Identifying the mistakes in student responses and being able to manage the solution process are among the fundamental skills that should be acquired by the pre-service teachers. This skill is important in probability, about which students have a great number of misconceptions. The aim of this study was to determine the misconceptions in the…

Because new learning technologies are enabling students to build and explore probability models, we believe that there is a need to determine the big enduring ideas that underpin probabilistic thinking and modeling. By uncovering the elements of the thinking modes of expert users of probability models we aim to provide a base for the setting of…

The study explores the development of 11-year-old students' informal inference about random bunny hops through student talk and use of computer simulation tools. Our aim in this paper is to draw on dialogic theory to explain how students make shifts in perspective, from intuition-based reasoning to more powerful, formal ways of using probabilistic…

The famous Birthday Problem is a staple in introductory probability texts and can be stated as follows: What is the probability that at least two persons from "n" randomly chosen persons have the same birthday? In this article, the author suggests an adaptation of the birthday problem which can be repeated in class until the full effect…

This article compares the definition of "box plot" as used in the "Australian Curriculum: Mathematics" with other definitions used in the education community; describes the difficulties students experience when dealing with box plots; and discusses the elaboration that is necessary to enable teachers to develop the knowledge…

Efficiency scores are determined for Canadian universities using both data envelopment analysis and stochastic frontier methods for selected specifications. The outcomes are compared. There is considerable divergence in the efficiency scores and their rankings among methods and specifications. An analysis of rankings, however, reveals that the…

This document is designed to assist teachers by providing practical examples of real world applications of high school mathematics. Fifteen problems are presented that individuals in industry and business solve using mathematics. Each problem provides the contributor's name, suggested skills required to solve the problem, background information…

To investigate the origins and nature of intuitive obstacles affecting the learning of elementary probability theory, 618 Italian elementary and middle school students were interviewed about their methods of solution for several problems dealing with probability. The discussion focuses on four varieties of obstacles to learning prevalent within…

This volume examines the teaching of statistics in the whole range of education, but concentrates on primary and secondary schools. It is based upon selected topics from the Second International Congress on Teaching Statistics (ICOTS 2), convened in Canada in August 1986. The contents of this volume divide broadly into four parts: statistics in…