Improving Understanding and Instruction of Probability and Statistics for Middle School Teachers

Time: 8:30am to 3:15pm EST

Location: Virtual

Description: The goals for the workshop are to (a) enhance teachers' content knowledge related to key concepts and ideas in statistics; (b) give teachers background on statistical concepts and their relationship to Mathematics Standards; (c) model for teachers sample problems dealing with the concept of describing and comparing distributions with a specific emphasis on measures of center (mean and median) and variability (interquartile range and mean absolute deviation), and provide interactive activities on these concepts; (d) model for teachers sample problems dealing with the role of randomness in the interpretation of results, and provide interactive activities on these ideas; (e) provide teachers with a list of resources supported by the What Works Clearinghouse, the American Statistical Association, and the National Council for the Teachers of Mathematics; and (f) provide opportunities for teachers to ask clarifying questions.

Partnership or Research Alliance: Improving Mathematics Instruction Alliance

Audience: The audience will include middle school mathematics teachers working in the Richland County School District in South Carolina. District-level mathematics coordinators and school-level teacher leaders may also be in attendance. In total, approximately 50 participants are expected to attend the virtual training.

Speakers: Tim Jacobbe, Ph.D. Southern Methodist University