A new report released by CAUSE is well worth reading: _Connecting Research to Practice in a Culture of Assessment for Introductory College-level Statistics, _www.causeweb.org/research/guidelines/ResearchReport_Dec_2012.pdf
Read it. We’ll discuss later. Pop quiz.
I haven’t yet read it myself (in my eagerness to publicize it as quickly as possible), but of particular interest to this blog is the role that data science plays, or does not play. For instance, Question 1 under Research Priority 1 is “What core learning outcomes employed in a particular profession do individuals need to develop in order to perform well in that profession (e.
Just read a great paper by Anna Bargagliotti in the current Journal of Stats Education, “How well do the NSF Funded Elementary Mathematics Curricula align with the GAISE report recommendations? “. The answer: it depends. Anna compares three math curricula designed to meet the Common Core Standards for grades K-12: “Investigations in Number, Data, and Space”, “Math Trailblazers”, and “Everyday Mathematics.” Anna compared them to the Guidelines for Assessment and Instruction in Statistics Education K-12 report, which, to quote her paper, “defines a statistically literate person as one who is able to formulate questions, collect and analyze data, and interpret results.
We have just finished another semester, and before my mind completely turns to rubble, I want to share what I believe to be a fairly good assignment. What I present below was parts of two separate assignments that I gave this semester, but upon reflection I think it would be better as one.
Read the article Let’s Practice What We Preach: Turning Tables into Graphs (full reference given below). In this article, Gelman, Pascarica, & Dodhia suggest that presentations of results using graphs are more effective than results presented in tables.
The L.A. Times ran an interesting article about the new Federal Trade Commission(downloads) report, “Mobile Apps for Kids: Disclosures Still Not Making the Grade”, followed up on a February 2012 report, and concluded that “Yes, many apps included interactive features or shared kids’ information with third parties without disclosing these practices to parents.”
I think this is issue is intriguing on many levels, but of central concern is the fact that as we go about our daily business (or play, as the case may be), we leave a data trail, sometimes unwittingly.
One of the themes of this blog is to make statistics relevant and exciting to students by helping them understand the data that’s right under their noses. Or inside their ears. The iTunes library is a great place to start.
For awhile, iTunes made it easy to get your data onto your hard drive in a convenient, analysis-ready form. Then they made it hard. Then (10.7) they made it easy again.
Participating in the “hangout” hosted by Jess Hemerly’s Policy By the Numbers blog was fun, but even better was learning about this cool blog. It’s very exciting to meet people from so many different backgrounds and from so many varied interests who share an interest in data accessibility. One feature of PBtN that I think many of our readers will find particularly useful is the weekly roundup of data in the news.
