02/07/10

NEWS and UPCOMING EVENTS

• Feb 5: Confounded -- a poem by Larry Lesser -- published in The Mathematical Intelligencer by Springer.
  According to Larry, "the 'Peterson roll' is a common way a wrestler scores a 'reversal' to go from bottom to top in one move."

• July 11-16.  International Conference on Teaching Statistics (ICOTS-8 Ljubljana, Slovenia).
  Topic 7A Statistics and the media.   Topic: 7G Statistics for non-quantitative majors

• July 30 - Aug 6.  Joint Statistical Meeting of the American Statistical Association (Vancouver, BC).
  Statistical Literacy session #12: George Hahn, Anders and Britt Wallgren, Bill Goodman, Dean Brooks and John Schmit.

• Dec 10-11.  OZCOTS: Australian Conference on Teaching Statistics

• 2011: September 10-16.  Conference of The Mathematics Education into the 21st Century Project.
  Turning Dreams into Reality: Transformations and Paradigm Shifts in Mathematics Education.  South Africa.

HIGHLIGHTS OF 2010

• Jan 31: LA Times Opinion on the need for Quantitative Literacy: But Who's Counting? by Doug Smith
  Quotes from Lynn Steen and Milo Schield.

• Jan 13-16, 2010.  MAA-AMS Joint Mathematics Meeting, San Francisco.
  SIGMAA-QL 2009 Survey: Quantitative Graduation Requirements at US Four-Year Colleges by Milo Schield  6up
  An Across-The-Curriculum Approach to Quantitative Literacy in Environmental Studies, Ben Steele et al. Colby-Sawyer College.  6up
  Modeling Radon in Pennsylvania by Mike Huber, Muhlenberg College  6up

STATLIT NEWS

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2009, 2008, 2007, 2006, 2005, 2004, 2003

Highlights of grants, new books, conference papers (ICOTS, JSM, JMM), and miscellaneous information involving statistical and quantitative literacy.

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RECOMMENDED INTRO BOOKS

• Lynn Steen (2001), Mathematics & Democracy: The Case for Quantitative Literacy

• Joel Best (2002), Damned Lies and Statistics

• Victor Cohn (1989), News and Numbers

• Howard Wainer (2005), Graphic Discovery: A Trout in the Milk and Other Adventures.

• Darrell Huff (1954), How To Lie with Statistics

• John Paulos (1988), Innumeracy: Mathematical Illiteracy and its Consequences

• Lynn Steen (2004), Achieving Quantitative Literacy

• Jane Miller (2004), The Chicago Guide to Writing About Numbers

• Joel Best (2004), More Damned Lies and Statistics

• Howard Wainer (2000), Visual Revelations

• Edward Tufte (1995), Visual Explanations

• Gerald Bracey (2006), Reading Educational Research

• Lynn Steen (1997), Why Numbers Count: Quantitative Literacy for Tomorrow’s America

TOPICS

Numeracy

Articles

S/L Books

Q/L Books

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QR/QL/StATLIT TEXTBOOKS Amazon Sales Rankings

RECOMMENDED ARTICLES

INTRO OVERVIEW ARTICLES

W. M. Keck Stat Lit Project

• Enhancing Statistical Literacy: Enriching Our Society by Katherine Wallman, 1992 ASA Presidential Address

• Quantitative Literacy: Why Numeracy Matters for Schools and Colleges by Lynn Steen, MAA Online

• Why Numbers Count: Foreword by Robert Orrill, 1998.

• Quantitative Literacy and Statistics by Richard Scheaffer, ASA President 2001 AmStat News Nov. 293

• Toward a Statistically Literate Citizenry: What Statistics Everyone Should Know by Jerry Moreno, ICOTS-6 2002

• Educating for Numeracy by Bernie Madison, 2002 AMS

• Pedagogical Challenges of Quantitative Literacy by Bernie Madison, President of NNN, 2006 ASA 6up

• Statistical Literacy, Numeracy and the Future, Peter Holmes, talk at Augsburg College 31 March 2003

• Including Construction in Quantitative Literacy,  Joel Best, 4/2007 Talk at Midwest Sociological Society, Chicago

• Birds -- Dead and Deadly: Why Quantitative Literacy needs to Address Social Construction  2008 Numeracy, Vol 1. Issue 1.

• Statistical Literacy and Liberal Education at Augsburg College, Milo Schield, 2004 AACU Peer Review.

• Presenting Confounding Graphically Using Standardization, Milo Schield, 2006 Draft for STATS magazine.

