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ERIC Number: EJ1091662
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2016-Feb
Pages: 10
Abstractor: ERIC
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1072-0839
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: N/A
Making Sense of Data: Context Matters
Lovett, Jennifer N.; Lee, Hollylynne S.
Mathematics Teaching in the Middle School, v21 n6 p338-347 Feb 2016
To draw conclusions from data, we need to understand the context of the data and the measurement units. In 2007, Franklin and colleagues presented the "Guidelines for Assessment and Instruction in Statistics Education (GAISE) Report" to provide teachers with a framework to assist in developing students' investigation of statistical questions in an investigative cycle. Although the role of context and the use of measurement units for data are important components, they continue to be underemphasized in many curricula (Franklin et al. 2007). Are teachers providing opportunities for students to engage in this type of reasoning? Too often, the answer is "no." The Common Core State Standards for Mathematics (CCSSM) recommends using tasks in which students consider the context and in which measurement units of data align with a sixth-grade standard that encourages "describing the nature of the attribute under an investigation, including how it was measured and its units of measurement" (Common Core State Standards Initiative 2010). Although others (e.g., Groth and Bargagliotti 2012) have provided more recent guidance for teachers on how the GAISE framework can be used to complement the CCSSM's Standards, more attention is still needed concerning the role of context and measurement units that can support students' statistical reasoning. This article discusses how data collected from a personal information survey provides students such an opportunity to reason about data by considering the units of measurement and reasonable values within a context.
National Council of Teachers of Mathematics. 1906 Association Drive, Reston, VA 20191. Tel: 800-235-7566; Tel: 703-620-9840; Fax: 703-476-2570; e-mail: NCTM@nctm.org; Web site: http://www.nctm.org/publications/mathematics-teaching-in-the-middle-school/
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Descriptive; Tests/Questionnaires
Education Level: Grade 6; Intermediate Grades; Middle Schools; Elementary Education; Secondary Education; Junior High Schools
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A