12298

12298© 2015 ELLUCIAN. CONFIDENTIAL & PROPRIETARY | Session ID

Degree Works, Business Intelligence & Google Charts

Josh Whitlock

East Tennessee State University

April 10, 2015

Session ID: 12298

12298© 2015 ELLUCIAN. CONFIDENTIAL & PROPRIETARY | Session ID

Session rules of etiquette

• Please turn off your cell phone/pager

• If you must leave the session early, please do so as discreetly as possible

• Please avoid side conversation during the session

Thank you for your cooperation!

12298© 2015 ELLUCIAN. CONFIDENTIAL & PROPRIETARY | Session ID

1 Introduction

2 Why Use Google Charts?

3 Selected Google Charts

4 Final Details

5 Summary

Agenda

12298© 2015 ELLUCIAN. CONFIDENTIAL & PROPRIETARY | Session ID

Introduction

• Purpose of this Presentation

• Examine the use of Google Charts as a low-cost method of presenting data in context-rich ways

• Benefits of Attending this Session

• Learn more about Google Charts and if they’re right for you

12298© 2015 ELLUCIAN. CONFIDENTIAL & PROPRIETARY | Session ID

Why Use Google Charts?

12298© 2015 ELLUCIAN. CONFIDENTIAL & PROPRIETARY | Session ID

Google Charts

• Google Charts API (Application Program Interface)– Bubble Chart– Word Trees– Word Clouds– Geo Charts

12298© 2015 ELLUCIAN. CONFIDENTIAL & PROPRIETARY | Session ID

Google Charts

• Why use Google Charts?– Business Intelligence

• Identify and communicate importance of trends in data

– Cost• Numerous alternatives to Google Charts

– Argos, SAP, iDashboards, Excel

• Google Charts are free

12298© 2015 ELLUCIAN. CONFIDENTIAL & PROPRIETARY | Session ID

Google Charts

• Why use Google Charts?– Ease of use

• Well documented • You do have to know how to write some code

– Cost• There is still a lot of work to do with the API• It is not as robust as more robust alternatives• It is free though

12298© 2015 ELLUCIAN. CONFIDENTIAL & PROPRIETARY | Session ID

Argos

• ETSU uses Argos for functional user reporting• Argos allows you to create graphics and

dashboards– Difficult / time consuming to build complex

dashboards• Better to build queries in the Report Query window first, so

you can test it, but this is time consuming if you have multiple graphics on your dashboard

12298© 2015 ELLUCIAN. CONFIDENTIAL & PROPRIETARY | Session ID

Argos Chart

• Degree Works Notes by Program

12298© 2015 ELLUCIAN. CONFIDENTIAL & PROPRIETARY | Session ID

Google Chart

• Same report data with a Google Pie Chart

12298© 2015 ELLUCIAN. CONFIDENTIAL & PROPRIETARY | Session ID

Excel Chart

• Same report data with an Excel Chart

12298© 2015 ELLUCIAN. CONFIDENTIAL & PROPRIETARY | Session ID

Google Charts

• Google Charts is on a spectrum of tools that you can use to present data

• You must decide:– What do you need to present?

• Data ≠ Information

– Who needs to see it?• Excel is fine for interoffice communication, but perhaps not for

displaying on the web?

– How much are you willing to spend?

12298© 2015 ELLUCIAN. CONFIDENTIAL & PROPRIETARY | Session ID

Possible Uses

• Advisement– What are the problems most students encounter?– Are there geographic differences in student groups?

• Management / Control– Which advisors / colleges are using notes?– Why are there so many exceptions in a given

program?

