The challenge
Choose an openly licensed dataset on transport, education or the environment. Define a narrow question, clean a copy and explain the result without claiming causation from a simple association.
What to make
- A source log, data dictionary and reproducible cleaning steps
- Three charts with units, denominators and dates
- A one-page decision memo including limitations
How to approach it
Write the question and scope first. Make a rough version using tools you can access, then ask another person to review it. Keep the original alongside your revision so you can explain the difference. Document any assumptions and use fictional or appropriately licensed public material.
Review your work
Could someone reproduce your numbers? Inspect duplicates and missing rows. Show how a different time window changes the conclusion, and keep personal information out of your dataset.
Tell the story
Prepare a short case study with the problem, your approach, your output and one improvement you would make next. Label it as a practice project. Explain what you did yourself and identify any templates or outside help you used.