GEOG 486
Cartography and Visualization

Lesson 9 Lab

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Lesson 9 Lab

Geovisualization Design in Tableau

Your final lab assignment in this course is to design an interactive geovisualization using Tableau. While this lab draws heavily on concepts discussed in Lesson 9, you will be incorporating knowledge from throughout the course in your design. Unlike other labs, Lab 9 is a two-week assignment.

In Week One, you should develop an idea and gather data for your lab, and complete the example Tableau Story tutorial (Visual Guide Part 1). This tutorial is ungraded, but will teach you the basics of working in Tableau. You will then create your own Tableau Story using your own data. The Lab 9 Visual Guide Part 2 contains tips and tricks for working in Tableau beyond what is covered in Part 1, and a wealth of additional resources are available via the web.

Lab Objectives

  • Use data from a source of your choice to create a geovisualization in Tableau Story form.
  • Integrate knowledge gained throughout the course to create engaging interactive maps and graphics.
  • Examples from the Visual Guides for reference here:

Overall Lab Requirements

Submit the link to your Story (hosted on Tableau Public) as a text comment. There is no PDF deliverable for this lab.

Story Requirements

Tableau Story: Overall
  • Create a Tableau "Story" which includes at least 2 "story points". Each story point should contain a Tableau dashboard.
  • Design with attention to detail; include an appropriate title, tooltips, and explanatory text.
  • Use consistent look and feel throughout the story; balance negative space.
Tableau Dashboards (2 in total)
  • In each dashboard, include at least one map and one additional data graphic (e.g., bar chart, scatterplot, treemap).
  • Use appropriate visual variables to encode your data. You should map your data by country, state, or by zip code, or display point locations. Mapping with other geographies (e.g., counties, census tracts) is permissible but not recommended unless you are already comfortable working in Tableau.
  • Use dashboard actions (e.g., highlighting, filtering) to connect your map and other data graphic(s).

Lab Instructions

  1. Download Tableau Desktop on your machine. Reference the Getting Started in Tableau announcement for additional details.
  2. Create a duplicate of the first example Tableau story with the Lab 9 Visual Guide Part 1: Intro to Tableau Tutorial.This tutorial will walk you through the process of creating a Tableau Story. Though optional, you will likely find it helpful to complete this before designing a Tableau Story of your own.
  3. For additional assistance, explore the Lab 9 Visual Guide Part 2: Tips and Tricks, and utilize online tutorials and training materials such as those listed below:

Grading Criteria

A rubric is posted for your review.

Submission Instructions

  • Submit the link to your Tableau Story.

Ready to Begin?

Please refer to the Lesson 9 Lab Visual Guides: Part 1 and Part 2.