Abstract
Democracy thrives on arguments based on evidence. Vivid democracies need well-informed citizens who can understand important social issues, discuss them and contribute to public decision-making. It has never been more important than today to be able to judge the credibility of data and its sources. This talks in its first part highlights critical data literacy and awareness of data quality as crucial components for democratic societies and sketches guidelines about teaching critical data awareness. In the second part we take quality of democracy as a topic for students’ data investigations in the context of existential crisis such as pandemics and military conflicts. We report about implementation and evaluation of a course that aims to equip students of social science and mathematics with skills how to think clearly with data.
Bio
Joachim Engel, I am professor emeritus of mathematics and mathematics education. I received a diploma in mathematics from the University of Bonn and a Ph.D. in applied mathematics from the University of Southern California. Early on, I was fascinated by the mathematics of uncertainty. Over the years my focus shifted from orthodox theory of probability and statistics towards bridging human understanding and sense making in situations of risk and uncertainty. Educating the public to better understand statistics about society is a burning issue where statistics education can make an important contribution to society. My research interests focus around statistical literacy, mathematical modeling and applying statistics in social sciences. I have been coordinator of the ProCivicStat project that aims to empower people to engage in informed decision making and participate in evidence based public policy. After my formal retirement in 2020 I continue to teach some courses and do editorial work, with a focus on enhancing the public’s understanding of statistics in the areas of health, environment and democratic values.
