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Confidence Interval Project

You may already be using this project on confidence intervals for means, "Read Any Good Articles Lately?"; if you use TPS4, odds are you probably do (too corny?).  I just find it very insightful into what interests my students have.  Sometimes, when I'm checking their article for appropriateness and requirements, I can't stop reading it!  And other times... I'm not very amused.

 I have adjusted my project to meet more of my expectations and my students' needs, but I think it is pretty close to the original.  Here's the breakdown:
  • Students must find a long article online. (I used to make sure it was a "trusted source", but those readings were so boring.  I mean, The Onion isn't trusted, but it's hilarious!)
  • Then they must randomly select a paragraph (I require proof of randomization) and create a table or spreadsheet with the length of the first 100 words.
  • Students will create histograms and discuss the distribution- a great review at this point in the game.
  • Finally, they will create a confidence interval, interpret a confidence level, and investigate a "claim from the author".
I cannot think of any cons in using this as a project, but there are many pros!
  1. Students have the autonomy to choose an article that they find fun.
  2. I get to check that they are doing inference correctly since this is one of the first sections on this topic.
  3. Using spreadsheets early in their higher-level educational career will set up the students for success in college.  Google Sheets is very easy to use and intuitive for my kids.
  4. I am able to give them feedback via Google Slides and they can resolve my comments when making any corrections.

Try this out with your students if you haven't already, they love the collaboration and ability to choose their own topics (plus, it's educational)!

 ~SSB

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