Using Real-World Data
By Ria Mastromatteo, Educational Technology Consultant ()
In addition to my current job, I've had a second job for about 15 years with the American Statistical Association. I spend a couple of weeks every year doing workshops on using statistics and probability in the classroom. (I can hear my co-workers at my old school moaning as they read this!) It's really great fun!
Just as social studies and English teachers love primary sources, mathematics teachers crave REAL data. You can really hook kids into a lesson by using things that affect their lives. Think of the world around them — sports statistics, census figures, nutrition information (calories, fat content, etc.), crime statistics, pollution figures! The list is endless!
The Web is ideal for finding real-world data. Here are some sites you might look at:
U.S. Census Bureau http://www.census.gov
U.S. Crime Statistics (all categories of crime) http://www.lib.umich.edu/govdocs/frames/statsin.html
Major League Baseball Statistics Index (CNN) http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/statistics
National Football League
http://www.nfl.com/stats
National Basketball Association (select Statistics from the left column) http://nba.com
Facts for Features (gives statistical information pertinent to various holidays) http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/www/factsheets.html
Fast Food Facts (search to find information on fast food menu items and calories, fat, cholesterol, etc.) http://www.kenkuhl.com/fastfood
National Center for Education Statistics U.S. Department of Education http://www.nces.ed.gov
For a Web page full of lesson plan ideas, other real-world data sites and some general information, go to http://wneo.org/hotlists/probability.htm.
If you're "into" teaching data analysis, check out an Annenberg program titled Against All Odds: Inside Statistics. The series, appropriate for high school students, includes 26 programs dealing with information from basic data to very high level statistical concepts such as regression and correlation coefficients. Against All Odds is available in PBS 45 & 49's Videotape Library. Contact Laura Jarvis at or to order. Give data a try!
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