Assessing statistical inquiry

As statistics education becomes more firmly embedded in the school curriculum and its value across the curriculum is recognised, attention moves from knowing procedures, such as calculating a mean or drawing a graph, to understanding the purpose of a statistical investigation in decision making in many disciplines. As students learn to complete the stages of an investigation, the question of meaningful assessment of the process arises. This paper considers models for carrying out a statistical inquiry and, based on a four-phase model, creates a developmental sequence that can be used for the assessment of outcomes from each of the four phases as well as for the complete inquiry. The developmental sequence is based on the SOLO model, focussing on the “observed” outcomes during the inquiry process.