Monday, September 08, 2008

In the US, we take numbers and counting very seriously, except in empowering children to understand them. During the time of the presidential election, polling to predict election outcomes captures the public attention. "Who's ahead, we ask!" One book I remember from my college days was a 1950's classic, "How to Lie with Statistics" by Darrell Huff. It reminds us that statistics are more art than science and that they can be manipulated to further the devious intentions of those who are masters in their use. The chart below is from R.J. Drillis "Folk Norms and Biomechanics" illustrating the origins of measurement... that they once provided a concrete, deeply personal entry to the abstract. We introduce children to measuring whether inches or centimeters as an abstraction. Can you see why statistics might come as a challenge, being understood by very few? What if we gave our children the fundamentals of measurement? The gradual movement as suggested by Salomon, from concrete to abstract? It would pose a danger to those whose intentions are best met by our complaisance. Another of Salomon's principles was the movement from the known to the unknown. What is better known to a child than his or her own hands?

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