The first Cambridge Data School took place from 3–6 June 2019
Objectives
The objectives of the Data School are to:
- democratise access to tools and methods for digital data collection, analysis and reporting
- foster the development of ethical practices in digital research
- encourage dialogue between academia, civil society, the public sector and industry about the social, ethical and policy implications of digital research methods
The Data School will leverage expertise in internet-mediated research and digital verification methods providing practical instructions and knowledge exchange across sectors, professions and disciplines. Participants will be drawn from civil society groups, academia and the public sector.
Preference will be given to individuals from organisations whose access to digital data-driven training is limited due to lack of human or financial resources.In order to stimulate peer learning, the desired composition of the class is diverse, with participants from different fields, and thus selection will be guided by this objective.
Course Content
The Data School course content will be structured around the life-cycle of a digital research project, covering principles of research design, data collection, cleaning and preparation, methods of analysis and visualisation, and data management and preservation practices. The course will be tailored to the learning needs of participants, with content selected from the following topics:
- Ethical digital research design
- Online data collection
- Social Media data extraction
- Dataset exploration, structuration and cleaning
- Digital data verification methods
- Social Network visualisation and analysis
Additional topics will be covered if there is enough interest from participants – please tell us on your application form if there is a particular method or skill you want to learn.
Teaching Team
The 2019 Data School teaching team will include:
- Dr Hugo Leal (Cambridge Digital Humanities Methods Fellow, Research Associate, Conspiracy and Democracy project, CRASSH, University of Cambridge)
- Dr Anne Alexander (Director of Learning, Cambridge Digital Humanities; Ethics of Big Data research group, University of Cambridge)
- Mariana Marasoiu (PhD student, Computer Lab, University of Cambridge)
- Rebekah Lyndon (Amnesty International’s Digital Verification Corps; MPhil student, Faculty of History, University of Cambridge)
Keynote speakers
We’re delighted to announce the first of our keynote speakers: Paul Bradshaw. Look out for further announcements on our website about our other keynotes over the coming weeks.
Paul Bradshaw runs the MA in Data Journalism and the MA Multiplatform and Mobile Journalism at Birmingham City University, and also works as a consulting data journalist with the BBC England Data Unit. In 2016 he won the CNN MultiChoice Sport Reporting Award for an investigation into people trafficking in football. A journalist, writer and trainer, he has worked with news organisations including The Guardian, Telegraph, Mirror, Der Tagesspiegel and The Bureau of Investigative Journalism. He publishes the Online Journalism Blog, is the co-founder of the award-winning investigative journalism network HelpMeInvestigate.com, and has been listed on both Journalism.co.uk‘s list of leading innovators in media, and the US Poynter Institute’s list of the 35 most influential people in social media.
