Conceptual Statistics: Engaging Students in Statistical Discovery

Iowa State University, Ames IA

Investigators

Abstract

With the implementation of innovative hands-on activities, access to real world data sets and the increased ability to simulate statistical probability distribution and random phenomena, conceptual statistical thinking in introductory statistics courses has gone through significant development. Much of this development is due to the exposure of students to material that show how a statistician may think instead of the usual step-by-step procedural approach. "Conceptual Statistics: Engaging Students in Statistical Discovery" aims to advance the idea of conceptual statistical thinking by bridging the gap between statistical thinking and approaching a statistical problem as a statistician would. The development of on-line self test items and laboratory activities offer significant intellectual merit to this project. The self-test items are designed to engage students in applying and synthesizing lecture and text material. The laboratory activities build on the self-test items by presenting tasks that require innovative use of conceptual statistical thinking and methods. There is a broad range of real contexts used to illustrate the impact statisticians have in a wide variety of areas. Activities are linked together so that initial activities can be revisited easily later in the course. Although primarily at mathematically inclined students, students enrolled in secondary mathematics teacher preparation courses and teachers of advanced preparatory course can also benefit from this exposure.