Bar or Column Chart Default-to-Best Practices Conversion



-19057429500Data Visualization and Graphs: From Excel Defaults to ExcellenceMDE Assessment Conference, August 4, 2016Kirsten Rewey, Quantitative AnalystBar or Column Chart Default-to-Best Practices ConversionRemove border around graphRight click on graph; select “Format Chart Area” (last option on the pop-up list)Menu on the left – select “Border Color”Select “No line”Click “Close” button at the bottom of the pop-upRemove Legend from right side of the graphAt the top of the screen, select “Chart Tools: Layout” ribbonClick “Legend” and select “None Turn off legend”Remove tick marks from horizontal and vertical axesHorizontal axisSelect (click on) the horizontal axisRight click and select “Format Axis” from the pop-up (last option on the pop-up list)For “Major tick mark type” select “None” using the drop-down menuClick “Close” button at the bottom of the pop-upVertical axisSelect (click on) the vertical axisRight click and select “Format Axis” from the pop-up (last option on the list)For “Major tick mark type” select “None” using the drop-down menuClick “Close” button at the bottom of the pop-upRemove horizontal marker linesClick on one of the linesPress “Delete” or “Backspace”Edit bar widthSelect/click on a barRight click and select “Format Data Series” (last option on the list)In “Gap Width” move the selector to 35% or type “35” in the field below the sliderClick the “Close” button at the bottom of the pop-upAdd values/data labels to the barsAt the top of the screen select the “Chart Tools – Layout” ribbon Select “Inside End”Select a valueSelect the “Home” ribbonChange type color Note – this would be a good time to also change the font, style, and size!Change the order of the barsHighlight all of the cells of the dataIn the “Home” ribbon, select “Sort & Filter” and then “Custom Sort”In the pop-up:“Sort by” is Column B“Order” is ‘Largest to Smallest”Click the “OK” buttonNote: If you want to change the color of the bar to something that is aligned with the school’s/district’s colors or brand, now is a good time!Add title and captionClick the mouse in the white space above the bars (you want to select the space that contains the bars of the graph)Click+Drag the white box/white square at the top/middle of the container and drag down (we’re making some space to work in and will adjust this container to a better size later)At the top of the screen select the “Chart Tools – Layout” ribbon Select “Text Box”; note that the cursor will change from to an upside down ‘t’Click-Drag a text box from the upper-left corner to the upper-right corner and then down (don’t worry about it being ‘too big’!)Type in the following 2 lines of text:2015 Minnesota 4-Year Graduation RatesWhite students graduate at a higher rate than do Students of ColorEdit the title and captionSelect the first line of textSelect the “Home” ribbonChange the size to 20 pt BoldSelect the second line of textChange the size to 14 pt.Adjust the size of the text box (if needed)Adjust the size of the graph container with the linesClick the white space around/near the linesClick+Drag the white box/white square at the top-middle of the container and drag upDone!Line Graph Default-to-Best Practices ConversionRemove border from the outside of the graphRight click on graph; select “Format Chart Area” (last option on the pop-up list)Menu on the left – select “Border Color”Select “No line”Click “Close” button at the bottom of the pop-upRemove the legendAt the top of the screen, select “Chart Tools: Layout” ribbonClick “Legend” and select “None Turn off legend”Remove tick marks from horizontal and vertical axesHorizontal axisSelect (click on) the horizontal axisRight click and select “Format Axis” from the pop-up (last option on the pop-up list)For “Major tick mark type” select “None” using the drop-down menuClick “Close” button at the bottom of the pop-upVertical axisSelect (click on) the vertical axisRight click and select “Format Axis” from the pop-up (last option on the list)For “Major tick mark type” select “None” using the drop-down menuClick “Close” button at the bottom of the pop-upRemove horizontal marker linesClick on one of the linesPress “Delete” or “Backspace”Mark or Identify the lines in the graphSelect the top lineSelect the right-most spot/data point on the lineSelect the “Chart Tools – Layout” RibbonSelect “Data Labels” and “More Data Label Options”Select “Series Name” and deselect “Value”Click “Close” button at the bottom of the pop-upRepeat steps 5a through 5c for the remaining two linesNote – If you want to change type size, do it here so you won’t have to repeat step 5f below!Select one of the labelsSelect the “Home” ribbonSelect 12 pt. fontRepeat 5e for the other two data labelsAdjust the line container so that there is little/no overlap between the lines and the labelsClick in the white space of the graphClick+Drag the white box/square in the middle-right until the graph lines and their respective labels no longer overlapChange the linesSelect a lineRight click and select “Format Data Series” (last option on the pop-up)On the menu on the left, select “Line Color”Select “Solid Line”Select blackOn the menu on the left, select “Line Style”For “Dash Type” select something other than a