Use of web-based public databases in statistics courses: Experiences and challenges.

During the past decade, national and international organisations have been steadily increasing the number of web-based statistical databases available to general public. While often user-unfriendly (mostly due to poor design and organisation as well as lack of navigation options) in their pioneer years, many of these databases have been gradually transformed into well-managed expansive resources that can greatly enhance the teaching and learning of statistics. A number of illustrative examples are presented in this paper along with discussion of our experiences and identification of future challenges pertaining to their use in statistics courses.