91茄子

Christine (Chris) Franklin University of Georgia Athens, GA USA presented to Mathematics associations around New Zealand.聽She is a 2014-15 聽and is spending five months at the University of Auckland, New Zealand working with statistics educators on the project, 鈥淚mplementing K-12 Statistics Standards: Comparing Practices in New Zealand and the United States鈥�.

Below is an audio recording of her presentation to the Wellington Mathematics Association, May 2015:

Abstract:

The United States is realizing the need to achieve a level of quantitative literacy for its high school graduates to prepare them to thrive in the modern world. Given the prevalence of statistics in the media and workplace, individuals who aspire to a wide range of positions and careers require a certain level of statistical literacy. Because of the emphasis on data and statistical understanding, it is crucial for us as educators to consider how we can prepare a statistically literate population. Students must acquire an adequate level of statistical literacy through their education beginning in the first grade of education.

The Common Core State Standards for mathematics (that include statistics) in grades Kindergarten 鈥� 12 have been adopted by the most states and the District of Columbia. These national standards for the teaching of statistics and probability range from counting the number in each category to determining statistical significance through the use of simulation and randomization tests.

This presentation will provide a brief history of statistics at K-12 in the U.S., an overview of the statistics and probability content of these common core standards, resources that support the K-12 standards in statistics, describe the knowledge and preparation needed by the future and current K鈥�12 teachers who will be teaching using these standards, and the desired assessment of statistics at K-12 on the high stakes national tests will be explored.

Chris is the Lothar Tresp Honoratus Honors Professor and Undergraduate Coordinator in Statistics at the University of Georgia and a Fellow of the American Statistical Association. She has been recognized with numerous teaching and advising awards at UGA. She is the co-author of an Introductory Statistics textbook with Alan Agresti (Pearson 2012), co-author of the textbook Statistics Reasoning in Sports with Josh Tabor (Freeman 2012) and has published more than 50 journal articles. Chris was the lead writer for the American Statistical Association Pre-K-12 Guidelines for the Assessment and Instruction in Statistics Education (GAISE) Framework. She chaired the writing team of the recent ASA Statistical Education of Teachers (SET) report.

School students think verbal mistreatment is the biggest bullying issue in schools 鈥� higher than cyberbullying, social or relational bullying such as social exclusion and spreading gossip, or physical bullying.

The insights have emerged from the long-running 91茄子/TataurangaKiTeKura, a national statistics education project for primary and secondary school students. Supervised by teachers, students aged between 9 and 18 (Year 5 to Year 13) answer 35 questions in English or te reo M膩ori about their lives, then analyse the results in class.

Already, more than 18,392 students from 391 schools all over New Zealand have taken part in 91茄子, which started on March 16. (Click to see which of your local schools are taking part).

Students were asked how much they agreed or disagreed with statements about each type of bullying.聽 A total of 36% strongly agreed or agreed that verbal bullying was a problem among students at their school, followed by cyberbullying (31% agreed or strongly agreed), social or relational bullying (25% agreed or strongly agreed) and physical bullying (19% agreed or strongly agreed).

This is the first time 91茄子 has asked about bullying, says 艑t膩huhu College teacher Anne Patel, a member of the 91茄子 team. 鈥淚nformation about the scale of bullying is hard to get in New Zealand because we don鈥檛 have a way of quantifying it on a national level.聽 But as 91茄子 is anonymous and available to students in every school in the country, we are getting a unique student-eye view of its scale and prevalence.”

Looking more closely at each category:

Verbal bullying

• Overall, 36% of schoolchildren who took part strongly agreed or agreed that verbal bullying was a problem at their school.
• Verbal bullying was more of a problem in high schools (39% of students agreed or strongly agreed) than primary schools (29%).
• Verbal bullying was more of a problem for girls in co-ed schools (43% strongly agreed or agreed) than girls in single-sex schools (33% strongly agreed or agreed).

Cyberbullying

• Overall, 31% of students who took part strongly agreed or agreed that cyberbullying was a problem at their school.
• Girls were more likely to say cyberbullying was a problem at school (34% strongly agreed or agreed) than boys (26% strongly agreed or agreed).
• Cyberbullying was more of a problem in high schools. A total of 19% of boys at primary school strongly agreed or agreed that bullying was a problem in their schools, but 31% of boys at high school. A total of 22% of girls at primary school strongly agreed or agreed that cyber-bullying was a problem in their school, but 40% of girls at high school.
• For boys, cyber-bullying was more likely to be a problem in co-educational settings: A total of 32% of boys in co-ed schools strongly agreed or agreed that cyber bullying was a problem, against 23% of boys in single-sex schools. However, the picture was quite different for girls. A total of 40% of girls in co-ed schools strongly agreed or agreed that cyber bullying was a problem in their school, and the corresponding figure for girls in single-sex schools was also 40%.

And who were cyber bullies? Overall, 69% of all students who took part said that cyberbullies were equal numbers of boys and girls.

