Teaching Statistics is a statistics and data science education journal for all who teach or develop teaching to build statistical and data thinking and skills, within and across any discipline and at any educational level. We invite accessible articles which reflect the practice and knowledge of the statistical and data sciences, and which contribute to good practice in the teaching, educational research and development of this universally important discipline.

C. Oswald George Prize for 2023

The article entitled “Bare bones, or a rich feast? Taking care with context in a data rich world” by Sue Finch and Ian Gordon has been awarded the C. Oswald George prize for 2023.

The C. Oswald George prize is awarded for the best paper published in Teaching Statistics in the previous year.

Dr C. Oswald George was an eminent government statistician in the UK; one of the founders of the UK’s Institute of Statisticians who served as Chairman and President. He donated a sum of money for the “best paper, especially submitted by younger authors, in the field of applied statistics”. The prize was subsequently attached to the Institute’s own professional exams. After the formation of Teaching Statistics in 1979, the Institute made the prize money available for the best article in Teaching Statistics, and this prize has continued to be made available following the merger of the Institute with the Royal Statistical Society. Dr C. Oswald George died on 6 January 1974, but we are pleased to be able to honour his legacy each year through the award of this prize to the “best” article in Teaching Statistics.

Peter Holmes Prize for 2023

The article entitled “How learners produce data from text in classifying clickbait” by Nicholas J. Horton, Jie Chao, Phebe Palmer and Willam Finzer has been awarded the Peter Holmes prize for 2023.

Each year, the Peter Holmes prize is awarded for the paper in Teaching Statistics which best demonstrates excellence in motivating practical classroom activity.

The aim of this prize is to highlight excellence in motivating practical classroom activity. It is a fitting tribute to Peter Holmes who was a pioneer, leader, developer, evaluator and tireless advocate over many decades for the teaching of statistical practice and thinking across school levels and disciplines. He also cogently argued for these at foundational and introductory levels post-school. His advocacy of data investigations in UK school curricula in the 1970’s became the Plan, Collect, Process, Discuss (PCPD) description of the statistical data investigation process whose well-established role in statistical education pedagogy and practice is now being matched by similar advocacy in data science. Peter was Director of the Schools Council Project on Statistics Education at the University of Sheffield from 1975 to 1980. In 1978 the Teaching Statistics Trust was established, with Peter one of the first trustees, and the first editor of Teaching Statistics established by the Trust. Peter became the inaugural Director of the Centre for Statistical Education set up in 1983 jointly by University of Sheffield and Sheffield Hallam University, co-chaired by Vic Barnett and Warren Gilchrist. In 1995 when this became the RSSCSE (Royal Statistical Society Centre for Statistical Education) and moved first to Nottingham University and then, in 1999, to Nottingham Trent University, Peter continued his work with the Centre, contributing to resources, reports and dedication to every aspect of good practice in teaching statistics. He was truly inspirational in everything he did.