This paper is from Session 3A: Statistics instructors’ content knowledge

which comes under Topic 3: Education and development of staff who teach statistics

Beyond calculations: fostering conceptual understanding in statistics graduate teaching assistants

Presenter

• Jennifer L Green (Montana State University, United States)

Co-author

• Erin E Blankenship (University of Nebraska-Lincoln, United States)

Abstract

Incoming statistics graduate students who are expected to teach introductory statistics as part of their assistantships are very prepared to teach the procedural portions of the course. However, they are less comfortable with the statistical thinking/reasoning aspects of the course. To better prepare novice teaching assistants (TAs), we developed a course that focuses on how TAs can foster critical thinking and enhance learning in their classrooms. In this course, a team of faculty and exemplary TAs employs a variety of activities to promote conceptual understanding of key statistical ideas. The TAs leave the course with not only a cadre of examples, assessment questions and tips for how to teach introductory statistics, but also an enhanced understanding of statistical concepts. The course has helped to improve the level of teaching in the introductory course, not only by giving the TAs a set of classroom tools, but also by improving their confidence.