Data Visualisation: a new favorite site

During the first module of this course, we read about a variety of technology tools that might be used for assessing online learning. There are a number of tools available for creating visual presentations of concepts or data. Some tools have become so well known that they are now part of nearly everyone's electronic landscape: Flickr, Google Earth, Google Maps, et. al.

Last week I read about a number of visualisation tools that were new to me. Unfortunately, there just isn't enough time to explore new tools in depth during a fast-moving course. One tool that I definitely want to explore further is VUE (Visual Understanding Environment).

Designed at Tufts University, VUE is a fascinating concept-mapping tool. I'm especially interested in returning to the site in order to finish reading Chris Ray's "Notes vs. Maps" account. Ray began using VUE as an alternative to taking as many as ten pages of notes during one class session. Constructing visualisations of our data is one way of presenting what we have learned or what we understand in new ways. Students learn through the construction process; teachers learn about where the student is in his/her learning; peers are given a tool for increased understanding of a topic.

Here's a link to Chris Ray's "Notes v. Maps: Trading Quantity for Quality"

The site I'll be returning to in order to download and experiment with VUE is: Visual Understanding Environment