What is a Statistical Poster?

Alliance Class September 2011

The chart below shows how each community voted Aug. 9. Pasch’s winning margins (in percentage points) are shown in

blue, Darling’s in red:

GAISEGuidelines for Assessment and

Instruction in Statistics Education

A Curriculum Framework for Pre-K-12 Statistics EducationThe American Statistical Associationwww.amstat.org/education/gaise/

Four Components of Statistical Problem Solving

Statistical analysis is an investigative process that turns often loosely formed ideas into scientific studies by:

• Formalizing a question that can be answered with data;

• Designing a plan to collect appropriate data;

• Analyzing the collected data by graphical and numerical methods;

• Interpreting the analysis so as to reflect light on the original question.

What is a Statistics Poster?Based on presentation by Linda Quinn National Poster Judge

• Posters tell stories!• A statistics poster states a question that can

be answered by data, and displays two or more related graphs that summarize the data, show different points of view of the data, while visually answering the stated question(s).

The Poster

• A poster must be able to stand alone – without a narrator to tell the story, or a report to discuss the data.

• Viewers must be able to understand individual graphs, the relationships among the graphics, and how the graphics address the central question.

Judging Criteria

The formal criteria are:1) Clarity of Message 2) Appropriateness of the Graphics3) Details of the Graphs4) Creativity5) Overall Impact

Rubric Handout

1) Clarity of the Message

• What is the story behind the poster?• Do the graphs interconnect? How does each

graph contribute to the story?• Is the central message prominently and

clearly presented?• Are the conclusions obvious from the

graphs?

The circle graph is hardly visible. Also there is too much chart junk!

2) Appropriateness of the Graphics

• Were the correct data collected to answer the question?

• Are the graphs appropriate for the type of data used, continuous or categorical?

Line graphs are not appropriate for categorical data

3) Details of the Graphs

• Does each graph have its own title, labels, and legend?

• Are axes scaled correctly and identified?• Are colors (if used), patterns, and scales used

consistently and effectively?

Hardly a good use of color

Good topic, clear, correct scales, distracting color background ruins what is otherwise a

very nice poster

4) Creativity

• Is there any evidence of creative thought or imagination? – In the choice of topic– In how the data are collected– In how the data are displayed

– Is the topic appropriate to grade level? (have to be careful here)

High school entry First grade entry

5) Overall Impact

• Is the poster eye-catching and visually attractive?

• Is the poster neatly done? Is it uncluttered and well-organized?

• Do the graphs take up the majority of the poster space? (about 75%)

• Is it readable from six feet away?• Is the poster interesting?

What Do You Think?

2011 WinnersGrades K-3

Grades 4-6

Grades 7-9

2007 ASA Poster Competition Winners K-3

S. Carson, A. DeVito, G. Hall, A. Sahadevan, L. Starkman, and I. Weil - Has There Been Diversity in the U.S. Presidency? Hathaway Brown Primary School, Shaker Heights, Ohio.

2007 ASA Poster Competition Winners 4-6

B. Tilley - Are Hybrid Cars Really More Economical? Pine-Richland Middle School, Gibsonia, Pennsylvania

2007 ASA Poster Competition Winners 7-9

M. Bonner - Favorite Fizz St. Aloysius Academy, Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania

HOW-TO CREATE A STATISTICS POSTER

• Selecting a topic

• Determining how to display data graphically• Communicating your message

SELECTING A TOPIC

• Brainstorm a list of possible topics in groups of 2 teachers

Be free-thinking

Do not rush to critique any ideas

Brainstorm sources for ideas – think about national, state, regional, local, school issues

SELECTING A TOPIC

• Critique the ideas as a class or within groups

If an idea is too broad consider narrowingit down

Discuss the interest of the topic idea with other groups of teachers inside and outside the class

SELECTING A TOPIC

• Consider how to collect data on the chosen topicDiscuss the population of interest & sampling concerns

• When the study is done, who or what is it you want to be able to say something about?

• If data are being collected from individuals, how will these persons be selected fairly so they represent the population of interest?

Discuss whether data will be obtained from a survey, an experiment, the Internet, from the library, etc.

Discuss challenges with data collection• Survey questions must be clear – pilot survey• Experiments must be doable and repeatable – keep them

simple• Data must be obtainable to answer the question of interest

DISPLAYING DATA GRAPHICALLY

• Goal of graphs

The reader of your poster should be able to look at the graphs and understand the story of the data. It may be useful to think of graphs as photos that make it easy for your reader to visualize all of the information that you have collected.

Common Pitfalls to Avoid• Title, variable labels, and/or value labels are not clear and

user-friendly (e.g., no legend is provided)• Graph is incorrect for the type of data• 3-D items are not securely attached• Irregular-shaped posters (weigh creativity against ease of

shipment/handling)• Topic is of marginal interest• It is not obvious how the graphs connect• Graphs do not provide any new information (i.e., using a bar

chart and a pie chart to relay the same information)• Spelling and/or grammar issues

TIMELINE

• Sept. 27 What is the statistical question you are answering? And how do you plan on collecting the data?

• Oct. 25 Data collected and description of the graphs that you plan on making to display the collected data

• Nov. 22 Poster Due and presentations to class