Skip to main content
COMMUNITY:
Research Agenda

Better News About Math: A Research Agenda

January 1, 2021 | Media and Technology

Numeracy is not a luxury: numbers constantly factor into our daily lives. Yet adults in the United States have lower numeracy than adults in most other developed nations. While formal statistical training is effective, few adults receive it – and schools are a major contributor to the inequity we see among U.S. adults. That leaves news well-poised as a source of informal learning, given that news is a domain where adults regularly encounter quantitative content. Our transdisciplinary team of journalists and social scientists propose a research agenda for thinking about math and the news. We engage here in a dialogue about two recent news articles, contrasting journalist and researcher perspectives on each. We close by talking about the particular opportunities and challenges that the global COVID-19 pandemic has laid bare for both of our professions.

TEAM MEMBERS

  • REVISE logo
    Author
    Knology
  • John Voiklis
    Author
    Knology
  • Laura Santhanam
    Author
    PBS NewsHour
  • Nsikan Akpan
    Author
    PBS NewsHour
  • Shivani Ishwar
    Author
    Knology
  • Elizabeth Attaway
    Author
    Knology
  • REVISE logo
    Author
    PBS NewsHour
  • Johnny Sq
    Author
    Knology
  • Citation

    DOI : https://doi.org/10.5038/1936-4660.14.1.1377
    Publication Name: Numeracy
    Volume: 14
    Number: 1
    Page Number: Article 4

    Funders

    NSF
    Funding Program: Advancing Informal STEM Learning (AISL)
    Award Number: 1906802
    Resource Type: Research Products | Peer-reviewed article
    Discipline: General STEM | Mathematics | Social science and psychology
    Audience: Administration/Leadership/Policymakers | General Public | Museum/ISE Professionals | Evaluators | Learning Researchers
    Environment Type: Media and Technology | Broadcast Media | Websites, Mobile Apps, and Online Media

    If you would like to edit a resource, please email us to submit your request.