• Statistical Literacy: An Online Course at Capella University, Marc Isaacson 2005 ASA

• Quantity Words Without Numbers: Why Students use "Many", Milo Schield 2005 QR Conference, Carleton College

• Statistical Prevarication: Telling Half Truths Using Statistics, Milo Schield, 2004 IASE. Slides 1up, 6up

• Statistical Literacy: An Evangelical Calling for Statistical Educators, Milo Schield, 2004 ISI

• Statistical Literacy and Mathematical Thinking,  Milo Schield 2000 International Congress on Math Education (ICME9), Tokyo

• Numbers in the News: A Survey.  Milo & Cynthia Schield 2007 ASA

• Teaching the Social Construction of Statistics,  Milo Schield 2007 Midwest Sociological Society, Chicago

• Analyzing Numbers in the News: A Structured Approach,  Milo Schield 2008 NNN conference

Click Here >> 2009 STAT-LIT HIGHLIGHTS << Click Here

StatLit.org site: During 2009: Over 180,000 downloads (up 50%); over 100,000 visits (up 20%)
StatLit News, Year-end 2009: over 160 news articles, 144 new files, 43 new images.

• What college got a $370K grant to "Infuse Quantitative Literacy throughout the Social Science Curriculum"?

 Who said this?

• If QL is not taught in Mathematics, it will not happen.

•  Mathematicians are least-well prepared to deal with ... quantitative literacy.

•  Statistical literacy demands rethinking the teaching of statistics.

•  The teaching of fractions must be...improved before an increase in ... achievement in algebra can be expected.

•  QR is less about the manipulation of numbers than it is about the evaluation and construction of arguments.

•  Quantitative literacy must encompass more than matters of calculation.

•  Widespread statistical illiteracy ... is cause for immediate concern.

•  'Massachusetts' is not necessarily as likely as any other 13 character combinations of letters.

•  The quest for statistical significance ... is a deeply flawed substitute for thoughtful analysis.

•  When the difference between two candidates is not statistically significant, this is NOT a statistical tie.  

PAST EVENTS IN 2009

• Nov. 12-15, 2009. AMATYC 35th Conference, Las Vegas, NV. Amer. Mathematical Assoc. of Two-Year Colleges
  Schield proposes "Statistical Literacy: A New On-Line Gen Ed Course for Math Teachers."
  Developing Q/L by Beaudrie and Boshmans (S79).    QL: Reaching and Teaching today's Students by Amick and Marshall (S93).
  The Calendars of the Mayas by Cetepillan and Szymanski (S57).   Mathematical Heresy by Frank Weidenfeller (S63)
  Top Ten Things Students Have Trouble with in Statistics, Averbeck & Rumsey (W22).  Lessons from History of Mathematics, D. Bressoud (S78).
  Structuring e-Portfolios in QR course, Suzanne Topp (S142).  Using Model-Elicting Activities to Teach Statistics, Robert delMas (W28).
  Structuring the Out-of-Class Experience in Introductory Statistics by Roxy Peck (S145 and S122)

  The AMATYC 2008 survey (793 respondents): Of those answering the question, 64% agreed (450) that AMATYC should offer course work through an accredited university over the Internet for faculty wanting to update their skills or refresh their knowledge in certain areas. Respondents requesting Internet courses through an accredited university (450) were asked:

  • which mathematical topics they wanted to learn more about.  teaching developmental mathematics (67%), history of mathematics (58%), mathematics for teachers (50%), statistics (40%), quantitative literacy (35%), number theory (30%) and other (21%).

  • which instructional techniques they wanted to learn more about.  active learning (77%), teaching in context (45%), using classroom assessment for research (47%), quantitative literacy (37%) and other (8%). 

  • what technology training they would be interested in.  teaching online coursework effectively (72%), mathematics software (68%), calculator usage (39%), statistical software (34%), Blackboard (30%) and other (8%).

• Nov. 6-7, 2009. SENCER Quantitative Reasoning Symposium, Saint Paul, MN.   Schedule
  Metropolitan State University in Saint Paul, MN will be host to the Midwest SENCER (Science Education for New Civic Engagements and Responsibilities) Center of Innovation Fall Symposium on Teaching Quantitative Reasoning through Civic Issues. 
  Evening plenary address by Professor Deborah Hughes Hallett:  What Can Statistics Tell Us?   
  Morning plenary address by Professor of Psychology Neil Lutsky from Carleton College in Northfield, MN.
  Talk by Milo Schield: Science Literacy Requires Statistical Literacy.  6up slides.