solid lineClick “Close” button at the bottom of the pop-upRepeat steps 6a and 6b for a second lineRepeat step 6a (only) for the last lineAdd title and captionClick the mouse in the white space around/near the lines (you want to select the space that contains the lines of the graph)Click+Drag the white box/white square at the top/middle of the container and drag down (we’re making some space to work in and will adjust this container to a better size later)At the top of the screen select the “Chart Tools – Layout” ribbon Select “Text Box”; note that the cursor will change from to an upside down ‘t’Click-Drag a text box from the upper-left corner to the upper-right corner and then down (keep the text box within the boundaries of the graph, but don’t worry about it being ‘too big’!)Type in the following 2 lines of text:Graduation Rates of Students with IEPs in Minnesota4-, 5-, and 6-Year graduation rates have increased since 2003Edit the title and captionSelect the first line of textSelect the “Home” ribbonChange the size to 20 pt BoldSelect the second line of textChange the size to 14 pt.Adjust the size of the text box (if needed)Adjust the size of the graph container with the linesClick the white space around/near the linesClick+Drag the white box/white square at the top-middle of the container and drag upDone!Using Best Practices Graphs as TemplatesSelect the graphCopyKeyboard: CTRL+C3655695234315Mouse: Right click; select “Copy”Menu: “Home” ribbon; select “Copy” icon Navigate to the file you want to put the graphPasteKeyboard: CTRL+V3903345141605Mouse: Right click; select “Paste”Menu: “Home” ribbon; select the “Paste” icon Select the graphSelect the new dataSelect the “Chart Tools – Design” ribbonSelect “Select Data”Note: Excel is going to go back to the original worksheet for data. Make sure you’re at the correct worksheet to select the new data!3903345234950Navigate back to the new data fileIn the pop-up, click on the data selection icon Select the cells with the dataClick on the data selection icon againClick “OK” button at the bottom of the pop-upYour new data should be in the graph now!For bar or column graphs: Sort the data as you did earlierHighlight all of the cells of the dataIn the “Home” ribbon, select “Sort & Filter” and then “Custom Sort”In the pop-up:“Sort by” is Column B“Order” is ‘Largest to Smallest’Click the “OK” buttonFor the line graphs: Label the lines as you did earlierSelect the top lineSelect the right-most spot/data point on the lineSelect the “Chart Tools – Layout” RibbonSelect “Data Labels” and “More Data Label Options”Select “Series Name” and deselect “Value”Click “Close” button at the bottom of the pop-upRepeat steps 5a through 5c for the remaining two linesNote – If you want to change type size, do it here so you won’t have to repeat step 5f below!Select one of the labelsSelect the “Home” ribbonSelect 12 pt. fontRepeat 5e for the other two data labelsAdjust the line container so that there is little/no overlap between the lines and the labelsClick in the white space of the graphClick+Drag the white box/square in the middle-right until the graph lines and their respective labels no longer overlapAdjust the title and caption as neededDone!ResourcesColor or Palette Selection – Use these resources to match graph contents with your brand!Adobe Color CC Color Palette FX Colors Pallete Generator TinEye Labs Color Brewer 2 This site can help you identify colors that are appropriate for those who are color blind and/or photocopy-safe colors for different types of data (diverging vs. sequential).Cleveland and McGillCleveland, W. S., & McGill, R. (1984). Graphical perception: Theory, experimentation, and application to the development of graphical methods. Journal of the American statistical Association, 79(387), 531-554. Cleveland, W. S., & McGill, R. (1985). Graphical perception and graphical methods for analyzing scientific data. Science, 229(4716), 828-833. Retrieved from Edward TufteTopic Forum: (Currently no option to subscribe to this blog.)Stephanie EvergreenEvergreen, S. D. H. (2014). Presenting data effectively: Communicating your findings for maximum impact. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.Evergreen, S. D. H. (2016). Effective data visualization: The right chart for the right data. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. Blog: (To sign up for Stephanie’s blog, use the “Sign up for my newsletter!” box on the right side of the screen.)Stephanie Evergreen and Ann Emery co-authored a blog post and a data visualization checklist (Cheryl Videen shared the checklist at last year’s Assessment Conference). You can read the blog and download the list here: Ann EmeryBlog: To subscribe to Ann’s blog, use this link () and select “Blog” for the subscription.Stephen Few Few, S. (2009). Now you see it: Simple visualization techniques for quantitative analysis. Burlingame, CA: Analytics Press. Few, S. (2013). Information dashboard design: Displaying data for at-a-glance monitoring (2nd ed.). Burlingame, CA: Analytics Press. Blog: (Currently there is no option to subscribe to Stephen’s blog.)Chris Lysy – website Blog: (To subscribe to Chris’s blog, click “Follow” in the upper right corner.) ................
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