In fall 2016 the U.S. Census Bureau unveiled its newly updated Statistics in Schools program for K-12 teachers and students. The program offers free, classroom-ready geography, history/social studies, math, and sociology activities and resources that incorporate current and historical data to help students understand real-world applications of statistics.
Census Bureau experts and eight content teams, who are teachers and experts in K-12 education and curriculum design selected from hundreds of applicants nationwide collaborated to create the resource. These teams included three members from the Washington, D.C., area: Elizabeth Johnson, an assistant professor of statistics at George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia, (middle school math activities); John Mahoney, a mathematics teacher at Benjamin Banneker Academic High School in Washington, D.C., (high school history/social studies and math activities); and Craig Perrier, a history and social sciences curriculum specialist with Fairfax County Public Schools in Fairfax, Virginia, (elementary school history/social studies activities).
“The Census Bureau is proud to have worked with educators from across the nation on activities that will help increase the statistical literacy of America’s youth,” said Nancy Potok, Census Bureau deputy director and chief operating officer. “Understanding the value behind the numbers that measure our changing society will help leaders of tomorrow learn how to make data-driven decisions that shape communities for generations to come.”
Launched initially for the 2000 Census, the Census Bureau launched the education to help students understand the importance of the census count. Building on that foundation, the program was revamped to meet changing classroom needs in today’s data-driven world. It provides teachers with searchable activities, organized by grade and school subject, to develop students’ statistical literacy and data analysis skills. The program also includes tools that allow students to search for and analyze data to support what they are learning in the classroom.
“These activities provide teachers with opportunities to teach statistical concepts and data analysis skills to students in various subjects, not just math,” said Roxy Peck, California Polytechnic State University professor emerita of statistics, who served as a subject matter expert for the middle and high school math activities. “The need for statistically literate citizens continues to grow as we become a more data-driven society.”