Lab Overview

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Bus Data Lit Labs Overview

There are eight (8) labs in the course, one for each module. All the labs will require you to use RStudio to understand and analyze data using statistical concepts, create data visualizations (graphs), and create a report that makes your work “reproducible.” The course is designed to use RStudio Cloud which does not require you to install any software on your computer. All you need is a browser and an Internet connection. Given the nature of the labs, trying to complete them on a phone is not practicable. You need access to a reasonably good desktop or laptop computer. 

Because you will need to keep the lab webpages open while you also have RStudio Cloud running in your browser, you will need to keep track of at least two windows/tabs.

Each lab has three sections:

• Rehearse: How to Do It.
• Remix: You Do It.
• Report: Calibrate your understanding with a Q&A session.

As you work through the three sections, you will “type” into a template for your lab report.

In the Rehearse section, you will be given instruction, sometimes with readings, and examples of the analyses and graphs (visualizations) created by running R code. You will be given “code chunks” along with an explanation of what is happening in the chunk. You will be shown how you can customize (edit) the chunks to answer different business or research questions or different versions of the original questions.

In the Remix section, you will change/edit the code chunks to accomplish a different analysis and/or create different graphs to answer a variation of the original research question.

In the Report section, you will answer a small set of open-ended questions on what you learned in the lab and associated readings.

All your work in each lab will be completed in a lab report template. You will type into the template when you edit the code chunks and complete the Q&A much like typing in a “Word” document.

In the first lab, Quick-Start, the lab template will have all the code chunks you need already in it. The intent of this first lab is to get you online and working in RStudio quickly with minimum time and effort required. The Rehearse section for this lab is rather simple in that you are shown how to “knit” the document which runs the code chunks. The code chunks will run the analysis and create a rather complex set of graphics.

In subsequent labs, you will be given the code chunks in the lab instructions along with an explanation of what they do. Then you will have to copy/paste the chunks you need into the template where you will edit them and run the code.

At the end of each lab, you will create a “reproducible” report of all three sections by knitting the R Markdown template. Then you will download the report file and submit it in your Canvas Assignment area for that module. 

Time Investment

The time investment on your part will vary from lab to lab. The first lab should take you no more than one hour to complete. Most labs will require your investment of 2 to 3 hours. A few labs, particularly the Case Study in Module 8, will take most students about 4 to 6 hours to complete.

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This work was created by Dawn Wright and is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.