Analyzing tables can feel a bit different from tackling line graphs or bar charts. While those formats often focus on trends over time or comparisons between categories, tables lay everything out in a straightforward way, presenting numbers side by side. This means you’ll need to pay close attention to the details and find the right words to describe what you see. It’s important for you to prepare specifically for tables and get comfortable with some common phrases and strategies. In this blog, I’ll show you some handy tips for writing about tables, complete with key vocabulary and example sentences to help you express your findings clearly and confidently.
Tips for Describing Table Data
To kick things off, let’s check out a sample table showing student enrollment numbers across different course categories from 2019 to 2022.
By looking at this data, we can pick up some handy tips for describing trends, distributions, and changes in a clear and straightforward way. Here are some easy strategies to help you nail your analysis.
Overall Trend
Description Method
Identify the main trend across categories
Frequently Used Words/Collocations
“Overall,” “In general,” “The data shows”
Example
Overall, the table shows that the highest number of students enrolled in science courses.
Highest and Lowest Values
Description Method
Identify the highest and lowest figures
Frequently Used Words/Collocations
“The highest,” “The lowest,” “Ranking first/last”
Example
The highest enrollment was in the science category, while the lowest was in arts.
Comparison Between Categories
Description Method
Compare values across different categories
Frequently Used Words/Collocations
“In comparison,” “Compared to,” “While”
Example
In comparison to arts, science had twice the number of enrollments.
Changes Over Time
Description Method
Describe how figures change over periods
Frequently Used Words/Collocations
“Increased by X%,” “Decreased by Y%,” “Changed from… to…”
Example
The number of students in science increased by 25% from 2019 to 2020.
Data Distribution
Description Method
Discuss how data is spread across categories
Frequently Used Words/Collocations
“The majority of,” “A small portion of,” “Distribution of”
Example
The majority of students enrolled in science courses, making up 50% of total enrollments.
Notable Features
Description Method
Highlight any interesting or unusual data points
Frequently Used Words/Collocations
“Notably,” “Interestingly,” “It is worth mentioning”
Example
Interestingly, the number of students in vocational courses doubled in 2020.
Speed of Change
Description Method
Discuss the rate at which changes occur
Frequently Used Words/Collocations
“Rapid increase,” “Gradual decline,” “Fell sharply”
Example
The enrollment figures experienced a rapid increase in vocational courses, rising from 50 to 400 in three years.
Summary
By keeping an eye on overall trends, picking out important figures, and making clear comparisons, you can show you really understand the data in front of you. Don’t forget to sprinkle in some specific phrases to make your descriptions pop.
