1. Quantitative Inquiry, Reasoning, and Knowledge (QuIRK) at Carleton College Nathan D. Grawe With support from the US Department of Education’s Fund for the Improvement of Post-Secondary Education and the National Science Foundation.

2. What is QR? “…sophisticated reasoning with elementary mathematics more than elementary reasoning with sophisticated mathematics.” Lynn Steen Lynn Steen Achieving Quantitative Literacy

3. 1) QR requires a basic skill set 2) QR demands context 3) QR involves communication 4) QR is a habit of mind “a predisposition to look at the work through mathematical eyes” NCED

4. “…numeracy is not something mastered in a single course….Thus quantitative material needs to permeate the curriculum, not only in the sciences but also in the social sciences and, in appropriate cases, in the humanities, so that students have opportunities to practice their skills and see how useful they can be in understanding a wide range of problems.”“…numeracy is not something mastered in a single course….Thus quantitative material needs to permeate the curriculum, not only in the sciences but also in the social sciences and, in appropriate cases, in the humanities, so that students have opportunities to practice their skills and see how useful they can be in understanding a wide range of problems.” -Derek Bok (2006) “…authentic and enduring learning…can rarely succeed one course at a time.”“…authentic and enduring learning…can rarely succeed one course at a time.” -Lee Shulman (1997) -Lee Shulman (1997)

6. “New Diabetes Drug Poses Major Risks, Panel Says” Washington Post 10/21/05 The lead: “A diabetes medicine…sharply increases the risk of heart problems, strokes, and death.”

7. The Challenge of Interdisciplinary Initiatives: Part 1

8. The Challenge of Interdisciplinary Initiatives: Part 2

9. QR and Argument: A Rhetorical Hook for Buy-In “Deploying numbers skillfully is as important to communication as deploying verbs.” “Deploying numbers skillfully is as important to communication as deploying verbs.” -Max Frankel, The New York Times Magazine “Numbers [are] the principal language of public argument.”“Numbers [are] the principal language of public argument.” -BBC Program More or Less

10. The Importance of the Periphery “Even for works that are not inherently quantitative, one or two numeric facts can help convey the importance or context of your topic.” Jane Miller, Jane Miller, The Chicago Guide to Writing About Numbers

11. What do the numbers show? What do the numbers show? How representative is that? How representative is that? Compared to what? Compared to what? Are the results those of a single study or a literature? Are the results those of a single study or a literature? Who’s measured in the sample? Who’s measured in the sample? Neil Lutsky

14. Teaching Precision in Language “The downtown areas of large cities are often home to copious franchises.” “Consumption of green products that claim to be more environmentally benign has steadily increased in recent years.”

15. Teaching Precision in Language “Nonparental child-care is on the rise as more and more mothers choose to work….” “Americans have not been sacrificing more than the few casualties of our military and the monetary price that war costs.”

16. Teaching Precision in Language Developing a new drug “takes an average of 8 years for testing and costs $802 million for research.” “As of the end of 2005, the three major airline alliances combined to fly 60.8% of all passengers.” “Over five decades …, there have been 12 parliamentary elections….Turnout is often greater than 60%.”

17. Side Benefit: Encourages Formal Statistics Study Carleton statistics enrollments have increased over course of QuIRK activity.