Katherine Halvorsen, MWM Program Chair, and Rebecca Nichols, ASA Director of Education

Meeting Within a Meeting participants look over patterns in the data.

The American Statistical Association sponsored a two-day Meeting Within a Meeting (MWM) statistics workshop for middle- and high-school mathematics and science teachers July 30–31 at the annual 2019 Joint Statistical Meetings (JSM) in Denver, Colorado.

This year, there were 28 participants, including middle- and high-school teachers, teacher educators, students, and statisticians interested in professional development and teaching statistics at the middle- and high-school levels. Workshop participants came from nine states and the District of Columbia.

The MWM workshops emphasize the growth of statistical literacy and thinking as teachers explore problems that require them to formulate questions; collect, organize, analyze, and draw conclusions from data; and apply basic concepts of probability. A follow-up program incorporating webinars and email is planned to provide further training and help keep the teachers who attended MWM connected to the ASA.

The MWM 2019 program was designed to enhance educators’ understanding of statistics and provide them with hands-on activities they can use in their own classrooms to strengthen the teaching of statistics in their schools. A secondary goal was to encourage cooperation between mathematics and science teachers in the teaching of statistics and make connections between teachers and local statisticians.

“One of the primary missions of the American Statistical Association is to work for the improvement of statistical education at all levels,” said Ron Wasserstein, the ASA’s executive director. “We are pleased to reach out to the K–12 mathematics and science community through the MWM workshop and follow-up activities,” he added. “MWM will not only enhance understanding and teaching of statistics concepts in the classroom, but also provide participants with a network of statisticians and educators to assist in developing the quantitative literacy of their students.”

Each workshop day consisted of three sessions and a closing period used to reflect on the day’s work and allow teachers to comment about the program to the organizers. The workshop sessions were preceded by an overview of the Guidelines for Assessment and Instruction in Statistics Education (GAISE) Report and other standards relevant to the audience.

Middle-school teachers attended the workshop sessions on both Tuesday and Wednesday and participated in discussions about formulating statistical questions and collecting data, comparative inferences about two populations, investigating patterns of association in bivariate quantitative data, measures of center and variability, investigating sampling variability, and exploring the mathematical practices through a statistical lens.

The sessions in the high-school program on Tuesday included discussions about statistical questions and study design; recognizing data types and the appropriate methods for displaying, summarizing, and comparing them; exploring and using data from grayscale images to develop informal classification models; and using randomization tests to make inferences and justify conclusions.

High-school teachers were given the option to attend the second day of the middle-school workshop on Wednesday, which focused on topics relevant to both middle- and high-school teachers or to attend statistics education sessions at the Joint Statistical Meetings.

All teachers who attended were given a certificate of participation by the ASA. Also, teachers who registered could receive one semester graduate credit hour through Adams State University. The ASA will provide follow-up activities throughout the 2019–2020 school year, including webinars.

Katherine Halvorsen of Smith College planned the MWM program, while ASA Director of Education Rebecca Nichols managed the website, registration and evaluation procedures, and logistics of setting up and advertising the conference. Presenters included ASA K–12 Statistical Ambassador Chris Franklin, ASA/NCTM Joint Committee Past Chair Kaycie Maddox (Northeast Georgia RESA), Anna-Marie Fergusson (University of Auckland, New Zealand), National Council of Supervisors of Mathematics Past President Connie Schrock (Emporia State University), and Halvorsen. Additionally, Wasserstein, Jamie Perrett (ASA/NCTM Joint Committee Chair), and Matt Pocernich from the Colorado-Wyoming ASA Chapter welcomed the attendees.

Planning has begun for MWM 2020, which will be held in conjunction with JSM in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. MWM program committee members are encouraging chapters to consider sponsoring one or more teachers from their area to attend the workshops. Registration will begin in March 2020.