• August 16-22, 2009. 57th Session International Statistical Institute (ISI) Durban. IASE Chair: Helen MacGillivray Program
  IPM 37: The roles of statistical agencies in developing statistical literacy. Organized by Reija Helenius (Finland)  "Improving statistical literacy - Strategies and Experience of the Australian Bureau of Statistics" Siu-Ming Tam and Nicola Cross.  "The role of Statistics Portugal in developing statistical literacy" Pedro José Campos, J. Pinto Martins.
  IPM 38: Educating the public on how to use official statistics.  Tues, 9AM.  Peter Wingfield-Digby (UK)  organiser and chair.  "Making Statistics attractive through Partnerships with the Media" Ben Paul Mungyereza.  "Improving Use of Official Statistics - How Marketing and IT Help" Chun-Keung, Leo Yu.  "Making official data relevant to students: Statistics Canada’s Education Outreach Programme" Mary Townsend and Art Ridgeway. Discussants: Davaasuren Chultemjamts and Hilary Joffe.
  IPM41:  Exploiting the Progress in Statistical Graphics and Statistical Computing for the Benefit of Statistical Literacy.   15:30 Tuesday.  Organiser and chair: Juana Sanchez.  Using R and GGobi to Enhance the Learning of Multivariate Analysis and Data Mining, Dianne Cook.   Wikis, Dynamic Charts, Videos and other Innovative Tools to Transform Statistics into Knowledge, Enrico Giovannini.     How to Avoid Some Common Graphical Mistakes, Naomi Robbins
  IPM 43: Research on Informal Inferential Reasoning. Tues, 13:00 Tues. Organized by Katie Makar (Australia). Chair: John Harraway. Cognitive Development of Informal Inferential Reasoning, Chris Reading. Insights into Informal Inferential Reasoning in the Primary Classroom, Aisling Leavy. Informal Inferential Reasoning About Large Scientific Data Sets, James K L Hammerman. Discussant: Jim Ridgeway

• August 14-15, 2009.  IASE Satellite Roundtable: "The Next Steps in Statistical Education"  Durban.  Program.
  Conference Committee: Patrick Murphy, Ireland (Chair and Joint Chief Editor, European Representative), Allan Rossman USA, Larry Weldon Canada (Joint Chief Editor and CD Writer), Richard Wilson Australia,  Enriqueta Reston Philippines, and M. Alejandro Sorto Latin America

• August 6-8, 2009.  MathFest, Portland Oregon.
  Short Course: A Game Theory Path to Quantitative Literacy by David Housman (Goshen College) and Rick Gillman (Valparaiso University)

• August 6-10, 2009.  Sencer 2009 Summer Institute, Chicago IL.
  "The National Center for Science and Civic Engagement invites applications to participate in the 2009 SENCER Summer Institute, planned for August 6-10th in Chicago and hosted by Harold Washington College. SENCER (Science Education for New Civic Engagements and Responsibilities) is a National Science Foundation-supported faculty development and science, technology, engineering, and mathematics education reform initiative. SENCER supports the development of courses and programs that connect course content to real world problems, and by so doing, extend the impact of learning across the curriculum to the broader community and society. This approach has been especially effective in engaging women, minority students, and students who major in non-STEM fields."  "The SENCER Summer Institute (SSI) 2009 is one component of SENCER's national dissemination program designed to improve undergraduate education and undergraduate science education, especially in the STEM disciplines, and to stimulate civic engagement through the design and development of courses and programs that teach "to" basic science "through" complex, capacious, and unsolved public issues."
  Milo Schield, VP of the National Numeracy Network, attended.

• August 1-6, 2009.  American Statistical Association (ASA) Joint Statistical Meeting (JSM).   Washington DC.

  Monday Other:

  • Mari Palta (U. Wisc.): Challenges in Teaching Advanced Statistical Methods for Observational Studies in a Subject Matter Context

  • William S. Rayens (U. Ky): A Course Template for Statistical Inferential Reasoning

  • Roundtable:  S. Dienstfrey: Removing the Veil from Publicly Released Polls: What Is the Statistician's Role in the Fight to Improve Statistical Literacy?

  Tuesday 2 PM:

  • Leonhardt, Vedantam & Alpert (NY Times, Washington Post, Barron's): Mediating Statistics in the Media  Org: Xiao-Li Meng, Harvard

  • Bill Rybolt (Babbson College): Why We Should Teach Introductory Applied Statistics Courses Backwards

  June 25-27, 2009.  USCOTS: US Conference on Teaching Statistics: "Letting Go to Grow" Columbus, OH
  Featured speakers include Dani Ben-Zvi (University of Haifa), George Cobb (Mount Holyoke College), Peter Ewell (Center for Higher Education Management Systems), Ronald Wasserstein (Executive Director, ASA) and Chris Wild (The University of Auckland).    Workshop: Teaching Statistical Modeling by Danny Kaplan and Victor Addono.

