Insights into the approaches of young children when making informal inferences about data

Abstract

There is growing awareness of the statistical reasoning abilities of young children. In this study the informal inferential reasoning skills of a class of 5-6 year old children are examined as they reason about data in the context of a week-long data investigation unit. The strategies young children use to make predictions about data are identified. A discussion ensues around what these strategies communicate about early understandings of statistical inference. The findings suggest that making inferences from data can be challenging for younger students primarily due to the powerful influence of their developing understandings of number. However, there is evidence that children possess some of the building blocks of informal inference most notably in the approaches that point to a pre-aggregate view of data. Situating data investigations within interesting and relevant contexts, alongside good teacher questioning and opportunities to listen to the reasoning of their peers, contributes to the creation of statistical environments that support and develop early understandings of inference.