The lucky cat, a traditional Chinese symbol of good fortune. Photo by Juliane Zielonka.

(click authors' names)

QUOTES

H. G. Wells
For complete initiation as an efficient citizen, it is necessary to be able to compute, to think in averages and maxima and minim.

Helen M. Walker
Florence Nightingale believed that the administrator could only be successful if he were guided by statistical knowledge.

Seymour Papert
What an individual can learn, and how he learns it, depends on what models he has available.

E. Fischbein
Schools cultivate the belief that to fully know and understand a phenomenon means referring it to a unique causal relationship. Would it be better to prepare the child early for the synthesis of the possible and the determined?

Susanne P. Lajoie & Thomas A. Romberg
Statistics education in its current form is inadequate.

Gudmund R. Iverson
Statistics can play a strong role in liberal arts education, in part because of the advances that have taken place in computer technology.

Mathematics Standards Committee
(Report to the New York State Commissioner of Education)
The goal of all teachers of mathematics should be to inspire their students to appreciate the power and beauty of mathematics.

Michael Schiff & Arie Y. Lewin
Accounting education should include appropriate attention to behavioral considerations.

ARTICLES

Complex Systems in Education: Scientific and Educational Importance and Implications for the Learning Sciences
by Michael J. Jacobson & Uri Wilensky
The multidisciplinary study of complex systems in the physical and social sciences over the past quarter of a century has led to the articulation of important new conceptual perspectives and methodologies that are of value both to researchers in these fields as well as to professionals, policymakers, and citizens who must deal with challenging social and global problems in the 21st century. (abstract) (view/download full-text pdf)

The History of the Bell Curve: Sorting and the Idea of Normal
by Lynn Fendler and Irfan Muzaffar
The history of the bell curve, from a representation of binomial probability, to a bearer of real things in nature, and finally to a set of expectations about how people should behave. (abstract) (full text online)

Desired and Feared—What Do We Do Now and Over the Next 50 Years?
by Xiao-Li Meng
Statistics, as a discipline, is now both desired and feared. This article suggests ways to prepare the profession to meet the ever-increasing demand, in terms of both quantity and quality. See also responses to this article.

Teaching Statistics in Integration with Psychology
How to motivate students in another subject area to study statistics.

Childhood Origins of Adult Resistance to Science
by Paul Bloom and Deena Skolnick Weisberg
Both adults and children resist acquiring scientific information that clashes with common-sense intuitions. (pdf)

BOOK DESCRIPTIONS

Successful STEM Education: A Workshop Summary
Alexandra Beatty, Rapporteur
What students learn about the science disciplines, technology, engineering, and mathematics during their K-12 schooling shapes their intellectual development, opportunities for future study and work, and choices of career, as well as their capacity to make informed decisions about political and civic issues and about their own lives.

COURSE OUTLINES

Exploring Economic Inequality with Data
The National Numeracy Network
This set of assignments exposes students to data pertaining to economic inequality in international and historical context.

VIDEOS

Arthur Benjamin's formula for changing math education
A proposal to replace calculus with probability and statistics in secondary schools, reflecting the shift from the analog to the digital age.

Changing Education Paradigms
Animate taken from a speech given at the RSA by Sir Ken Robinson.

getstats video - the Royal Statistical Society's statistical literacy campaign
Giving everyone the skills and confidence to use numbers well.

INTERACTIVE WEBSITES

WISE: Web Interface for Statistics Education
Easy access to a wide range of internet resources and interactive tutorials on key statistical concepts.

Computer Animated Statistics
Standard topics of statistics and probability are presented in a novel and visual way using computer animated images. Interactive demonstrations include The Gambler's Ruin and The Monty Hall Paradox.

LINKS

Medical Ignorance
Using the insights and techniques of medical ignorance to improve science education and health literacy by focusing on Questions, Questioning and Questioners.

AAAS Science, Mathematics, and Technology Education Seminar
The first comprehensive effort by a scientific society to work directly with school boards on science, mathematics, and technology education.

Pedagogy in Action
The Science Education Resource Center, resources for educators in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM).

WISE: Web Interface for Statistics Education
Easy access for students and teachers of statistics to a wide range of resources that are freely available on the Internet.

When Will I Use Math?
The value of mathematics education in life and work.

CAUSE
An organization whose mission is to support and advance undergraduate statistics education.

A Complete List of Online Math Resources
A comprehensive collection of resources for all math subjects, from the basics to calculus. (Thanks to Lauren Jackson for the reference)

Brightstorm
Free homework help videos covering every topic in Math and Science. A community of learners asking each other questions and getting free homework help.

National Math and Science Initiative
American students are falling behind in the essential subjects of math and science, putting [the U.S.] position in the global economy at risk. The mission of the National Math and Science Initiative is to help provide the ideas, inspiration, and resources to close the gap.

The Education Arcade
The Education Arcade explores games that promote learning through authentic and engaging play.

Causality in Statistics Education Award
A new prize aimed at encouraging the teaching of basic causal inference in introductory statistics courses.

Passion Driven Statistics
The Passion Driven Statistics curriculum as Wesleyan University introduces students to statistics by allowing them to ask and answer statistical questions that they care about.

The World of Statistics
A global network of more 2,350 organizations worldwide committed to: