Analysis of statistical content in junior high school mathematics textbooks based on statistical cognition and graph comprehension

Abstract

Content analysis was used to investigate statistical cognition and graph comprehension of two textbooks edited according to 2003 curriculum guidelines. We found that the two textbooks provide substantial learning opportunities for statistical literacy; however, they provide almost no learning opportunities for statistical reasoning and thinking. Furthermore, both of the textbooks provide learning opportunities to interpret graphs by recognizing components and information displayed in graphs, but provide almost no learning opportunities to infer from graphs or choose proper graphs for different situations. This may be because the guidelines only focus on knowing statistical knowledge, drawing graphs, and retrieving information directly. To enhance the ability of students to apply statistical graphs and concepts for making inferences, it is recommended to provide students with tasks for reasoning and thinking statistically, selecting graphs and making inference by analyzing information of graphs.