This paper is from Session 1D: The researcher/practitioner gap
which comes under Topic 1: Data and context in statistics education: towards an evidence-based society
(Friday 16th, 11:00-12:30)
Moving statistics education closer to the center of the undergraduate education
Presenter
- David Harrington (Harvard University, United States)
Co-author
- Joseph Blitzstein (Harvard University, United States)
Abstract
The gap in statistical literacy between researchers and practitioners begins opening in undergraduate education, when university students first encounter the possibility of careers in the social and physical sciences. The marginalization of statistics in undergraduate education contributes to the view that statistics is a topic best left to specialists conducting research.We will discuss our experience in narrowing the gap by reshaping the Harvard undergraduate statistics curriculum according to the following principles: (1) diversify introductory courses according to broad areas of application, while maintaining a unified perspective; (2) challenge students to conduct research projects in the introductory courses; (3) use examples that are both topical and substantively important; (4) expand the undergraduate statistics degree so that it is a platform for careers in social science, medicine, business, and law as well as in statistics.