Statistical Literacy
Statistics are thrown around every day in news reports, in political speeches, and more. It is often said that statistics can be manipulated for a variety of interpretations and can be made to say whatever you want them to say. Two of my favorite books, Innumeracy by John Allen Paulos and Proofiness by Charles Seife, also illustrate examples of how lack of statistical literacy makes us poor citizens. I am hoping that one of the ways this work will impact students is to begin equipping them with the tools through which to question statistics. A healthy skepticism rooted in factual knowledge of how certain conclusions are ascertained mathematically is a skill that will help students think critically throughout their lives. For example, when the average value of _____ is reported, is it the mean that’s being reported or is it the median? Often times these two are interchangeable in media reports, and together these two statistics tell much more about a set of data than either one independently. In part of the introduction to my curriculum unit, I am going to share my “findings” with students. One of the things that I wrestled with in my analyses of hurricane data is this: There is a statistically significant increase in total tropical cyclones over time (since 1950). There is also a statistically significant trend that as tropical cyclones increase, so do landfalling hurricanes. A syllogistic conclusion would be, then, that there is an increase in landfalling hurricanes over time (since 1950). However, this result is not statistically significant. We can thus make this conclusion (that landfalling hurricanes have increased over time) logically, but not statistically. So what would we report? Who might prefer each conclusion? If you read two reports with two different conclusions, which would you more likely believe? These critical questioning skills can be developed when students understand basic statistical ideas like modeling, correlation, and significance.
Careers in Statistics
I have to quote fellow Fellow Chris England from the AP article Science on the job: Teachers learn from tech firms where he said,
It means when I’m going to give career advice, I’m no longer faking it. I went straight from college into education. I had no, quote, real-world experience. And so when I would give kids career advice, it would be kind of vague. Now it’s much more concrete.
I actually know what a statistician does. I now know what statistical research can look like. I have experienced the application of statistics in other fields. Hopefully giving this first-hand experience to kids as a context for their learning will engage them with the content in a different way. Perhaps it might even cause them to consider a career in statistics. When talking about careers with students, I’m always talking about non-math careers in which they might have to apply math. I feel much more comfortable now telling them about a career in math. I no longer have to teach statistics in this contrived way where we look at data on shoe sizes or number of siblings or other sets that exist only in our classroom. I am now empowered to give them real data that has global impact and answer some tough questions. I am very hopeful that this experience will be rich for students and open their minds to the possibility of a career in statistics.
A Cause to Fight For
I work with AIG (Academically and/or Intellectually Gifted) Students, and one characteristic of gifted students is often a heightened sense of justice. This can lead them to be overly sensitive to issues of fairness in the classroom, but it also leads them to take on causes. The work I’ve done this summer has exposed me to so much information that raises some very interesting ideas about climate change and the potential impact here in NC and beyond. What if learning math in this context ignites a passion for advocacy in a kid regarded the environment and climate change? Though they are only middle schoolers, but it’s seeds like these that often grow into further studies and careers as students grow up. Personally, I was never a kid who knew what I wanted to be “when I grew up.” Hindsight has revealed to me, however, that there were some truly formative, impactful moments in my career as a math student that grew together to direct me on this path.