NotesFAQContact Us
Collection
Advanced
Search Tips
Peer reviewed Peer reviewed
Direct linkDirect link
ERIC Number: EJ878920
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2010-Feb
Pages: 8
Abstractor: ERIC
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1072-0839
EISSN: N/A
100 Students
Riskowski, Jody L.; Olbricht, Gayla; Wilson, Jennifer
Mathematics Teaching in the Middle School, v15 n6 p320-327 Feb 2010
Statistics is the art and science of gathering, analyzing, and making conclusions from data. However, many people do not fully understand how to interpret statistical results and conclusions. Placing students in a collaborative environment involving project-based learning may enable them to overcome misconceptions of probability and enhance the learning of statistics concepts. This type of structure may also encourage debate and discussion, which can promote student engagement and new thinking while cultivating social development. This article discusses "Our School as 100 Students," a project the authors completed in five of their sixth- to eighth-grade math classes. The cooperative-learning-group model allowed students to work together to learn and apply the statistics concepts of survey populations, survey questioning, and survey methods. Promoting cultural awareness was another goal. The project explores how the world would look with only 100 people, if proportionally scaled. The idea is based on work from the 100 People Village (100 People Foundation), which uses world statistics to "educate, entertain and inspire participants to learn more about world geography, culture, language, religion, music and resources." The "Our School as 100 Students" project replicated this work by exploring school statistics and showing how the school would look with only 100 students, maintaining proportions. It culminated with a video showcasing the school as 100 students, which displayed the results of a survey that the students designed and conducted. The project objectives involved both statistical understanding and social awareness. The primary goal was to enhance students' understanding of statistics by providing an engaging project that explored their world. The underlying goal was to illustrate to students how their world, in the form of middle school, encompassed students from different backgrounds. (Contains 1 table and 2 figures.)
National Council of Teachers of Mathematics. 1906 Association Drive, Reston, VA 20191-1502. Tel: 800-235-7566; Tel: 703-620-3702; Fax: 703-476-2970; e-mail: orders@nctm.org; Web site: http://www.nctm.org/publications/
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: Grade 6; Grade 7; Grade 8; Middle Schools
Audience: Teachers
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A