What Is This Telling Me About History? Surfacing Challenges to Understanding as Students Read and Make Sense of Data Visualizations in History Textbooks

• In Event: 45.089 - Visualizations, Eyewitnesses, and History Education

Abstract

Data visualizations have become increasingly important for communicating and comprehending information about the past. However, scholars of data literacy argue that several mediating factors can impact comprehension and use of data visualizations. This study investigates how students use and make sense of data visualizations in widely used history textbooks. Twenty-seven students from elementary, middle, and high school were interviewed and asked to interpret a variety of data visualizations and connect them to U.S. history. Results reveal that students face challenges at a basic level of comprehension.

Author

• Tamara L. Shreiner, Grand Valley State University