Reading charts and tables correctly at work
For anyone who reads dashboards, monthly packs, survey results or published statistics and has to act on them or pass them on. No prerequisites beyond everyday percentages; 'Business numeracy: percentages, rates, margins and unit conversions' helps with the arithmetic. This is the reader's side: you'll work out what a chart or table actually measures, read values correctly when axes are broken, doubled or unevenly spaced, interpret rounding and table shorthand such as [c], [x] and [p], judge whether a difference is meaningful using confidence intervals, margins of error, statistical significance and seasonal patterns, and write an accurate one-line summary with its caveat. If you make charts, 'Excel charts that tell the truth: axes, scales and labels' covers the author's side. Based on UK Government Analysis Function guidance, Office for National Statistics methodology pages and the US Census Bureau's American Community Survey handbook. It's practical guidance for reading figures, not a statistics qualification.
- Level
- Beginner
- Length
- About 105 minutes
- Contents
- 5 lessons · final exam
- Status
- Published · updated 10 Oct 2026
Skills you'll practise
- Identify what a chart or table measures from its title, subtitle, axis labels, units, notes and source before reading any values
- Read values and changes from charts correctly when axes are broken, doubled or unevenly spaced
- Interpret table conventions: rounding, totals that don't add up, and shorthand such as [c], [x], [z], [p], [r], [b] and [low]
- Judge whether a difference is meaningful using confidence intervals, margins of error, statistical significance and seasonal patterns
- Write a short summary of a chart or table that states what it shows, how big the change is and its main caveat
Course outline
- 1.Identifying what a chart or table measuresLesson · 15 min
- 2.Reading values and changes from charts when axes are broken, doubled or unevenLesson · 18 min
- 3.Interpreting rounding, totals and shorthand in tablesLesson · 17 min
- 4.Judging whether a difference is meaningful: uncertainty and seasonalityLesson · 20 min
- 5.Writing an accurate summary with its main caveatLesson · 15 min
- 6.Reading charts and tables correctly at work: knowledge checkKnowledge check · 14 questions
- 7.Reading charts and tables correctly at work: practical exerciseKnowledge check · 1 question
- 8.Final exam10 questions · passing it completes the course, so people who already know the material can test out
Sources it draws on
The lessons and questions are written from these references, so learners can go back to the original.
- UK Government Analysis Function: Data visualisation: charts (published 19 May 2022)
- UK Government Analysis Function: Data visualisation: tables (published 19 May 2022)
- UK Government Analysis Function: Using symbols and shorthand (published 11 January 2022)
- UK Government Analysis Function (Data Quality Hub): Communicating quality, uncertainty and change (published 17 December 2018)
- Office for National Statistics: Uncertainty and how we measure it for our surveys
- Office for National Statistics: Seasonal adjustment
- US Census Bureau: Understanding and Using American Community Survey Data: What All Data Users Need to Know (2020), Chapter 7: Understanding Error and Determining Statistical Significance
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