The statistical output of interest to most elementary statistics students is the p-value, outputted in computer programs like SPSS, Minitab and SAS. Statistical decisions are sometimes made using these values without understanding the meaning or how these values are calculated. Most elementary statistics textbooks calculates p-values for z-tests…

If the prospective students of probability lack a background in mathematical proofs, hands-on classroom activities may work well to help them to learn to analyze problems correctly. For example, students may physically roll a die twice to count and compare the frequency of the sequences. Tools such as graphing calculators or Microsoft Excel®…

One problem that students have with mathematics is that they often view the topic as a series of unrelated ideas. Sometimes they are aware that they have to know one concept to move to the next, but what is done in geometry is not necessarily related to anything in algebra. This failure to recognize mathematical connections limits students'…

This article details an exploration of exponential decay and growth relationships using M&M's and dice. Students collect data for mathematical models and use graphing calculators to make sense of the general form of the exponential functions. (Contains 10 figures and 2 tables.)

This paper reports on a mathematics course in an Austrian high school that focuses on probability distributions. Students in this course used a TI-92 during math classes, at home for doing exercises, and during math tests. The TI-92 was used as a tool for calculations and illustrations making the concepts of probability distributions easy to…

This collection of activities is designed to show how graphing calculators can be used to explore statistics. The activities address such topics as data representation, distributions, and statistical tests. Teaching notes and calculator instructions are included as are blackline masters. (MM)

This article describes TI-73 calculator activities appropriate for middle school students. It was found that the use of the calculator allowed for higher-level thinking and a richer exploration of mathematical ideas by students. [Included with this article are "Dice Roll Worksheet" and "Transforming Tree Worksheet".] (Contains 9 figures.)