Boston Public Schools - A Geospatial Project
Kendall Gilbert
4/22/2022
Introduction
Boston is the capital and the most populous city of Massachusetts. The city has a population around 675,000 making it the most populous city in all of New England.
For families living in Boston or who have recently moved to Boston, it is important they find a school that is the right fit for their children’s needs. There are many schools available in Boston ranging from grades K-12. The data set I analyzed only includes public schools.
Within this project, I will analyze the schools available in a few specific districts. I will choose these districts based off the most popular districts in terms of population and desire to live there.
The most populous areas in Boston include East Boston, South Boston, Roxbury and Boston. The most populated zip codes within these areas are 02118 (East Boston) 02127 (South Boston) and 02128 (Roxbury). (https://localistica.com/usa/ma/boston/zipcodes/most-populated-zipcodes/)
The three most popular districts in term of desire to live there are in Charlestown, East Boston and Hyde Park (02128, 02129, 012136). (https://www.extraspace.com/blog/moving/city-guides/best-neighborhoods-in-boston-for-families/#:~:text=Located%20just%20north%20of%20Downtown,School%20and%20Charlestown%20High%20School.)
Choosing a place to live is up to a family and the circumstances they face. The goal of this project is just to analyze and get a good idea of the schools that are available in Boston.
Prediction / Hypothesis
In this project I will analyze the most heavily populated school districts in Boston as well as the districts that are known to be “the best places” to live.
I predict that there will be more schools available in areas that are heavily populated. Furthemore, there will be many elementary schools but few high schools. I also predict that Charlestown and Hyde Park will have not as many schools because there is a lot of private schools. These areas have a high cost of living and families that may prefer/afford to send their kids to private school.
I predicted this after reading that Boston is home to the first public school in the country AND continuously gets voted in top five school systems in the country. (https://www.expatarrivals.com/americas/usa/boston/education-and-schools-boston). Additionally, I predicted that Charlestown and Hyde Park would have less public schools after researching their average costs of living and average salary using this website - https://www.areavibes.com/boston-ma/hyde+park/cost-of-living/.
Preparation
Within this project I utilized Tableau. Tableau allowed me to create interactive geo-spatial maps that were engaging, unique and easy to read!
Furthermore, I had to conduct research in order to successfully complete this project. I obtained a dataset from Boston’s Open Data website https://data.boston.gov/. This dataset includes helpful information about public schools in Boston, including their address’s, what grades they offer and what kind of school they are. https://data.boston.gov/dataset/public-schools2
Population by Zip Code in Boston
First, I created a map to show the most populated zip codes in Boston. I chose the top 16 as they all had at least over 1000 residents. All 16 of these zip codes are either in East Boston, South Boston, or Boston. Population is an important factor to think about when moving to a new city or another place withing the city.
As you hover your mouse over this map - you can see the specific population for the specific 16 zip codes. https://www.massachusetts-demographics.com/zip_codes_by_population
As you can see East Boston is the most populated zip code followed by South Boston. Although these zip codes have the largest populations - Boston is WAY bigger and consists of many different zip codes.
It is important to keep in mind when reading this project that even the some of the most populated zip codes do not have schools in the zip code area.
All Schools Available in Boston
This is a map created to show all the schools available in Boston. It is interactive therefore you can use the toolbar on the right hand side to turn filters on and off. The filters allow you to see schools in specific zip codes and areas. If you hover over the plot on the map you can see the specific address of the school.
As you can tell, there are a lot of schools! Below I have attached a table to show the schools in a different form.
If a family had recently moved to Boston or relocated to another area in Boston - this map would be very helpful.
Most Populated Zip Codes in Boston
The three most populated zip codes are 02128, 02127 and 02118. These zip codes are located in Roxbury, East Boston and South Boston. 02128 (Roxbury) has a population of 38,604, 0212 (East Boston) has a population of 30,000 and 02118 (South Boston) has a population of 20,000.
Below is the map in table form.
Observations from Most Populated Zip Codes
From the map we can establish a few things. Also, keep in mind these are observations from the schools in specific zip codes not the entire area. For instance, Roxbury is multiple zip codes but I am only analyzing one as it is the most populated.
Even with a large population, 02118 only has one school available, therefore, students must travel somewhere else in Roxbury (to see other schools available in Roxbury use filter). This school is called the Carter Center. This school is non-traditional special education school for students in grades 6-12. (https://www.bostonpublicschools.org/school/carter-development-center)
02128 has 7 Elementary schools, 2 K-8 schools, 1 academy and 1 high school.
02127 has 2 elementary schools, 2 K-8 schools, 1 academy and 1 high school.
These results support my hypothesis to an extent. I hypothesized that the populated areas would have more schools and specifically a lot of elementary schools. Although, it is unique how one of the most populated areas in Boston (02118) only has one school making students commute further.
Most Desired Zip Codes to live in
According to the website talking about desired neighborhoods in Boston, the three most popular areas to live in are East Boston, Charlestown and Hyde Park (02128, 02129, 012136).
Below is a map showing the schools within these areas.
Observations from Most Popular Zip Codes by DESIRE
From the map a few things can be established.
Charlestown and East Boston are very close to each other while Hyde Park is on the outskirts of the city.
Charlestown has 1 elementary school, 1 middle school, 1 K-8 school and 1 high school.
East Boston has 7 elementary schools, 1 English Learning school, 1 Middle School (Umana Academy), 2 K-8 schools and 1 high school.
Hyde Park has 2 elementary schools, 1 middle school, 2 K-8 school and 3 high schools.
These results were interesting. East Boston had the most schools clearly due to their high population. Charlestown and Hyde Park seemed to have less schools. I predict this is due to their lower population and more suburban like feel / traditions. It appears that the number of schools are lower. These would be good school systems to attend if you want your children to be around the same kids the entirety of their schooling. (That is why my parents chose to live in my specific town!)
Conclusion
It can be concluded that Boston is in no shortage of schools. Schools are located all around the city and seem to be well catered towards the specific areas popularity. For instance, the most populated areas have many schools and areas that are desired to live in have fewer public schools - which infers that there are more private schools. Additionally, my prediction was correct that there are more elementary schools than any other schools.
Overall, this project was very interesting and pleasing to complete. I learned how to use features in Tableau to make my maps and tables exactly how I wanted them in regard to color, style and specific features.
A work by Kendall Gilbert - Media Analytics Student