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Validation Workshop at The Wales Annual Meeting

Validation Workshop at The Wales Annual Meeting. May 2019. Outline for workshop. Introduction & general principles - a presentation based on the Irish validation workshop The What, Who, Why, When, Where and How Working in small groups on problems. Validation: The VCR is king!.

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Validation Workshop at The Wales Annual Meeting

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  1. Validation Workshop at The Wales Annual Meeting May 2019

  2. Outline for workshop • Introduction & general principles - a presentation based on the Irish validation workshop • The What, Who, Why, When, Where and How • Working in small groups on problems

  3. Validation: The VCR is king! Validation is the what you do when you confirm/reject or query a record in the DDB. To do this you need to check • grid reference/site are consistent • Date is valid • Record is taxonomically correct Editing a record involves changing a record because it has a correctable error. Validation is one of your most important roles as a VCR. This is because you are better placed to do it than anyone else.

  4. Why do we need to validaterecords? • Most datasets contain errors: • What % of records are incorrect in some way? • (0.03%) – 0.5% - (10%) (from Andy Amphlett) • 1 error per 200 records is fairly typical • Are these errors significant? • See DDb > my county > data validation - this will flag up records with serious problems eg wrong taxon, hectad • It is impossible to eliminate all errors, in all datasets, so that is not the target of validation • The important part is to validate the tiny percentage of records with serious errors

  5. How to validate records • Start with Mapmate • When entering data into Mapmate set up the Validation tool • (Data entry-Records-Change default-validation) • Click the warnings that you wish to have – eg 1ST record for hectad • It may be useful to set up the Taxon-Validation tool • This has to be set up for a taxon eg E. peplis - asking it to warn you if it is • entered in your VC (often a typo for E. peplus) • We advise synching to the DDB after each data entry session, as then you can validate each data set quickly • When using the DDB with records just updated, search with the date entered and once the more unusual or notable records have been checked, confirm ALL records in the set

  6. Advise the following approach to validation NOW Check, (correct where necessary), and validate records as soon as they arrive at the DDb Do not let the backlog of unchecked records get any bigger. Prioritise record checking Check and validate all records DEADLINE for validation of records for Atlas 2020 is 31/03/2020

  7. How to Validate: Using the DDB Validation Tools • The DDB validation tool is essential when dealing with a backlog • Find it using: DDb > my county > data validation tab • Validation of Singletons • (One off or isolated occurences) – require +ve confirmation or rejection • Look at the County report, click on 2nd tab “Data validation” • Scroll down to Singletons & Anomalies. Click on blue result nos and display results to see table of records • Examine table of records. Can you see any obvious problems? • Change the Validation state if necessary. • Tick box on far left. Scroll to page bottom and select change validation state in dialogue box. Add comments to explain the change.

  8. Validation states: what they mean for the record • Remember: you cannot ‘delete’ records from the DDb

  9. Frequently Asked Questions Is it necessary to examine every record in detail when validating records? NO When you Confirm a record does that mean that you have to be 100% certain the record is correct? NO Confirmation of a record means that you are happy to accept it as likely to be correct If I Confirm or Reject a record can I change my mind later? YES You can always assign a ‘new’ validation state to a record, which will over-write the previous version. Can I reject or query an unusual record that might possibly be correct? YES Look for supporting evidence before confirming an anomalous record

  10. More general guidance • Don't get stuck on difficult, often old, records. Prioritise those you are entering now. • The DDb retains full details of records tagged as doubtful or rejected, a record cannot be deleted. • Use the facility to edit very sparingly • Do not edit or change a record in the DDb if it should really be happening in MapMate (either your own, or another VCRs’) in other words, edit the record where it was made • Hieracium and Taraxacum records are much lower priority, (key datasets for those genera have been verified but not validated)

  11. In this workshop.. • Try peer-to-peer discussion and problem solving in small groups • There will be some support from Pete Stroh • Not all issues can resolved here, so we will make a list of things to be followed up • Hopefully everyone will leave with a better understanding of the process and know what to do next

  12. Discussion kick starter What are the two biggest issues your group has about validation? • Discuss for 5 mins • Jot down on sheets of paper I’ve placed near each group • Report back

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