Literature Index

Displaying 941 - 950 of 3326
  • Author(s):
    Schroeder, T. L.
    Editors:
    Davidson, R., & Swift, J.
    Year:
    1986
    Abstract:
    Games are often used in teaching as a means of introducing and exploring probability concepts, since they provide familiar and practical instances of the notions in question. This paper describes a study in which two versions of a game are used as the setting in which students' understanding of probability is assessed. The subjects involved had received no formal instruction in probability prior to the experiment, but during it some of them used intuitions about chance as they developed their strategies for playing. There is also evidence that as they responded to the interviewer's questions and explained their strategies, subjects sometimes attended to previously unnoticed features of the situations and developed new strategies as a result.
  • Author(s):
    Leslie, R. A.
    Editors:
    Phillips, B.
    Year:
    2002
    Abstract:
    A travel lab component in elementary statistics is envisioned as a statistics lab within the context of a foreign setting. This paper will focus on why this is important and how the learning of statistics can be enhanced due to participation in such a lab. The travel lab component to Nicaragua in 2000 dealt with the extreme poverty among women and children. In Cuba in 2002, it will be on the status of women in contemporary Cuba. Many students appear to have an interest in humanitarian issues and even expect to see values discussed in their college courses. Thus they find this application of statistics in social context not only interesting but also relevant. I believe that through this type of travel component the utility of statistics becomes evident and students are better able to appreciate statistics studied and used in context.
  • Author(s):
    Spurrier, J. D., Edwards, D., & Thombs, L. A.
    Year:
    1993
    Abstract:
    Students in elementary statistics traditionally see experiments and data as words and numbers in a text. They receive little exposure to the important statistical activities of sample selection, data collection, experimental design, development of statistical models, the need for randomization, selection of factors, etc. They often leave the first course without a firm understanding of the role of applied statistics or of the statistician in scientific investigations. In an attempt to improve elementary statistics education, we have developed a statistics laboratory similar to those of other elementary science courses. We will discuss our experiences in teaching the one-semester hour Elementary Statistics Laboratory course that can be taken with or after the traditional elementary statistics course. In each session students, working in teams, discuss the design of an experiment, carry out the experiment, and analyze their data using Minitab on a Macintosh. The students then individually either answer a series of short answer questions or write a formal scientific report. The labs are designed to be relatively inexpensive and do not require a prior background in science, statistics or computing.
  • Author(s):
    Berenson, S. B., Friel, S., & Bright, G. W.
    Year:
    1993
    Abstract:
    Proposed reforms in the K-12 mathematics included incorporating data analysis and probability into the mathematics curriculum. It was proposed that elementary school students engage in experiences to: a) collect, organize, and describe data; b) construct, read and interpret displays of data; and c) formulate and solve problems that involve collecting and analyzing data. However, the research literature contains few studies about the teaching and learning of statistical concepts, especially for elementary school students and teachers.
  • Author(s):
    Berenson, S. B., Friel, S., & Bright, G.
    Year:
    1993
    Abstract:
    The purpose of the present study was to identify the areas in graphical representations that elementary teachers fixated on, as well as, their alternative conceptions of several statistical concepts. The specific research questions were: 1) What features of a line plot and histogram do elementary teachers fixate on when interpreting data? 2) What alternative conceptions do elementary teachers have about center or middle of the data, typical, and prediction when interpreting graphical representations of data?
  • Author(s):
    Bright, G. W., & Friel, S. N.
    Year:
    1993
    Abstract:
    This study examined ways the elementary school teachers represented their understanding of the broad area of statistics. Special attention was paid to their understanding of the relationships among four critical statistics concepts in the North Carolina Standard Course of Study for Grades K-6. Relationships were examined through concept maps that the inservice teachers drew at the beginning of a three-week summer workshop on statistics.
  • Author(s):
    Terán, T. E., & López, M. A.
    Editors:
    Rossman, A., & Chance, B.
    Year:
    2006
    Abstract:
    This paper is part of a research study, the objective of which is to investigate the meaning of confidence intervals for first year students in the Statistics course in the Universidad Nacional de Rosario. Within the framework of Godino's theory (1999), by means of students' dialogues in front of the computer, we try to surmise the presence of the diverse elements of meaning - extensive, ostensive, actuating, intensive and validating - which reveal the topic comprehension. Statistical inference is one of the largest branches of Statistics and a fundamental methodological tool in the empiric sciences, in particular. It allows us to quantify our confidence in conclusions drawn from random samples, and therefore, to verify our impressions by means of calculations (Batanero, 2001); hence, the importance of an updated teaching.
  • Author(s):
    RIDGWAY, Jim, NICHOLSON, James, and MCCUSKER, Sean
    Year:
    2007
    Abstract:
    Many subjects in the school curriculum engage with contexts where multiple factors interact. Historically however, data have rarely been used at school level in such contexts because of the difficulties inherent in understanding multiple variable relationships. Stronger links across traditional subjects has proved an elusive aspiration for curriculum developers. We are currently engaged in a pilot project with the Northern Ireland Curriculum Authority (CCEA) to use some innovative interfaces with multivariate summary data as a focus for multiple perspectives on various contexts. Innovations in curriculum design offer opportunities for innovation in assessment. Often statistics assessment focuses primarily on accurate performance of routine calculations or graphical construction. Here the use of data is primarily to enhance understanding. This paper will explore mechanisms for embedding assessment of key statistical concepts within cross-curricular activities.
  • Author(s):
    Wild, C. J.
    Year:
    1994
    Abstract:
    The interconnected themes of quality and the marketing of the discipline of statistics are explored. An understanding of statistics as the study of the process of scientific inquiry is advocated as a consciously targeted market position. Because it reaches such a high proportion of the managers and decision makers of the future, the introductory university or college statistics course is highlighted as a potent marketing opportunity for enhancing the long-term health of statistics. Attention is given to teaching students to think statistically, to become educated consumers of statistical expertise, and to communicate well with nonstatisticians.
  • Author(s):
    Gil, E., & Ben-Zvi, D.
    Editors:
    C. Reading
    Year:
    2010
    Abstract:
    This paper discusses students’ evolving statistical reasoning about randomness and sampling in the context of inquiry-based activities designed to develop their informal inferential reasoning (IIR). The knowledge of sampling and randomness are key concepts to understanding statistical inference (Garfield & Ben-Zvi, 2008). In the ‘Connections’ project (Ben-Zvi, Gil & Apel, 2007), sixth grade students were engaged in an inquiry-based learning environment using TinkerPlots (Konold & Miller, 2005) that was designed to develop their IIR. In this design experiment (Brown, 1992; Collins, 1992), the students’ intuitive concepts of sampling and randomness were used to design instructional activities that nurture the emergence of ideas of random vs. biased sample and inference. This knowledge was later applied by the students to investigate authentic data and draw informal statistical inferences from a random sample to a population. 

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The CAUSE Research Group is supported in part by a member initiative grant from the American Statistical Association’s Section on Statistics and Data Science Education