Its subtitle is 'statistics for a fact based education' and it is aimed at offering users with up-to-date statistics to allow them to make sense of the world.
Many of the tables and graphs raise awareness of the Millennium Development Goals in order for teachers and students to understand and monitor the progress towards a world free of poverty.
The impressive online database from the World Bank is a huge step forward in sharing development statistics worldwide. However, the site is so extensive that students and teachers might "get lost" in the maze of figures and facts.
This site focuses on themes we know are discussed in classrooms all over the world and provides easily accessible and pedagogically elaborated tables and graphs with relevant questions.
Development statistics becomes increasingly relevant during the latter years of second level education and our primary target therefore is aimed at second level students. Other levels are not excluded however, as all of us, young and old, should be concerned about "the state of the world" today, yesterday and tomorrow.
Under "Facts for Children" you can find data for younger students from around ten years of age and upwards.
The site provides tables, graphs and maps which illustrate the large global and regional disparities in standards of living and follow current trends and developments; some countries and regions are developing very fast and are closing historical gaps while others are growing more slowly and therefore fall behind. Disparities however, exist on local, national, regional and global levels.
The tables and figures are sometimes self-explanatory, but you must provide the analysis, conclusions and the sufficient critical thinking to explore the material fully. The world is changing rapidly and updated statistics might challenge our world views.
Statistical literacy is an important element of learning about how the world is represented.Numbers can be interpreted in different ways, to suit us. In geography, they can also be used to provide misleading views about countries and their development, for example.
A BBC Magazine series of posts on statistical stories was referred to a while back. This looked at the way that we explore numbers. There's also the MORE OR LESS page.
An EU-funded project which I am going to be involved in started on the 1st of October, in association with the Geographical Association, for whom I will be 'working'. It will develop the WORLDSTAT resources and produce a range of additional classroom-based resources. We have a preliminary meeting at the University of Ghent soon to plan the project and work out the various.
More to come on LivingGeography as the project develops over the next few years...
Comments