Ways to use data in teaching

The use of 'real', as opposed to 'synthetic' datasets in teaching adds interest and relevance to courses, and, if the data are updated on a regular basis, ensures that the courses are pertinent to current issues. Data can be chosen to be of particular relevance to the subject being taught and thus can bring both substantive and methodological topics alive. Students also have the opportunity to understand the rationale for collecting data and can develop critical faculties to judge the strengths and weaknesses of particular data.

User documentation

Where possible, all of our data collections are accompanied by user documentation and a record of main publications resulting from original use and re-use of the data. The value of the documentation should be recognised as a resource in its own right - it can be used to train students in data collection methods and to provide model surveys which the students might copy or adapt.

Substantive research

The ESDS Data Catalogue contains a rich source of demographic, behavioural and attitudinal data with which to address many substantive topics. Such data may be used in conjunction with the main publications arising from the analysis conducted by the study's originators. Students could be asked to replicate research already conducted, to extend this research or to examine the data from an entirely different perspective. By using the data directly, students gain a good appreciation of the limitations and variations amongst different measures. For example, they might work through the method of calculating the weights for the retail price index or they might explore the relationship between the estimate of unemployment arising from the Labour Force Survey and that from unemployment benefit claimant counts.

Several datasets are good sources for comparative analysis, most notably the Eurobarometer Survey Series conducted across all EU countries simultaneously using the same questionnaires, and the International Social Survey Programme in which an identical core of questions are included in surveys in twenty-two countries. Students may find the British Social Attitudes Survey of particular interest since the topics change in each annual survey but are repeated periodically, thus enabling the analysis of the change in attitudes over time. There is an annual report which provides excellent material for further exploration by students at a range of levels of statistical expertise. In fact, a large number of data sources in the Data Catalogue permit the exploration of change over time, including change in the demographic or other aspects of the structure of society, change in behavioural patterns or in attitudes. Longitudinal data can result from a number of different designs - fresh cross-sectional designs such as the British Social Attitudes Survey; panels such as the British Household Panel Survey; rotating panels such as the Labour Force Survey; and cohorts such as the National Child Development Study. Such material can thus be used for an exploration of the various methods of collecting data over time and their implications for the analysis and interpretation of both point-in-time estimates and estimates of change.

Survey design and methods

Data can be used in teaching about various methodological issues connected with the collection and analysis of data. The potential is substantial and includes:

• Sample size - students could be asked to explore the relationship between sample size and precision using a small number of key datasets or to discuss why different datasets are based on very different sample sizes.

• Sampling frame and the study methodology - - ESDS datasets have been generated from samples drawn from a range of different sampling frames which provides an opportunity for the exploration of a variety of methods. Several of the key official surveys have changed their sampling frame from the Electoral Register to the Postcode Address File in recent years and could be used to explore the effects of such changes. Similarly there are other aspects of the methodology of the study which might change over time, such as the method of data collection, thus permitting an analysis of these effects. In a small number of cases changes have been introduced on a split panel basis which gives more precise estimates of the methodology effects.

• Coder variability - datasets sometimes contain the text of verbatim material in addition to coded material. It can be a valuable exercise to have students code a sample of the material themselves and to explore different aspects of coder variability such as the: differences between the original coding and the students' coding; within coder variability; between coder variability; and variability in the use of a particular code. More advanced students might then examine the likely impact of such variability on estimates, particularly estimate of change over time.

• Non-response and missing data - surveys suffer from a substantial range of non-response and there is a wealth of hypotheses which can be explored by students in examining why non-response varies, how it may be reduced and what factors correlate with non-response. The large scale Government surveys which, in Census years, were subject by ONS to detailed non-response checks (all of which are published) are particularly rich sources to exploit. Students might go on to look at the use of different weighting schemes to adjust for non-response. Similarly, students might explore the level and distribution of missing data on studies, and evaluate the effects of this on the analysis and interpretation of the data. Advanced students could devise imputation procedures to adjust for missing data and, where imputation has been used by the original researchers and the imputed values are flagged, examine the data with and without these values.

Qualitative methods

ESDS Qualidata provides support for teachers on teaching qualitative methods.

Consent and ethics

The UK Data Archive provided very detailed guidance on the ethics, confidentiality and consent in data sharing and re-use.

Managing research data

The UK Data Archive also provided guidance on all aspects of managing and sharing data which are now viewed as core skills for the researcher of today.