Visual analytics involves the use of visualization, statistics, and data mining in order to handle massive volumes of data. This analytical method employs data visualization technology to enable professionals to identify trends, patterns and relationships in the data they are working with. Unlike traditional analytics tools, visual analytics does not limit the analysis to predefined metrics – rather, it incorporates analytical reasoning and advanced computation for better decision-making processes.
Visual analytics and the education sector
The education sector is now one of the primary adopters of visual analytics, which may seem surprising given its nature. Before we understand how this industry has benefited so greatly from visual analytics, it is helpful to identify the issues presented by traditional analytical tools.
First, traditional analytical tools demand knowledge of programming skills to construct as well as modify predefined and inflexible data sets. Second, they are extremely costly, as hardware, software licensing, maintenance, and professional services require substantial investment. Finally, maintaining data warehouses is not only a complex procedure but also a time-consuming one.
Visual analytics tools, on the other hand, are not only easy to use, reuse, share and remix, but also provide a deeper understanding of data by creating new visualizations and reassembling data in a seamless manner. They also provide a high degree of data interactivity by allowing users to visually explore data filtering, comparing, and correlating data. Users can also incorporate advanced analytics, such as forecasting, modeling, statistical, what-if, and predictive analytics.
When it comes to the education sector, analytics are used to make informed decisions, back-up data, improve HR processes and functionalities and, most importantly, create better teaching methods. As the market for visual data analytics is expanding, these tools are now available through varied deployment models, such as on-premises and cloud-based models.
The education markets in most countries tend to be highly competitive spaces, which makes it very important for costs to be optimized and funds managed efficiently. It is in this context that visual analytics tools become even more critical, as they assist in better budget planning, efficient risk management, and transparency. Also, as cloud computing and ERP (enterprise resource planning) solutions are being extensively adopted by educational institutions, the use of visual data analytics has become imperative for many of them.
The US education market is the best example of the increased use of visual data analytics. Its visual analytics market is poised to grow at a CAGR of approximately 9% by 2020, due to high demand for better quality education, along with immense pressure on educational institutions to improve the performance of their operations, such as administration, human resources, and finance.
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