The Intersection of Statistical Literacy, Reasoning, and Thinking

Statistical literacy, reasoning, and thinking are three cognitive processes recognized as learning objectives for teaching statistics. Some researchers acknowledge that these processes share certain elements; however, it is not clear just what those shared elements are. In this article, we present the results of a study that allowed us to identify indicators associated with four big statistical ideas at the intersection of the three processes: data, representation, variability, and sampling. According to the literature, each idea is treated differently depending on the process. These four big ideas can be reference points around which we can move from one process to another, depending on how they are handled in teaching. These findings contribute to our understanding of the similarities and differences among concepts fundamental to achieving these three learning objectives.