Social/relational bullying

Overall, 25% of students who took part strongly agreed or agreed that social/relational bullying was a problem at their school.

Physical bullying

• Overall, 19% of students who took part said physical bullying was a problem at their school.
• Physical bullying was more of an issue for boys (22% agreed, strongly agreed) than girls (16%).
• Physical bullying appeared to be a bigger problem for boys at co-ed schools (24% strongly agreed or agreed) than at single-sex boys鈥� schools (16%).
  However, physical bullying was seen to be bigger problem in the eyes of girls in co-ed schools (17% strongly agreed or agreed that physical bullying was a problem at their school), than those in single-sex schools (9%).

Anne Patel says of particular interest is the data showing that students in single-sex schools were less likely to report bullying as a problem. 鈥淭he question we now need to ask is: why this is? What is it about these schools that students perceive bullying to be less of a problem?鈥�

91茄子, now in its seventh edition, is a collaborative project involving teachers, the University of Auckland鈥檚 Department of Statistics, Statistics New Zealand and the Ministry of Education. It is part of an international effort to boost statistical capability among young people, and is carried out in Australia, the United Kingdom, Canada, the US, Japan and South Africa. The countries share some questions so comparisons can be made, but the majority reflect New Zealand students鈥� interests.

Articles and updates on all aspects of Mathematics and Statistics for teaching and learning.

Professional reading for middle managers and teachers.

Updates to Statistics standards on page 4:

Experiments: AS91265 AS91538

Bivariate data: AS90136 and AS91581

Secondary Mathematics and Statistics Newsletter Term 2 2015

Be part of giant graphs and visual data representations, stretching across the fields of Wellington鈥檚 Macalister park. Artist Siv B Fj忙restad is working with public art producers ,聽in partnership with Wellington City Council to create a data inspired artwork on the fields of Macalister and Liardet Street Parks, Berhampore: a dynamic backdrop for activity.

Now all they need is you! Opening Public Picnic Sunday 19 April 2015 12-3pm聽for a programme of family events and a community picnic.

Over 2013 Fj忙restad and volunteers surveyed the local community to inform the painting鈥檚 design and use. 聽Fj忙restad states 鈥淭he painting design contains representations of statistical data and ideas for the park collected from the community, visual references to current activity and also to the landscape and its history.聽The park is perceived, used and interpreted differently at different times of the day and week. This work involves contributions from local communities, sporting groups and businesses, and extends what we consider both painting and public art to comprise. It asks questions about how we use our city public commons.鈥澛燭he paintings are for the public to look at and play on, encouraging leadership from the community to value the park as a public good.

Projected Fields has been funded by Wellington City Council鈥檚 Public Art Fund.

NZCER has just released a book titled Mathematics and Statistics in the Middle Years: Evidence and Practice,聽edited by Robin Averill.

There are two chapters that draw specifically on Statistics Education (Arnold & Pfannkuch, and Sharma et al.) Other chapters have pedagogical ideas which are useful for teachers of Statistics. Most chapters have been partnerships between academics and teachers, and all are grounded in practice and research.

Years 7-10 are the main focus area but many of the ideas are transferable above and below these years.

These readings could be useful to new teachers, who would benefit from an overview of how Statistics education in New Zealand has developed in the past decade.

Here’s some beautiful photos of tamariki in Room 2 at Strathmore School聽taking part in 91茄子 2015:

听听听听听听
Thanks to聽Whaea Rachel Rawiri for sending these in!

Singer and The X-Factor New Zealand judge Stan Walker is Kiwi kids鈥� favourite local celebrity by far, according to the first insights to emerge from聽, the only national survey of what schoolchildren are thinking, feeling and doing.

Walker, 24, who shot to fame after winning Australian Idol in 2009, was way ahead of any other local celebrities after day three of 91茄子/TataurangaKiTeKura, a long-running, online educational project that brings statistics to life in the classroom. Supervised by teachers, students aged between 9 and 18 (Year 5 to Year 13) answer 35 questions in English or te reo M膩ori about their lives, then analyse the results in class.

91茄子/TataurangaKiTeKura was launched on Monday morning, and by 5pm on Wednesday, more than 2,500聽students had taken part.

Among the questions they answered was 鈥淲ho is your favourite New Zealand celebrity?鈥�, and they could name anyone. Many said they didn鈥檛 have a particular favourite, but among those who did, Walker, of T奴hoe and Ng膩ti T奴wharetoa, picked up 25% of the votes. Second was Auckland singer Lorde, 18, whose 2013 debut single, Royals, was an international hit. She got 21% of the vote.