12298© 2015 ELLUCIAN. CONFIDENTIAL & PROPRIETARY | Session ID

Selected Google Charts

12298© 2015 ELLUCIAN. CONFIDENTIAL & PROPRIETARY | Session ID

More Advanced Google Charts

• Geo Chart• Word Tree• Word Cloud• Bubble Chart

12298© 2015 ELLUCIAN. CONFIDENTIAL & PROPRIETARY | Session ID

Geo Chart

12298© 2015 ELLUCIAN. CONFIDENTIAL & PROPRIETARY | Session ID

Geo Chart

12298© 2015 ELLUCIAN. CONFIDENTIAL & PROPRIETARY | Session ID

Geo Chart - Code

12298© 2015 ELLUCIAN. CONFIDENTIAL & PROPRIETARY | Session ID

Geo Chart Notes

• Possibilities:– Map Other Institutions that Have Degree Works

• Transfer Students that are used to Degree Works

– Where do students with most substitutions come from?

• Caveats: – Large result sets = long load times– Outliers can skew the presentation

12298© 2015 ELLUCIAN. CONFIDENTIAL & PROPRIETARY | Session ID

Word Tree

12298© 2015 ELLUCIAN. CONFIDENTIAL & PROPRIETARY | Session ID

Word Tree – Second Try

12298© 2015 ELLUCIAN. CONFIDENTIAL & PROPRIETARY | Session ID

Word Tree – Third Try

12298© 2015 ELLUCIAN. CONFIDENTIAL & PROPRIETARY | Session ID

Word Tree – Code

12298© 2015 ELLUCIAN. CONFIDENTIAL & PROPRIETARY | Session ID

Word Tree Notes

• Possibilities:– Department review of curriculum

• Courses that have to be articulated– Should we offer them?

– Identify common advisement issues• Commonly substituted department “requirements”

12298© 2015 ELLUCIAN. CONFIDENTIAL & PROPRIETARY | Session ID

Word Tree Notes

• Caveats:– Use implicit words to narrow your focus– Strip out punctuation and any filler words that

you may not care about• Be careful you do not change the underlying

meaning of the text

12298© 2015 ELLUCIAN. CONFIDENTIAL & PROPRIETARY | Session ID

Word Cloud

12298© 2015 ELLUCIAN. CONFIDENTIAL & PROPRIETARY | Session ID

Word Cloud – Code

12298© 2015 ELLUCIAN. CONFIDENTIAL & PROPRIETARY | Session ID

Word Cloud Notes

• Possibilities:– Similar to the Word Tree

• Caveats:– Clunky data table format

• The number of cells has to be consistent, even if you have no data for a cell

12298© 2015 ELLUCIAN. CONFIDENTIAL & PROPRIETARY | Session ID

Bubble Chart

12298© 2015 ELLUCIAN. CONFIDENTIAL & PROPRIETARY | Session ID

Bubble Chart – Second Try

12298© 2015 ELLUCIAN. CONFIDENTIAL & PROPRIETARY | Session ID

Bubble Chart - Code

12298© 2015 ELLUCIAN. CONFIDENTIAL & PROPRIETARY | Session ID

Bubble Chart - Notes

• Possibilities:– Correlation between:

• Notes & Plans per department / college• Notes & GPA per department / college

• Caveats– Make sure you think through your x & y axis

12298© 2015 ELLUCIAN. CONFIDENTIAL & PROPRIETARY | Session ID

Final Details

12298© 2015 ELLUCIAN. CONFIDENTIAL & PROPRIETARY | Session ID

Pulling it all together

12298© 2015 ELLUCIAN. CONFIDENTIAL & PROPRIETARY | Session ID

FAQ

• Where does the data come from?• How long does this take to build?• What should be displayed / avoided?

12298© 2015 ELLUCIAN. CONFIDENTIAL & PROPRIETARY | Session ID

Summary

• Google Charts are one tool out of many

• Degree Works collects unique data points that could provide insight on students

• You have to decide what information is relevant

12298© 2015 ELLUCIAN. CONFIDENTIAL & PROPRIETARY | Session ID

Questions & Answers

12298© 2015 ELLUCIAN. CONFIDENTIAL & PROPRIETARY | Session ID

Thank you!

Josh Whitlockwhitlocj@etsu.edu

Evelyn Roach

roache@etsu.edu

Please complete the online session evaluation form.

Session ID 12298