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Presentation given as part of the High School Teachers of Sociology Workshop at the American Sociological Association Annual Meeting, 2012 (Denver, CO).
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Data in the HS Classroom: When, Why, and How?
Lynette F. Hoelter, Ph.D.Dir. Instructional Resources,
ICPSR, UM
August 18, 2012American Sociological Assoc.
Annual Meeting
Just the Facts, Ma’am!
• What is data?• Why would I want to use data in the
classroom?• When should I use data?• How can I use data?
– This isn’t math class! – I don’t “do” data… – My students don’t “do” data…
• Where can I find data?
What do we mean by “data”?• Definitions differ by context. For example:
– Citing someone else’s written work to support your point
– Analysis of newspaper articles, blogs, Twitter feeds, commercials, etc. looking for themes
– The result of an in-depth interview or observation– Information from medical tests, experiments, and
other scientific exercises
• For this presentation, “data” refers to summary information presented numerically in graphs, charts, or tables and the underlying survey results.
Why Use Data? • Course content becomes applicable to
students’ lives• Active learning makes content more
memorable• Students learn how social scientists
work (not just common sense)• Quantitative literacy skills are
strengthened in a non-threatening context
• Skills learned & used within a context– Reading and interpreting tables or
graphs and to calculating percentages and the like
– Working within a scientific model (variables, hypotheses, etc.)
– Understanding and critically evaluating numbers presented in everyday lives
– Evaluating arguments based on data– Knowing what kinds of data might be
useful in answering particular questions
Quantitative Literacy??
Importance of QL
• Availability of information requires ability to make sense of information coming from multiple sources
• Use of evidence is critical in making decisions and evaluating arguments
• Employers value these skills
When to Include Data
• ALL the time!!!!! (Or at least whenever you feel like it…Seriously!)
How to Use Data (Especially for those who don’t “do” data)
• Start class with a data-based news article• Have students interpret charts/graphs from popular
media and critique news articles • Require empirical evidence to support claims in
essays• Question banks and exercises allow students to work
with surveys and the resulting data• Have students collect data – even in-class polls• Engage students by having them find maps, graphs,
or other data that provide examples of course content
Where to Find Data/Exercises
• Data archives– Public opinion– Topic specific– General
• News blogs • Specific Websites (gov’t
organizations, collections of resources)
Public Opinion Data• Roper Center for Public Opinion
Research http://www.ropercenter.uconn.edu
• Gallup: http://www.gallup.com• NORC reports & data:
www.norc.org/Research/DataFindings• Pew Social & Demographic Trends:
http://www.pewsocialtrends.org/
Topic-specific Archives… (but not too specific)• Association of Religion Data Archives(www.thearda.com) (Pet survey http://www.thearda.com/crc/quiz/quiz12.asp)
• Sociometrics (family, AIDS, maternal drug abuse, etc.)
News Blogs & Quick Facts
• TeachingWithData.org – Data in the News
• U.S. Census Newsroom, Census Data page
• Other government sources; organizations – beware of credibility
• Data360• USA Today Snapshots
Use of terms “Soda,” “Pop,” and “Coke” from The Invisible Borders that Define American Culture, Data360
Collections of Resources
• TeachingWithData.org• Social Science Data Analysis Network• ICPSR’s Online Learning Center• Social Explorer
Data Can Be FUN!
Questions? Comments? Suggestions?
Lynette Hoelter: [email protected]
These slides are also on Slideshare.net – search for ICPSR as a “user” (logo)