In this article the authors describe an instructional unit designed and taught in two classes of kindergarten children. The goals of the unit were to present a "driving question" to motivate the process of statistical investigation, to genuinely engage children in the stages of statistical investigation, and to facilitate them in…

Recent research has shown that young children are capable of engaging in data modeling and making informed judgments, an aspect of the mathematics curriculum not previously considered integral to early numeracy. In an Australian study, a sample of 21 highly able Grade 1 students was engaged in a series of investigations where they developed their…

This study reports on the statistical content of five U.S. textbook series written for elementary students in grades 1-5. The researchers examined 17,688 pages and coded 7445 statistical tasks to determine (1) the distribution of statistical topics within textbooks, and (2) the relative emphasis on the phases of the statistical problem solving…

An exciting event had occurred for the grade 3 classes at Woodlands State School. A new play space designated for the older grades had now been opened to the third graders. In sharing their excitement over this "real treat, real privilege," the teachers invited the children to find out more about playgrounds and, in particular, their new…

Advances in statistics provide new methods for analyzing practice data. These advances include person-centered methods (PCMs) that identify subgroups of research participants with similar characteristics. PCMs derive from a frame of reference that is similar to the risk factor perspective in practice. In practice, the delivery of services is often…

The National Center of Education Statistics' Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of 1998-1999 (ECLS-K) data were used to explore the curricular emphasis in schools of varying socioeconomic status in both public and private schools. Data collected between 1998 and 2003 were used in the secondary analyses of curricular emphasis in…

Among the practical applications of statistics is the collection of data from manufacturing processes. Often collected in the form of a time series, data collected from a series of measurements show the variation in those measurements, such as mass of a product manufactured. Limits are set for quality control and if these are exceeded then a…

This preliminary study investigates the current situation of school library support of K-12 health education in China. A survey of 42 school librarians and 115 K-12 teachers from selected schools was conducted to find out their views about school library's role in school health education and their current practice of library use in health…

Statistical literacy is defined as "the ability to read and interpret data: the ability to use statistics as evidence in arguments. Statistical literacy is a competency: the ability to think critically about statistics" (Schield, p. 2). When a definition of statistical literacy is considered it can be seen that all students can manage a…