Open

A Modern Approach to High School Statistics and Data Science

CourseKata Statistics and Data Science is a set of innovative, interactive online textbooks for teaching introductory statistics and data science in high schools, colleges, and universities. These textbooks are part of the Better Book Project, where we leverage research and student data to guide continuous improvement of online learning resources. 

Open

CourseKata is part of a larger movement to modernize high school mathematics courses. Algebra and statistics courses can and should be modernized to better prepare students for current college courses and careers. By engaging students to look at real data and model them with functions, CourseKata students are more convinced of the usefulness of mathematics while developing a greater interest in more advanced content. CourseKata students model data not only with algebraic notation but also with coding – all in intuitive, purposeful ways that are empowering.

Modernized courses can and should meet college admission requirements. CourseKata has a set of Statistics materials that fit the guidelines for advanced mathematics under the University of California a-g course framework. CourseKata materials can also be incorporated into other math courses (Algebra I or II) to use data to motivate the learning of algebraic functions. And because it was designed as a college course, CourseKata Statistics and Data Science can be an excellent option for dual enrollment in partnership with a higher education institution.

Highly Interactive Student Experience

CourseKata’s online textbooks include more than 1400 formative assessment questions, engaging students in active learning throughout. Students learn to program and analyze data using R, a standard open-source programming language for data science. R exercises are interleaved throughout the online book, giving students opportunities to continually practice applying the concepts they are learning. 

Starter Pack of Data Case Studies

Get started with our full set of lessons featuring a variety of data sets curated to stoke curiosity. From data about Pokemon to public health, from mind-controlling parasites to NFL salaries, this wide ranging exploration of data convinces students to proclaim that math is obviously relevant.

Richly Informative Teacher Tools

Our teacher interface gives real-time access to students’ thinking and progress through the learning materials. CourseKata’s seamless integration of authentic data science tools (such as Jupyter Notebooks) provides a means of structuring in-class activities, sharing new data sets, and managing authentic assessments and student projects.

Statistical Modeling at the Core

CourseKata’s materials are organized around the core concept of statistical modeling and the practice of data analysis. Students continually practice making connections between statistical models, representations, and a variety of situations. According to the practicing connections hypothesis, these connections result in deep understanding and transferable knowledge.

Where Can This Fit? 

CourseKata Statistics and Data Science is being utilized in multiple ways, including as a more engaging way to teach a traditional statistics course or to support existing algebra courses. Districts are also using CourseKata as an anchor to redesign math pathways across the district, where Statistics and Data Science can be a branch with options for dual enrollment.

Professional Development & Support 

CourseKata provides extensive professional development before and during the implementation of the course. Even teachers with little or no background in R or data science – and this describes most of our teachers – report feeling well-prepared and supported as they implement the course for the first time. In fact, learning to teach a CourseKata course is an ideal way for teachers to get introduced to the world of modern statistics and data science. 

Where is CourseKata Being Used?

Our project started out innovating and modernizing how statistics is taught in college but high schools caught wind of our curriculum and started piloting in 2020. The CourseKata high school curricula are being used in a variety of states including California, New York, Washington, Utah, Maine, Oregon, and more. 

You can check out what a classroom teaching with CourseKata looks like in this video featuring the Khan Lab School made by Data Science 4 Everyone (DS4E) [7 minutes].

Hear what students had to say about CourseKata at San Mateo High School (CA) and Granger High School (filmed at Utah’s Data Science Summit).

How much does it cost?

CourseKata content is free. However, we charge $24 per student to cover a portion of our costs for hosting, professional development, and technical support. We are grateful for the support of our schools and districts! Access to CourseKata PD and support is free for anyone who has not yet taught the course; once you start teaching with actual students, there is a per teacher membership fee for PD and support. Detailed information about pricing can be found here.