Lesson 15

Questioning Experimenting

Lesson Narrative

In this lesson, students use the information gap format to ask questions to acquire information to analyze data from an experiment. In the optional activity, students use a table of values to find the area under a normal curve above an interval based on the z-score of the values. The activity is optional since it is only necessary if technology is unavailable to find these areas.

Students must reason abstractly and quantitatively (MP2) when they understand the statistics in context. Students also attend to precision (MP6) by considering the questions they need to ask in order to get information to analyze the experimental data. Students use a normal distribution to model data from randomized regroupings of data from an experiment (MP4) to determine whether there is evidence that the treatment is the cause of any difference in means obtained from the experiment.


Learning Goals

Teacher Facing

  • Ask questions (orally) to determine information needed to analyze data from an experiment.
  • Identify the area under a normal curve above an interval based on z-scores and a table of values.

Student Facing

Let's ask the right questions to analyze data from an experiment.

Required Preparation

The optional activity requires students to use a table of areas under the standard normal curve using z-scores. Find a table like this online and make copies for the class. Searching for "z score table" should provide several options.

Learning Targets

Student Facing

  • I can use a randomization distribution to determine whether or not a treatment was the cause of the results of an experiment, or if the results are due to the random assignment of the groups.
  • I understand why it is important to question the results of an experiment.

CCSS Standards

Addressing

Print Formatted Materials

For access, consult one of our IM Certified Partners.

Additional Resources

Google Slides

For access, consult one of our IM Certified Partners.

PowerPoint Slides

For access, consult one of our IM Certified Partners.