Other determinants & developments in Statistics education
Convenors
Abstract
Statistics is a very broad discipline encompassing so many areas of practical application. In fact doesn’t everyone need to learn (and be taught) Statistics? Scientific logic is our business. Statisticians can often be most helpful by getting perspective on all aspects of a particular problem and then contributing ideas related to scientific method. What is the connection between quantitative and qualitative research method? Is statistics the cure for all diseases? How crucial is the fact that Scientific inference is broader than statistical inference? In Topic 8 we will include sessions which address special aspects of teaching statistics which do not necessarily fall under one of the main conference themes covered in Topics 1-7. To get a flavour for this Topic consider some of the following issues:
- What are the learning factors in statistics education? Can we for example make use of student characteristics in order to interact with the use of technology in teaching introductory statistics? How can we make the best use of the new media to teach statistics? Statisticians often use the same teaching method or even the same textbook changing only different examples depending on the academic environment. This is generally wrong. However, which is the best teaching method or what is the best combination for each academic environment?
- How do we learn how to analyse data? Should we investigate the data creation process so that data has a history for students? What tools are particularly useful in data analysis? We have to evaluate (to count as Statisticians) the effectiveness of each teaching approach considering the place and the time. However, should we develop general assessment tools and techniques?
- What historical aspects of statistical (and stochastic) education are relevant in modern teaching of statistics? Computers and other tools must be used in the daily educational activities. However, what is the role of the statistician-teacher within the school collaboration? How teachers should be trained? How and by whom a Statistical Laboratory is organized and administered? How daily-life materials are used in teaching and research?
- What cultural and gender factors are particularly important in statistics teaching, and what can we do to make people more aware of them? Is for example being taught in a second language an issue in teaching statistics?
- Are projects and competitions really useful in statistics education, and if so do they warrant the organisation and time commitment necessary to make them successful? Using projects very often we teach how one can organize a project and present its results. However, is it possible to teach Statistics using projects instead of teaching projects using Statistics and which are the requirements for this? Barriers between subjects in schools should be eliminated. Teachers must cooperate teaching the students, within the curriculum, in order to give them not only the specific subject essence but also the relations between subjects and their interaction.
Sessions
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