Coursera – STUDY GUIDEClick To Enroll in Coursera Show
Endless career possibilitiesCONTENT
Businesses of all kinds value the work done by data analysts. In this part of the course, you’ll find out about these businesses and the specific jobs and tasks that analysts perform for them. You’ll also learn how your data analyst certificate will help you meet many of the requirements for a position with these businesses. Learning Objectives
Test your knowledge on making fair business decisions1. What steps do data analysts take to ensure fairness when collecting data? Select all that apply.
Correct: Considering inclusive sample populations, social context, and self-reported data enable fairness in data collection. 2. Avens Engineering needs more engineers, so they purchase ads on a job search website. The website’s data reveals that 86% of engineers are men. Based on that number, an analyst decides that men are more likely to be successful applicants, so they target the ads to male job seekers. What should the analyst have done instead?
Correct: They should make sure their recommendation doesn’t create or reinforce bias. As a data analyst, it’s important to help create systems that are fair and inclusive to everyone. 3. On a railway line, peak ridership occurs between 7:00 AM and 5:00 PM. The fairness of a passenger survey could be improved by over-sampling data from which group?
Correct: Over-sampling the data from nighttime riders, an under-represented group of passengers, could improve the fairness of the survey. 4. A real estate company needs to hire a human resources assistant. The owner asks a data analyst to help them decide where to advertise the job opening. The analyst learns that the majority of human resources professionals are women, validates this finding with research, and targets ads to a women’s community college. This is fair because the analyst conducted research to make sure the information about gender breakdown of human resources professionals was accurate.
Correct: This is not fair. Fairness means ensuring that analysis doesn’t create or reinforce bias. As a data analyst, it’s important to help create systems that are fair and inclusive to everyone. *Weekly Challenge 5*1. An online gardening magazine wants to understand why its subscriber numbers have been increasing. What kind of reports can a data analyst provide to help answer that question? Select all that apply.
Correct: Analyzing historical data such as weather patterns, social media comments, and past sales would provide useful insights into the increase in subscription numbers 2. A doctor’s office discovers that patients are waiting 20 minutes longer for their appointments than in past years. In what ways could a data analyst help solve this problem? Select all that apply.
Correct: Analyzing appointment length, staffing numbers, and patient numbers are likely to provide useful insights to illustrate why this is happening and help solve this problem 3. A problem is an obstacle to be solved, an issue is a topic to investigate, and a question is designed to discover information.
Correct: A problem is an obstacle or complication to be solved, whereas a question is designed to discover information. These two things are the foundation of business tasks. 4. Data analysts answer questions and solve problems. These are called business tasks.
Correct: Data analysts answer questions and solve problems, which are called business tasks. 5. Data-driven decision-making is using facts to guide business strategy. The benefits include which of the following? Select all that apply.
Correct: Data-driven decision-making enables companies to use data analytics to find the best possible solution to a problem, complement observation with objective data, and get a complete picture of a problem and its causes. 6. Which of the following examples describe fairness in data analysis? Select all that apply.
Correct: Considering systematic factors that may influence your data, factoring in social contexts that could create bias in your conclusions, and making sure your sample population represents all groups are effective ways to ensure that your analysis is fair and doesn’t create or reinforce bias. 7. A data analyst is analyzing fruit and vegetable sales at a grocery store. They’re able to find data on everything except red onions. What’s the best course of action?
Correct: If a data analyst were to analyze all fruits and vegetables except for onions, the outcomes would not be fair because the data is not representative of all fruits and vegetables sold in grocery stores. 8. Collaborating with a social scientist to provide insights into human bias and social contexts is an effective way to avoid bias in your data.
Correct: Collaborating with a social scientist to provide insights into human bias and social contexts is an effective way to avoid bias in your data. *Course Challenge*1. Scenario 1, question 1-5Next, you continue to the prepare step. You access the database and write a query to retrieve data about Splashtastic. You notice that there are only 38 rows of data, representing the company’s 38 stores. In addition, your dataset contains five columns: Store Number, Average Daily Customers, Average Daily Splashtastic Sales (Units), Average Daily Splashtastic Sales (Dollars), and Average Total Daily Sales (All Products).Considering the size of your dataset, what’s the best way to proceed with the process and analyze steps?
Correct: Spreadsheets work well for processing and analyzing a small dataset, such as the one you’re using. 2. Scenario 1 continuedNow, it’s time to process the data. As you know, this step involves finding and eliminating errors and inaccuracies that can get in the way of your results. While cleaning the data, you notice there’s missing data in one of the rows. What might you do to fix this problem? Select all that apply.
