics are able to be investigated at school. Students can survey an area (as outlined below) or survey teachers, admin staff or fellow students.
Variables: Ensure that the chosen variable is numerical so it can be represented in a similar way to the method in Part B. Although categorical variables may be applicable to your chosen topic, the methods of data representation used in this lesson may not be appropriate.

The activity can be completed with students in isolated groups whereby each team completes a separate investigation, or collectively as a class whereby groups may be assigned with different tasks that contribute to a whole task project.

Step 1.

To introduce students to the topic of their investigation, direct the class to the stimulus items in the table below (available on the Transforming Data Worksheet). Direct the students to the second stimulus item, the photograph by artist Tashara Roberts. Allow the class time to examine each stimulus item and to discuss their thoughts on the issue of litter in Australia. You could use the following questions to prompt discussion:

Which part of the stimulus items stood out to you and why?
What do you think Pope Francis meant by his quote “Any harm done to the environment is harm to humanity”?
Why do you think photographic artist Tashara Roberts included the feathers and leaves as part of her gallery “A portrait of Lake Eppalock”?

Item 1: Quote

“Any harm done to the environment is harm to humanity” - Pope Francis

Item 2: Images

Photographic art by Indigenous artist Tashara Roberts who wanted to capture the natural beauty of Lake Eppalock in Victoria but was confronted with the vast quantities of litter in this natural habitat, causing her to change the focus of her artwork. Access these images here: Indigenous artist turns litter into art to deal with overwhelming amount of rubbish.

Item 3: Statistics

Litter is everywhere in Australia. Imagine a space as large as a tennis court. The least littered areas in Australia will have 5 pieces of rubbish within this space, whilst the most littered locations will have approximately 20. If we imagined a space as large as a football field, these numbers would triple, and continue to multiply every time we imagine a bigger space. And if this rubbish is plastic, metal or glass, it could remain there for the next 50-200 years, or even longer.

Step 2.

The next step is to have students design an investigation on the topic of “Litter in Australia”. Ask your class to think about how they could investigate their topic at school or in their local community. Have students think about how they will collect their data, how much data they will need for a fair test and any other important details. Encourage your class to use the steps in the Transforming Data Worksheet to plan their investigation.

Step 3.

Now ask students to draw up a results table and create any other relevant tools they will need to collect data (e.g. survey questions). Ensure that the results table covers all of the required information for the investigation. See examples of tables and questions here, Transforming Data - Examples and Suggestions.

Step 4.

Allow your class time to collect data. To ensure the smooth running of this task, you could:

Choose survey locations in advance and set up quadrats/transect lines for groups to rotate through.
Prearrange times for relevant staff or students to be available during the lesson to collect data from.
Conduct the data collection task in the next lesson to give yourself time to pre-arrange the activity.
Conduct data collection as a homework task (e.g. survey 20 people for homework).

Also important in this part of the task is to collect other relevant information for the investigation. This might include:

Dimensions of the area surveyed (e.g. the school nature reserve is 20m x 80m).
The number of people in the population (e.g. the number of students at the school).

Step 5.

Students should now perform calculations on their data to produce one main statistic as a focal point for their artwork. These calculations may include:

Finding averages (e.g. the average amount of rubbish in a square metre is 2 pieces).
Finding the area of the location (using one or a combination of area rules).
Making projections.
Using averages to approximate an area (e.g. since the average amount of litter in 1 square meter is 3.12 and the whole nature reserve is 1600 square metres, there are approximately 5,000 pieces of litter in our school nature reserve).
Using averages to approximate a population (e.g. since the average amount of litter dropped by a single person is 3 pieces, our whole school drops around 3000 pieces).
Consideration of errors/outliers and/or making adjustments (e.g. there was an outlier score in one of our samples which was excluded from the data. This area was on the boundary of the reserve and may act as a wind barrier, forcing rubbish to accumulate here and over-represent the amount of rubbish in the whole reserve).
Making other relevant considerations (e.g. sampled dirt locations have been excluded from calculations since litter found in these regions was easily blown away and may have caused a double-up of data).

Step 6.

In this final task for the project, students will need to create their artworks. Explain to students that during this task they will need to transform their data into an image that will send a powerful message about littering. Students can produce a piece of art from the following ideas:

Pixel art (as in Part 2).
Pointillism (project image and explain to students that pointillism is similar to pixel art but uses a series of dots to create an image - download example here).
Photographic mosaics (similar to Chris Jordan artworks).

Several ideas for this art project are outlined in the Transforming Data - Examples and Suggestions. You may wish to select one or several ideas for your class or allow them to come up with their own ideas.

Invite your class to sketch their ideas and produce a list of equipment they would like to use. If you wish for your class to use specific equipment or resources, make sure you list these on the whiteboard.

Once they have planned out their artwork, allow them to start.

Reflection

Once students have completed their artworks, invite them to do the following reflection tasks.

Step 1.

Ask students to think about more traditional ways to present data including graphs, charts and reports and compare these to the artworks they produced. Ask students to list the strengths and limitations of each using the table on the Transforming Data Worksheet.

Step 2.

Now invite your class to think about which type of data presentation appeals or connects with them the most, and why. You could conduct this task as a class discussion or even a short debate if students are selecting different options.

Step 3.

Direct your class to read the quote below by Chris Jordan (also available on the Transforming Data Worksheet):

Invite students to write their own opinion about how art may play a pivotal role in communicating the issues that matter.

Differentiated Learning

The scaffolding in this task can be increased or reduced to suit your class. Lower level classes may benefit from a whole class project or the selection of a topic and or artwork, whereby higher-level classes may be challenged to complete the project independently and make their own choices.

Extension - The project in this lesson could be applied as part of a larger investigation whereby students are taken to local parks or nature reserves to investigate the rubbish within your local community or suburb. This aspect of the task could also be completed as homework tasks or a take-home assignment.

Provisional Learning Support - Depending on the support requirements, students may work in pairs or groups and receive additional scaffolding if necessary. You may choose to target various elements of this lesson to match student strengths and/or interests as a way for students to connect with, and engage in, the task.

Teacher Reflection

Take this opportunity to reflect on your own teaching:

What did you learn about your teaching today?
What worked well?
What didn't work so well?
What would you share?
Where to next?
How are you going to get there?

STEAM - Transforming Data

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