By Adam Molnar, Oklahoma State University Overview of Lesson This activity, based on real meetings during the 1954 Salk polio vaccine study, asks students to decide on an experimental design to test the polio vaccine. Students take one of multiple roles—such as statistician, parent, and government—that may lead to different design choices. Real-world study design involves … [Read more...] about Lesson Plan: Choosing a Study Design for the Polio Vaccine
9-12+
Model t, or a Newer Randomization?
By Sean Bradley, Clarke University Anyone who loves math appreciates a good mathematical model. There is no shortage of useful workhorses in statistics–normal, t, F, and chi-square distributions come quickly to mind. Mathematicians and statisticians of yesteryear developed these beautiful models to overcome the inability to use brute force methods to answer statistical … [Read more...] about Model t, or a Newer Randomization?
ASA and New York Times Partner to Create ‘What’s Going On in This Graph?’
By Sharon Hessney, Donna LaLonde, and Rebecca Nichols In this column, we want to highlight an exciting new partnership between The New York Times Learning Network and the American Statistical Association. Fifteen years ago, The New York Times started the Learning Network—a free, online feature that provides materials to help teachers use the newspaper … [Read more...] about ASA and New York Times Partner to Create ‘What’s Going On in This Graph?’
Lesson Plan: Which Hand Rules?
By Wendy Weber (Grades 9-12+) Published in August of 2017, this lesson has students engage in dropping and catching a yardstick to investigate whether there is significant evidence (via a matched pairs randomization test) that people are faster with their dominant hand than their nondominant hand. Students will engage in data collection and the randomization process of … [Read more...] about Lesson Plan: Which Hand Rules?
What Is Power?
By Angela L.E. Walmsley and Michael C. Brown, Concordia University Wisconsin For many teachers of introductory statistics, power is a concept that is often not used. In many cases, it’s avoided altogether. In fact, many Advanced Placement (AP) teachers stay away from the topic when they teach tests of significance, according to Floyd Bullard in “Power in Tests of … [Read more...] about What Is Power?
Lesson Plan: How Fast Are You?
By Maryann Huey, Alana Linde, Dan Aalbers (Grades 6-8, 9-12+) In this lesson, published in August 2017, each student collects 20 reaction-time data values using an online tool for testing reaction times to a visual stimulus. Students display and analyze data via a free online tool, Tuva. Students first characterize their own reaction times, and then compare the results … [Read more...] about Lesson Plan: How Fast Are You?
Lesson Plan: Are Female Hurricanes Deadlier Than Male Hurricanes?
By Mary Richardson (Grades 6-8, 9-12+) Originally published in June of 2014, this lesson uses a data set partially discussed in the article "Female Hurricanes Are Deadlier Than Male Hurricanes," written by Kiju Junga, Sharon Shavitta, Madhu Viswanathana, and Joseph M. Hilbed. The data set contains archival data on actual fatalities caused by hurricanes in the United States … [Read more...] about Lesson Plan: Are Female Hurricanes Deadlier Than Male Hurricanes?
Lesson Plan: The Egg Roulette Game
By Amanda Walker (Grades 9-12+) This lesson, published in August of 2017, uses a probability game and computer simulations to explore the law of large numbers, conditional events, sampling distributions, and the central limit theorem. Video clips from "The Tonight Show" are shown to students in which Jimmy Fallon plays the egg roulette game with celebrities. Students play … [Read more...] about Lesson Plan: The Egg Roulette Game
Lesson Plan: First Day Statistics Activity—Grouping Qualitative Data
By R.B. Campbell (Grades 6-8, 9-12+) This activity, published in April of 2014, provides a foundation for distinguishing between qualitative (categorical) and quantitative data and how they can be summarized and analyzed (a topic encountered early in a statistics course). This lesson illustrates how categorical data can be grouped to make the data comprehensible. It also … [Read more...] about Lesson Plan: First Day Statistics Activity—Grouping Qualitative Data
How to Lie (to Congress) with Statistics
By Kirk Anderson and Mary Richardson, Grand Valley State University On September 17, 2014, testimony was given at a House Veterans’ Affairs (VA) Committee hearing. Participants included a member of the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, Rep. Tim Huelskamp (R-Kansas), and the chief of staff for the Phoenix VA Health Care System, Dr. Darren Deering. Rep. Huelskamp took issue with … [Read more...] about How to Lie (to Congress) with Statistics