Correct: You could ask your supervisor or a colleague for guidance. Asking questions helps you learn and avoid mistakes. 3. Scenario 1 continuedOnce you’ve found the missing information, you analyze your dataset.During analysis, you create a new column F. At the top of the column, you add the attribute Average Percentage of Total Sales – Splashtastic. Select the correct definition for an attribute.
Correct: An attribute is a characteristic or quality of data used to label a column. 4. Scenario 1 continuedNext, you determine the average total daily sales over the past 12 months at all stores. The range that contains these sales is E2:E39. Identify the correct way to write your function.
Correct: The function begins with an equal sign (=), and the range is E2 through E39. 5. Scenario 1 continuedYou’ve reached the share phase of the data analysis process. It involves which of the following? Select all that apply.
Correct: The share phase involves creating data visualizations, preparing your presentation, and communicating your findings to stakeholders. 6. Scenario 2, question 6-10You’ve been working for the nonprofit National Dental Society (NDS) as a junior data analyst for about two months. The mission of the NDS is to help its members advance the oral health of their patients. NDS members include dentists, hygienists, and dental office support staff.The table is dental_data_table, and the column name is zip_code. How do you complete the following query?
Correct: The correct syntax is WHERE zip_code = 81137. WHERE indicates where to look for information. The column name is zip_code. And the database is being asked to return only records matching zip code 81137. 7. Scenario 2 continuedThe dataset your supervisor retrieved and imported into a spreadsheet includes a list of patients, their demographic information, dental procedure types, and whether they attended their follow-up appointment. To use the dataset for this scenario, click the link below and select “Use Template.”The patient demographic information includes data such as age and gender. As you’re learning, it’s your responsibility as a data analyst to make sure your analysis is fair. The fact that the dataset includes people who all live in the same zip code might get in the way of fairness.
Correct: It’s your responsibility as a data analyst to make sure your analysis is fair. Although many zip codes do reflect diverse populations, a better choice would be to include data about people who live in multiple zip codes. 8. Scenario 2 continuedAs you’re reviewing the dataset, you notice that there are a disproportionate number of senior citizens. So, you investigate further and find out that this zip code represents a rural community in Colorado with about 800 residents. In addition, there’s a large assisted-living facility in the area. Nearly 300 of the residents in the 81137 zip code live in the facility.Now, the NDS campaign will be about educating dental offices on the challenges faced by senior citizens and finding ways to help them access quality dental care.Fill in the blank: Changing the business task involves defining a new _____.
Correct: A business task is the question or problem data analysis answers for a business. 9. Scenario 2 continuedYou continue with your analysis. In the end, your findings support what you discovered during your online research: As people get older, they’re less likely to attend follow-up dental visits.But you’re not done yet. You know that data should be combined with human insights in order to lead to true data-driven decision-making. So, your next step is to share this information with people who are familiar with the problem. They’ll help verify the results of your data analysis.The people who are familiar with a problem and help verify the results of data analysis include customers and competitors.
Correct: Subject-matter experts look at the results of data analysis to identify any inconsistencies, make sense of the gray areas, and eventually validate the choices being made. 10. Scenario 2 continuedThe subject-matter experts are impressed by your analysis. The team agrees to move to the next step: data visualization. You know it’s important that stakeholders at NDS can quickly and easily understand that older people are less likely to attend important follow-up dental appointments. This will help them create an effective campaign for members.It’s time to create your presentation to stakeholders. It will include a data visualization that demonstrates the trend of people being less likely to attend follow-up appointments as they get older. Which type of chart will be most effective?
Correct: A line chart is effective for tracking trends over time, such as people attending fewer follow-up appointments as they get older. From the Quiztudy TeamHi, Quiztudy is pleased to assist you with any study guide, certificate, or assessment test. More study guides will be published as we grow. Subscribe to our siteGet new content delivered directly to your inbox. Is possible for conclusions drawn from data analysis to be both true and unfair?It's possible for conclusions drawn from data analysis to be both true and unfair. Correct. Sometimes, a conclusion may be true, but it's unfair because it doesn't represent all groups or it ignores social context and other systemic factors.
How could a data analyst correct the unfair practices?The data analyst could correct this by asking for the teachers to be selected randomly to participate in the workshop, and by adjusting the data they collect to measure something more directly related to workshop attendance, like the success of a technique they learned in that workshop.
What are some strategies to ensure your data is accurate and fair?To ensure your data is accurate and fair, make sure you start with an accurate representation of the population in the sample; collect the data in an objective way; and ask questions about the data.
What can go wrong with data analysis?Concentrating too much or not Enough on Outliers
Factors such as erroneous processes and incorrect data can also lead to outliers. You can expect to come across a variety of outliers when collecting website information. It could be a spikier in web visitors or a fall in lead volume.
|