Statistics Poster Competitions: An Opportunity to Connect Academics and Teachers

Abstract

<p>The Australian Statistics Competition (ASC) was a national statistics poster competition that ran from 2006 to 2016. One of the aims of the ASC was to create connections between academics and teachers. In this paper, we report a study that investigated the experience of the organisers of this competition. We administered a written survey and conducted semistructured interviews with the organisers by a semi-structured protocol, with the aim of exploring the experience of the ASC organisers (the academics) in relation to connecting with teachers. We found geographical, intrinsic, organisational and personnel barriers to continuing connections between academics and teachers. We provide a list of recommendations for those involved in, or planning on starting, a similar competition.</p>