Nancy C. Lavigne

Empowering children in the use of statistics

Abstract Statistics pervade our society, yet the understanding of statistics has remained the domain of a select few. Although the majority of the literature has focused on the adult learner, there is a movement toward teaching statistics to children. This article addresses the ways in which the study of statistics has been examined in the elementary and secondary schools in terms of content, readiness of children to learn, pedagogy, and assessment. A proposal is presented of how a cognitive apprenticeship model can be developed from the empirical research findings in order to build more effective instructional and assessment methods for statistics education.

Introduction to Emerging Technologies for the Classroom: A Learning Sciences Perspective

This chapter provides a historical overview of the role of technology in schools and describes strategies used to address technological innovations in school settings. Four types of emerging technologies are then introduced: (a) technologies that support learning to understand and create; (b) technologies that support learning by collaborating; (c) technologies that support anytime, anyplace learning; and (d) technologies that support learning by gaming. A summary of each chapter presented in this volume is also provided. The chapter concludes with thoughts on future directions of emerging technologies.

Promoting College Students’ Problem Understanding Using Schema-Emphasizing Worked Examples

Statistics learners often bypass the critical step of understanding a problem before executing solutions. Worked-out examples that identify problem information (e.g., data type, number of groups, purpose of analysis) key to determining a solution (e.g., t test, chi-square, correlation) can address this concern. The authors examined the effectiveness of 3 kinds of worked examples on 96 college students’ problem understanding based on their problem categorizations and explanations: correct schema, contrasting schema (correct and incorrect features), and no schema (traditional solution-only examples). The contrasting- and correct-schema examples were more effective than were the no-schema examples—but neither schema was more effective than the other—in helping students construct accurate and complete problem schemata where data type and number of groups were prominently featured.

Epilogue: Designing and Integrating Emerging Technologies for Learning, Collaboration, Reflection, and Creativity

We live in an increasingly complex and rapidly changing world where technology is an integral and pervasive part of our everyday lives. Technology can expose us to complexity and open up new worlds for us to explore, offering opportunities for academic, personal, and professional growth. Technology can also be designed and integrated to support us in navigating demanding environments, working with challenging ideas, interacting and collaborating with others, building communities that enable us to develop in various ways, and creating meaningful and innovative products. In essence, the potential of technology for transforming lives depends in part on how designers, teachers, and learners conceive of it as fulfilling their needs and enabling them to meet their goals.