The Curtis Jacobs Memorial Prize For
Outstanding Statistics Project
2007-2008

==> Deadline is May 18, 2008 <==

General Information

Background: The Curtis Jacobs Memorial Prize was established in 1991 to honor the memory of a former statistician of the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Mr. Jacobs served as the chief statistician on many major Federal economic statistics programs, including the Consumer Price Index, which measures the rate of inflation in the American economy. The innovations he introduced are good examples of the practical uses of statistics and mathematics in improving the collection of data needed to form public policy.

Purpose: The purpose of the Curtis Jacobs Award program is to provide encouragement for middle school and high school students to gain an understanding of the design of statistical studies (preferably surveys) and their uses. To appreciate the strengths and weaknesses of statistics reported in the press and elsewhere, it is important to have a basic understanding of how such studies are conducted and how results are produced.

Eligibility: Students must attend a high school or middle school in the Washington, D.C. area. In addition, the students must have a teacher or an advisor who will cover material on statistics during the 2007Ð2008 academic year.

Rules: Students may work individually or in teams of up to four students. A five to ten page typewritten report must be submitted. Subject matter is the choice of the participants. The students must collect original data. If survey respondents are younger than 18 years old, then informed consent of the parent/guardian is needed. A copy of the data and questionnaire (or data collection form) must be enclosed with the project report. Entries become the property of the sponsors and cannot be returned.

Types of Projects: The project should involve the design of a statistical study (preferably a survey) as a way of gathering information for making decisions, as a way to make comparisons among groups, or as a way of collecting data for analyzing trends over time. Two examples of data that students might collect are expenses associated with automobiles and money earned in part-time jobs held by classmates.

Steps: The steps involved in a typical project will include those found in many surveys or other statistical studies: define the objectives of the survey and the population of interest; determine an appropriate method of random sample selection and data collection; develop a questionnaire or data collection instrument; select a random sample and collect data; process completed questionnaires or data collection forms; analyze data and interpret results; and finally write a report.

Judging: Each entry will be judged according to the following criteria: creativity in the choice of topic and objectives; understanding of the steps needed to conduct a statistical analysis and how well those steps are executed; definition of the population; utilization of an appropriate sample selection methodology; thoughtfulness of the data collection (i.e., survey questions); analysis of the data and interpretation of study results; and the overall quality of the written report. Judges will be statisticians in the Washington Statistical Society (WSS). Their decisions are final.

Prize:A middle and high school award will be given. The two winning teams will each receive a prize of $100. The team members and a teacher or advisor who supervised the project will receive complimentary invitations to the Washington Statistical Society's annual dinner where the prizes will be awarded.

The winning middle school and high school teachers will be invited to ASAÕs Meeting Within a Meeting (MWM) with airfare, housing and registration awarded. The meeting is planned for August 2008 in Denver, CO. The teachers will also receive a plaque and the winning schools will receive a one year free school membership to the American Statistical Association (ASA).

Submitting a Project: The deadline for entry is May 18, 2008. To compete for the award, submit a copy of the entry form (available as html and pdf) and a five to ten page typewritten report describing the project to:

Tom Krenzke
Curtis Jacobs Entry
Westat
1650 Research Blvd
Rockville, MD 20850
E-mail: tomkrenzke@westat.com

Resources

• A source of information on surveys is the series of pamphlets: What is a Survey?, How to Plan a Survey, How to Collect Survey Data, and Judging the Quality of a Survey published by the American Statistical Association (ASA).

• A good reference book is Exploring Surveys and Information from Samples published by Dale Seymore Publications.

• Another source is the pamphlet Surveys and You published by the Council of American Survey Research Organizations.

• Web sites that can help you:
  American Statistical Association (ASA) – http://www.amstat.org/
  ASA Poster and Project Competitions – http://www.amstat.org/education/poster1.html
  Washington Statistical Society – http://www.scs.gmu.edu/~wss/ (this web site)

More Information

For more information on the Curtis Jacobs Award, teachers may contact Tom Krenzke at (301) 251-4203. Washington area statisticians are available to visit interested classes to discuss types of projects and survey sampling.