Overview

• In this activity, students will explore some of the major differences between statistical thinking and mathematical thinking and will understand the statistical process as an investigative process.
• Students will work together in groups, which will allow them to discover some of the aspects of building a positive learning community.
• This activity connects forward to Forming Connections [1B] and [1E] in which students learn to build a learning community and form effective study groups. This activity also connects forward to Forming Connections [1C] and the roles that variation and context play in the statistical process.
• S2, V1, O1, O3 ← Link to EBTP descriptions 

Prerequisite assumptions

There are no prerequisite assumptions for this activity. There is no What to Know preview page associated with this activity.

Intended goals for this activity

After completing this activity, students should understand some of the fundamental differences between statistical thinking and mathematical thinking and they should understand the statistical process as an investigative process. Students should also understand how working together builds a positive learning community. They should be able to identify some key elements of statistical thinking and describe the role and importance of statistical literacy.

Synchronous Delivery and Activity Flow

The sample activity delivery below assumes a face-to-face class meeting but can be adapted to a fully online or hybrid delivery by using break-out rooms for pairs and small groups.

Frame the activity (7 minutes)

• Frame this activity by discussing that the shared goal for the course is to maximize the learning experience. S2, V1
• Show a video from U.S. Census Bureau: Why Statistics? https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/sis/resources/videos/why-statistics.html
• Give the students individual time to think about and answer Question 1 before moving on to group work.
• Transition to the activity by briefly discussing the Objectives for the activity.

Activity Flow (15 minutes)

• Questions 2 – 4 — Students working in groups
  • Allow students to work in groups of three or four. You may want to use five for larger classes. S2, V1, O1
  • Students are asked to introduce themselves and to select the roles of note-taker, reporter, and time-keeper. For larger groups you can add other roles. Debrief students on the roles.
    • Moderator – directs activity and helps to keep the group on task
    • Note-taker – takes notes
    • Listener – extracts the ideas from the brainstorming or group activity and recaps them; offers explanations and reasoning
    • Reporter – reports the result to the class
    • Timekeeper – manages times and keeps team members on track
  • Ask the reporter in each group to report out their results from Question 2, Part C
  • Reinforce that in statistics, we ask questions that anticipate variability. That is, we don’t always arrive at an exact answer.
•   Questions 5 — Whole Class Discussion V1, O1, O3 
  • Have students read the paragraph after Question 4 individually, then launch a whole-class discussion. Consider using the following talking points to help students complete the diagram in Question 5:
    • The statistics process is an investigative process that revolves around a research topic.
    • Data tell a story. Statistics help us to understand the story that the data are telling us.
    • Data have context so the research topic presents a scenario that helps us to get the context of the data that needs to be collected. A famous quote from George Cobb is, “Data are numbers in context.”
    • Data vary, so one goal is to determine the source of variability.
    • The statistics process is an investigative process that involves asking questions, collecting the appropriate data, and then analyzing and interpreting the data.
• Question 6 — Group work S2, V1, O1
  • Have students go back to their original groups to answer Question 6.
  • The big takeaway for this question is that statistics help us to understand the world around us and can help us make more informed decisions.

Wrap-up/transition (5 minutes)

• Statistical thinking is different from mathematical thinking (review responses to Question 4, if needed).
• Data will vary. Data can vary within an individual or within a group.
• The context of the data plays a major role in statistical thinking. Researchers must always consider what the data represent and the goal of the study.
• Key points relating to context: What do the data represent? What is the goal of the study?
• Have students refer back to the Objectives for the activity and check the ones they recognize. Alternatively, they may check the objectives throughout the activity.
• Your beliefs about collaborating with others have important consequences for how you experience school and how you respond to setbacks and adversity. Working together as a learning community offers many benefits. Let’s begin establishing our own learning community. 
• Assign the homework. There is no practice activity or preview assignment for the next section.