Lifelong Learning Programme

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Experiences

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TEACHERS EXPERIENCES FORM

Title of the Experience
Statistical reasearch
Name of the teacher
Zuzana Kuppeová
Country where it took place
Slovakia
School typology
Lower Secondary School
Thematic Area
Maths
Experience typology
Teaching in class
Type of contact
Direct
Description of the Experience
I try to teach many of the topics that the students learn within the subject of mathematics as they actually happen in real life so they understand the topic is it really is. An appropriate topic for these purposes is statistics. After I refer to the students with a problem, I decided to make with the class some real research. My colleague helped me choose the topic. She is also a drug prevention coordinator. It was chosen to count the number of smokers in our school. The classroom met the topic proposal with a good response. Students were looking forward to its implementation. The first task for the students was to create a questionnaire to which the pupils will respond. Together we made a proposal and then one student made it on the computer. The questionnaire was copied and multiplied in sufficient quantity. Another math lesson was implemented through the situation when students walked around the school and handed out questionnaires to students in the classrooms. They should answer it truthfully. The questionnaire was anonymous. That we go into other classrooms, I agreed in advance with the teachers so we do not disturb their lessons. Students were divided into groups and each was assigned certain classes. Time to implement data collection in the survey ranged across the whole 45 minute teaching unit- a lesson. Therefore the processing of collected data will await us up during the next 45 minute lesson.
I was surprised that we met mostly with the willingness of the students to fill out questionnaires. That is because at this point the project could have failed. In the next class we spilled the questionnaires on the bench and started sorting them out and writing down the collected data. Each group recorded and statistically processed its own data. Group No. 1 made evaluation for the whole school, group No.2 processed data only about boys, group No. 3 on girls. No.4 group dealt with the waiters, group No. 5 discussed our school cooks. Each group created a table in Excel format and graphically illustrated the data found it in an understandable way for all. The results of the poll were subsequently published on the bulletin board of the school. Classification and data collection from the questionnaires was quite noisy. At the beginning it was a bit chaotic but then the pupils suggested the way in which we continued this process more effectively. Each group gave a talk enthusiastically about their results. They were all proud of their work. Some results got enthusiastically commented on. There were also found passive students which moved the difficult part of the task to other members of the group. I was pleasantly surprised that other pupils from the school were inquiring about the results and followed the bulletin board information about our research.

Comments on this Teachers Experience

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Date: 2014.11.09

Posted by Viera Kolbaska (Slovakia)

Author's experience is important from the point of motivating students by solving the problems, which are current for them, also by selecting of method – through which students with their own activity acquire the necessary information and skills in the field of statistics.
• Does this experience explain the causes of students´ low motivation to learn science subjects?
This experience clearly points to the fact that students are more active and more motivated to learn through their own actions. It is very useful that the author let the students do the actions they are able to do.
• Does this experience offer possible solution to overcome this low motivation?

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