Developing a Framework for Quantitative Literacy:

Counting on IASSIST

Wendy WatkinsIASSIST2006Ann Arbor, MI

Alternate Title

Information, Numbers and Turf

Outline Addressing a Need Recent Events Making a Plan Bringing on Partners Semantics Turf Making a Plan2 Developing the Outline Workshops 1-5 Getting Faculty Buy-in Next Steps IASSIST Inspirations

Addressing a Need “In today’s “world awash in numbers,”

strong quantitative reasoning skills are required in: virtually all academic fields most every profession decision-making in everyday life” Corrie Taylor, ICPSR OR meeting, Oct. 2005

According to the ALLS*, 12 of 13 provinces and territories score BELOW the MINIMUM for successful day-to-day functioning ** * Adult Literacy and Lifeskills Survey, 2003** Statistics Canada Daily, Nov. 9, 2005; Globe and Mail, Nov. 10, 2005

Addressing a Need (con’t)

“In fact, the labour market returns to numeracy skills overshadowed the return to education. Hence, if well-educated adults were lacking in numeracy skills, they derived no benefit from any additional years of schooling.”

Results of the 2003 ALLS reported in the Statistics Canada Daily, May 11, 2005

Recent Events Release of ALLS results for Canadian

numeracy Publication of special IQ issue on statistical

literacy Focus of ICPSR on quantitative literacy

Corrie Taylor’s presentation at last OR meeting IASSIST Strategic Plan’s focus on education Integration of Learning Commons into

Libraries

Making a Plan1

Use Information Literacy as a model Target graduate students Stress numeracy as the goal (not

producing mathematicians) Collect materials Develop a curriculum

Bringing on Partners Can’t do it alone Liaison with Learning Commons

Good discussion of areas of mutual interest Expression of interest in developing curricula for:

Workshops on quantitative literacy SPSS workshops Introduction to GIS

Good support from the Dean of Students

Semantics

Information Literacy ≠Quantitative LiteracyMentioning Information Literacy = Library Stuff Been there, done that

Don’t understand the stress on everyday quantitative skills

Turf Mentioning Quantitative Literacy= Math

and Stats Don’t understand the stress on everyday

quantitative skills Want to teach calculus and statistics

Grad Studies wants to set curriculum Don’t understand the stress on everyday

quantitative skills Sound familiar? Need a different plan

Making a Plan2 Learning Commons geared to

undergrads Lower sights Aim at 1st year, 1st term

Revamp curriculum Series of 5 workshop

Use graduate students to deliver Data Centre provides expertise Grad students provides labour

Developing the Outline Catchy title

A Survival Kit for the World of Numbers Combination of quantitative literacy and

research process Addresses problems faced by Learning

Support Introduces students to data at the earliest

stage Workshops still a work in progress – many

changes anticipated

Workshop 1 Can We Count on You?

General overview of numbers in the everyday world

Basic numeracy Percents Rates Ratios Relative risk etc.

Exercises

Workshop 2

Where are the Real Numbers? Sources of Data

National International Aggregate Microdata

Who can you trust? Exercises

Workshop 3

Getting the Real Story Crime in Canada

Violent Crime Guns in the Cities

SARS – The real risk Support for IRAQ – Gallup vs. Ipsos-Reid Exercises

Workshop 4

The Research Life-cycle Choosing a topic Asking a question Choosing a dataset Reviewing the literature Forming an hypothesis

Topics and datasets will be chosen beforehand

Workshop 5

Telling a New Story Choosing variables Creating tables Creating graphs Writing it up

Students will use Nesstar to do this

Getting Faculty Buy-in

Faculty are on-board Workshops merely scratch the surface They are the only introduction to

quantitative material at present Asked for feedback

Can we do more? Pilot project Attendance=1 grade point

Next Steps Evaluate the workshops

Content Relevance Coverage

If successful, expand 1st-year seminar

Interdisciplinary Full-credit course Patterned after the University de Montréal’s

success

IASSIST Inspirations

IASSIST Inspirations

Questions?