Blog Post 7

This week, we focused on laying the foundation for the interactive visualizations that will be central to our final project. Our goal is to create a Shiny-based web app that allows users to explore patterns in school-based harassment and bullying allegations across the United States, broken down by identity categories such as sexual orientation, race, and religion.

While we haven’t completed the graphs yet, we’ve developed the core logic and structure of the app and have a clear plan for how the interactive components will function.

🎯 Goals

🌎 National Map Visualization

Users will be able to: - Select an allegation type from a dropdown menu (e.g., sexual orientation, race, religion) - View a map showing schools across the U.S., each represented by a circle - Circle size and color reflect the number of allegations per 100 students

🏛 State-Level Bar Chart

Users will be able to: - Choose a specific state - View a bar chart showing the average rate of allegations per 100 students in that state - Data will be broken down by the three main categories (sexual orientation, race, religion)

This provides both national and regional insights.

🎨 Design Intentions

We’re designing the interactive to follow key principles of effective data visualization:

Big Picture & Zoom-In:
The map gives a national overview, while the bar chart allows deeper state-level focus
Interactivity:
Dropdown menus will let users guide their own exploration and switch views dynamically
User Guidance:
Clear labels, legends, and thoughtful layout will help users understand the graphs
Potential for Personalization:
Although not implemented yet, we’re considering allowing users to search by school or district to explore personally relevant data

🚧 What’s Next

Finish building the dropdown logic for the map and bar chart
Normalize allegations by school size
Begin experimenting with {shinylive} for browser-based deployment
Consider adding data table or district search box

Stay tuned for more updates next week!