Why Communication Is KT
Where This Fits
You already have descriptive evidence. A plot, a Table 1, and a dashboard prototype can all be technically correct and still fail if the intended audience cannot tell what matters.
Science communication means explaining scientific evidence clearly and responsibly for a specific audience. In this course, that means turning one audited health data finding into a short, plain-language message that includes evidence, limitations, and appropriate caution.
Communication is part of knowledge translation. It turns evidence into a form that helps a person make sense of a question, ask a better follow-up, or avoid a bad interpretation.
The Week 9 Task
This week asks for one small communication product:
- one audience;
- one question;
- one figure, table, or dashboard output;
- one plain-language takeaway;
- one limitation;
- one source note.
That is enough. More slides are not automatically better.
Match the Message to the Audience
Before writing, identify your audience: experts may need methods, policymakers may need decision relevance, patients may need clear practical meaning, and the public may need plain language and careful context.
| Audience | What they usually need | What that means for your message |
|---|---|---|
| Experts (analysts, researchers) | Methods and definitions | Name the data source, the variables, and how groups were formed |
| Policymakers | Decision relevance | Lead with the takeaway and say what decision or discussion it informs |
| Patients | Clear practical meaning | Explain what the finding means in everyday terms, without causing alarm |
| General public | Plain language and careful context | Avoid jargon and keep the limitation right next to the claim |
The finding and the evidence stay the same. What changes is the emphasis, the wording, and how much technical detail you show.
What Counts as Evidence
Use work from earlier weeks:
| Earlier artifact | How it can support Week 9 |
|---|---|
| A5 corrected plot | Evidence slide or visual example |
| A5 caption | Source, statistic, exclusion, and limitation wording |
| A6 Table 1 | Descriptive context or supporting table |
| A6 methods note | Data and cohort explanation |
| A6 provenance note | Source and stewardship note |
| A7 dashboard adaptation | Audience and KT purpose |
| A7 limitation/privacy check | Caution slide or speaker note |
Keep the Claim Small
Good Week 9 claims sound like this:
In this prepared classroom dataset, mean BMI differs across income groups, but the comparison is descriptive and unweighted.
Weak Week 9 claims sound like this:
Income causes BMI differences.
The second claim is not supported by the course workflow. The first claim is cautious, understandable, and grounded in the evidence students have actually produced.
AI Use
AI may help simplify wording, draft speaker notes, or suggest slide order. It must not invent sources, make results stronger than the code supports, or remove limitations to make a message sound cleaner.
Check Yourself
Before moving on, answer:
- Who is the audience?
- What decision, conversation, or question does the communication support?
- Which prior artifact is the evidence?
- What limitation must remain visible?