Statistical Literacy as a Separate Course from Introductory Statistics

• Activity Number: 374
• Type: Roundtables
• Date/Time: Tuesday, August 3, 2010 : 12:30 PM to 1:50 PM
• Sponsor: Section on Statistical Education
• Author(s): Robert Adam Molnar*+
• Companies: Bellarmine University
• Keywords: statistical literacy ; literacy ; general education ; introductory course ; teaching

Abstract

Even under GAISE guidelines, the traditional introductory course contains a great deal of computation. Many students will never need to produce numerical results such as t-tests. Instead, they will be consumers of media reports, evaluators of risks, and judges of results. A general education course designed for these students, often called a "Statistical Literacy" course, should not be merely a traditional course with less topics. This roundtable will include information from one university's introduction of such a course, including topics, resources, student allocation, and testing. Other perspectives are greatly appreciated, with the idea to take the many good ideas and progress towards a more standardized concept.