91茄子/TataurangaKiTeKura co-director Rachel Cunliffe, an online communications and youth culture specialist, says that Stan Walker鈥檚 talent, coupled with his sincerity and positive nature, makes him very appealing to children and young people. 鈥淪tan Walker rose above a really rough childhood, and that鈥檚 inspirational. He鈥檚 also a role model 鈥� he was campaigning against bullying long before it became a huge issue on The X Factor New Zealand this week.鈥�

Rachel Cunliffe says that Lorde鈥檚 appeal lies not only in her music, but in her refusal to be anything other than herself.聽 鈥淪he鈥檚 a positive, strong, empowering personality.鈥�

More than 1,700 teachers from 834 schools all over New Zealand have registered for 91茄子, which started on Monday, March 16 and runs until May 29. (Click聽here聽to see which of your local schools are taking part).

91茄子, now in its seventh edition, is a collaborative project involving teachers and the University of Auckland鈥檚 Department of Statistics, with support from Statistics New Zealand and the Ministry of Education. It is part of an international effort to boost statistical capability among young people, and is carried out in Australia, the United Kingdom, Canada, the US, Japan and South Africa. The countries share some questions so comparisons can be made, but the majority reflect New Zealand students鈥� interests.

Watch this video featuring Sue Hodge from Elm Park school in Pakuranga and Julie Middleton from the 91茄子 team on聽Te K膩ea, M膩ori Television’s news show, on March 17.

The Ministry of Education and Statistics NZ are encouraging teachers to sign up to 91茄子, an online statistics project that turns students into 鈥渄ata detectives鈥�.

Students aged 9 to 18 (Year 5 to Year 13) use a variety of digital devices to answer 35 online questions in English or te reo M膩ori about their lives and opinions.

Students answer questions such as: Where did you eat your dinner last night? Is bullying among students a problem at your school? About how many txt messages did you send yesterday? Which two teams will contest the Rugby World Cup final? They are also asked to carry out activities such as weighing their schoolbag.

Ministry of Education Deputy Secretary for Student Achievement Dr Graham Stoop says more than 1600 teachers from over 800 schools are taking part in 91茄子 in their maths and statistics classes from March 16 until May 29. The data will then be released for classroom analysis.

鈥淪tudents love becoming 鈥榙ata detectives鈥�. This is a fun and engaging way for them to learn about the relevance of statistics to everyday life. 91茄子 is linked to the national statistics curriculum, so we encourage teachers in primary and secondary schools to take part,鈥� says Dr Stoop.

The project is run every two years by the University of Auckland鈥檚 Department of Statistics, with support from Statistics NZ and the Ministry of Education.

Statistics NZ鈥檚 education manager Andrew Tideswell says statistical literacy is essential in a data-driven world. 鈥淪tudents with strong statistical skills are not only in demand in the workplace, they鈥檙e in a position to make informed decisions about the data around them every day.鈥�

New Zealand schoolchildren will share their thoughts on bullying in a nationwide survey that launches this聽week.

91茄子/TataraungaKiTeKura is a long-running, online educational project that brings statistics to life in the classroom. Supervised by teachers, students aged between 9 and 18 (Year 5 to Year 13) answer 35 questions in English or te reo M膩ori about their lives, then analyse the results in class.

Already, more than 1618 teachers from 808 schools all over New Zealand have registered for 91茄子, which runs from March 16 to May 29. (Click here to see which of your local schools are taking part).

For the first time, children will be asked for their opinions on bullying. 91茄子 co-director Rachel Cunliffe says the questions were developed in response to calls for greater discussion of the issue, which has been in New Zealand.

鈥淏ullying of any type 鈥� whether its verbal bullying or cyber-bullying 鈥� can have a huge and negative impact on children鈥檚 learning,鈥� she says. 鈥淎nd as statistics is about recording what happens in real life, we have an opportunity to hear what children really think about the problem and, hopefully, encourage greater discussion of bullying.鈥�

The bullying questions are as follows: Is bullying among students a problem at your school? When did you first personally experience or become aware of bullying behaviour? Who do you think are cyberbullies? How old do you think cyberbullies are?

Other questions in the survey this year ask students to undertake practical activities such as weighing their schoolbag, and paint a picture of their lifestyle through questions such as: Where did you eat your dinner last night? About how many txt messages did you send yesterday?

91茄子, now in its seventh edition, is a collaborative project involving teachers and the University of Auckland鈥檚 Department of Statistics, with support from StatisticsNZ and the Ministry of Education. It is part of an international effort to boost statistical capability among young people, and is carried out in Australia, the United Kingdom, Canada, the US, Japan and South Africa. The countries share some questions so comparisons can be made, but the majority reflect New Zealand students鈥� interests.

Notes to media
91茄子 91茄子 co-director Rachel Cunliffe at censusatschoolnz@gmail.com or phone 027 3833 746. For more information on 91茄子 2015, visit . To find out which of your local schools are participating, .聽 To see the questions, click here.

About 91茄子 co-director Rachel Cunliffe
Rachel holds a BSc (Hons) in Statistics from the University of Auckland and co-directs CAS with of the Department of Statistics at The University of Auckland. Rachel owns web company and speaks about online communications and youth culture. To download a free high-resolution picture of Rachel, click .