  May 1, 2009  Quantitative Literacy across the Curriculum.  Ohio Mathematics and Science Coalition.

  April 30-May 2  National Numeracy Network (NNN) 2009 Annual Meeting. U. Washington, Bothell.

  March 28   Northeast Consortium for Quantitative Literacy (NECQL-XIII) at Smith College.  
  Neil Lutsky of Carleton College will give a talk: Spreading Activation for Quantitative Reasoning in a College Community: Themes for Variations.
  Rick Gillman of Valparaiso University will give excerpts of his mini-course Game Theory as a Path for Quantitative Literacy. 
  Announcements by Corri Taylor for the National Numeracy Network (NNN) and Maura Mast for the MAA's Sigma QL.

  Feb 13, 2009.  Emerging Needs for Quantitative Literacy Across the School Curriculum
  Ohio Math & Science Coalition.  Keynote speaker and workshop leader: Bernie Madison.

  Feb 18-20, 2009.  Winter Institute on Statistical Literacy for Librarians Univ. of Alberta Libraries

  Jan 5-8, 2009 MAA JMM: Washington, DC.  Current schedule
  Mon. 1/5 2:15-4:15. MAA Minicourse #7A. A Game Theory Path to Quantitative Literacy. David Housman and Richard Gillman
  Mon. 1/5 4:30  Statistical Significance of Ranking Paradoxes by Raymond N Greenwell, Hofstra Univ. General Contributed Papers III 6up

  Tues 1/6, 2 PM, Poster:  Q/R in the Contemporary World.  Bernie Madison, Caren Diefenderfer, Stuart Boersma & Shannon Dingman
  The project includes making the course transportable, adaptable, and more effective and creating assessments and scoring rubrics to both measure learning in the course and to compare that learning to the learning in two other courses, one somewhat similar and one traditional. The innovative course derives from a collection of newspaper and magazine articles and is organized by processes of QR and not by mathematical or statistical topics. The project has produced the first draft of case studies of QR-based media articles and an accompanying volume documenting the learning results, pedagogical strategies, and a guide for using the case studies in a QR course is in progress.
  Tues 1/6, 2 PM, Poster:  Mathematics Across the C/C Curriculum: A National Q/L Initiative. Jim Roznowski & Christie Gilliland 
  Tues 1/6, 5:45 -7:15 PM. SIGMAA on Quantitative Literacy:  Business Meeting
  
  Wed January 7, 2009,
  8:00 a.m.-10:35 a.m. MAA Session on Quantitative Literacy Across the Curriculum
  Organizers: Kimberly M. Vincent, Washington State University, and Cinnamon Hillyard, University of Washington, Bothell.
  8:00 am. Making Quantitative Reasoning Central to a PreCalculus Course. Cinnamon Hillyard* and Nicole Hoover Slides 6up
  8:20 am. QL from a Service Division Perspective. Gary T Franchy, Davenport University Slides 6up
  8:40 am. Mathematics and Democracy. Kira Hamman, Pennsylvania State University, Mont Alto Slides 6up
  9:00 am. Using Media Article to Drive a Q/L Course. Stuart Boersma, Caren Diefenderfer, Shannon Dingman and Bernard L Madison 6up
  9:20 am. Medical Accuracy: Content for a Quantitative Literacy Course. Stuart Boersma & Teri Willard, Central Washington U.  Slides 6up
  9:40 am. Building mathematical & computational skills of science students. Kelly Matthews, Merrilyn Goos, Peter Adams, U.Queensland 6up
  10:00 am. Toward a Numerate Culture: A Quantitative Literacy Project. D. Scott Dillery, Lindsey Wilson College Slides 1up
  10:20 am. Incorporating Quantitative Literacy into the Research Writing Classroom. Kimberly M Vincent, Washington State University
  
  8:00 am.  Facing Up to the Realities of Quantitative Illiteracy.  Betsy Darken, University of Tennessee at Chattanooga
  10:00 am. Achieving Statistical Literacy in Elementary School Using Current Popular Curricula.  Anna Bargagliotti, Univ. Memphis 6up
  2:15-4:15 pm. MAA Minicourse #7B: A Game Theory path to Q/L. David Housman, Goshen College, Richard Gillman, Valparaiso U.
  3:50 pm. Student difficulties negating mathematical statements and translating to symbolic form. Bonnie Gold, Monmouth U.
  4:40 pm. Numeracy: Assessing Basic Skills and Knowledge. Milo Schield, W. M. Keck Statistical Literacy Project. Slides 6up