Write-Skewed: Writing in an Introductory Statistics Course

Statistics is used in almost every facet of our daily lives: crime reports, election results, environmental/climate change, advances in business, financial planning, and progress in multifarious research. Although understanding statistics is essential for efficient functioning in the modern world (Cerrito 1996), students often do not grasp statistical concepts due to the abstract nature of the subject matter. According to the Guidelines for Assessment and Instruction in Statistics Education (GAISE) (October, 2008) promulgated by the American Statistical Association (ASA), an introductory statistics course should: (1) promote statistical literacy and statistical thinking; (2) use real data; (3) promote conceptual understanding; (4) foster active learning; (5) use technology for developing conceptual understanding and analyzing data; (6) use assessments to improve and evaluate student learning. To this end, we decided to reexamine our traditional introductory statistics course and to consider alternate pedagogical methods that could foster the development of statistical thinking. This paper focuses on a pedagogy that utilizes writing in a general introductory statistics course. The goal of this course is to provide a basic understanding of statistical concepts and to develop statistical thinking skills as well as foster students' ability to evaluate and analyze statistical information pertaining to daily life.