PRESENTATION OF TABLES
AND FIGURES
A Table
refers to any data which is presented in orderly rows across and/or down
the page, often enclosed within borders.
A Figure refers
to any other form of presentation such as a bar or pie chart, a graph,
a diagram, a map, a photograph, a line drawing or a sample of material.
Advantages
of Using Tables and Figures
Suggestions
for Effective Presentation of Tables and Figures
Refer
to the table or figure BEFORE it appears.
e.g.
See Table 1 below.
Calculations are shown in Figure 2.
(Table 3.)
Full details are given in fig. 4.
¡K is shown in Table 4.
|
Decide on the most appropriate
size, according to the amount of information to be included.
|
Keep your table
or figure relatively simple. Keep such additions as lines, words,
labels and colours to a minimum. |
|
Use a key if
complex information needs to be presented. |
|
Consider the
use of white space so as to display the information most effectively
on the page. |
|
Place the table
or figure on the same page as your discussion about it; whenever possible. |
|
Present the table
or figure in the normal ¡¥portrait¡¦ orientation, rather than 'landscape':
it can be quite annoying to have to turn the report sideways in order
to read the data. |
|
Integrate the
table or figure into your text by referring to particularly significant
results. |
|
Number the tables and figures consecutively
throughout the report by using Arabic numbers.
e.g. Table 1, Figure 1.
|
The abbreviations Fig. and fig.
are also acceptable.
Avoid using A,B,C or Roman numbers
i, ii, iii as labels because such usage is quite clumsy.
|
Give each table
and figure a title so as to immediately tell your reader what it is
showing. |
|
Note that the
recommended presentation of tables and figures is as follows: |
the
table number and title should be placed ABOVE the table
the figure number and title should be placed
BELOW the figure
|
|
Add 'Notes' below
the table or figure to explain the content of a particular cell of
a table or part of the figure. |
Click
here to see two samples from students' FYPs that show the correct
placement of table and figure titles plus an example of the addition of
'Notes' to a table.
|