Oil Prices Data Analysis Problem Solving

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Course: MAT210 – Data-Driven Decision Making
Assignment 3: Data Analysis and Visualization
Due: Week 9
Points: 150
Skill(s) Being Assessed: Problem Solving – Data Analysis (Quantitative Communication)
Criteria for Success: In this assignment, you will:
Identify the purpose of the article and what problem it is addressing/trying to solve.
Explain what categories of descriptive statistics are used in the study and how they are used to communicate the information found in the study and/or any conclusions/solutions
posed.
Make connections between the information presented/the problem and its larger impact to the world/your major/current job/future career goal.
Create an accurate visual for the data that helps communicate a story/solution to the audience.
Communicate recommended solutions using appropriate language and visuals for the purpose and audience.
What to Submit / Deliverables: The assignment includes an application to a professional conference in two parts:
1. A Conference Application Template [DOCX] with questions to complete.
2. A PowerPoint presentation.
What is the value of doing this assignment? This assignment gives you the opportunity to apply the statistical concepts and methods you have learned throughout the course to a current
real world problem. You will continue to practice your problem solving skill through analysis of data—examining how others use descriptive statistics, and creating your own
mathematical visuals in order to analyze and draw conclusions based on this data.
You will also practice taking initiative in putting together a conference application on the problem identified and sharing your findings with a specific audience. This will additionally help
you practice communicating effectively—a skill you can use in your personal and professional lives every day.
As you work to complete this assignment, you will continue to practice results-driven strategies. You will have the opportunity to engage in a statistical process while working towards a
specific goal, use measurement to report results, and consider the quality and integrity of data and the ways it can be used to effectively communicate solutions.
Your goal for this assignment is to: Apply the statistical concepts and methods you have learned to a current real-world problem by using your problem solving, initiative, and results
driven skills to complete an application and presentation for a professional conference that incorporates the data analysis, conclusions, and recommendations you have reached.
What you need to complete this assignment:
Newspaper article that uses statistical data.
Conference Application Template [DOCX]
PowerPoint or other presentation tool (check with your instructor if you have questions).
Scenario:You are submitting an application to a professional conference on data-driven decision making. The application has two parts:
1. Providing information to the conference organizers.
2. Creating a presentation for the conference audience.
Steps to complete: In Week 9, complete and submit your assignment in BlackBoard using the following steps:
STEP 1: Visit one of the following newspapers’ websites: USA Today, New York Times, Wall Street Journal, or Washington Post. Select an article that uses statistical data related to a
current event, your major, your current field, or your future career goal. The chosen article must have been published after the start of this term.
Examples may include:
Elections/exit polls
Award shows (Oscars/Emmys/Grammys)
Sports
Economy/job market
Gender equality
Human rights issues
The article should use one or more of the following categories of descriptive statistics:
Measures of Frequency – Counting Rules, Percent, Frequency, Frequency Distributions
Measures of Central Tendency – Mean, Median, Mode
Measures of Dispersion or Variation – Range, Variance, Standard Deviation
Measures of Position – Percentile, Quartiles
Note: Once you navigate to a publication’s website, it may be easiest to do a search with a statistics-related word (ex: standard deviation).
The publications listed are suggestions. If you find an article from another source OR if you are uncertain the article contains all of the information necessary to complete the assignment,
please let your instructor know. Your instructor can help you determine whether it is a good fit for this assignment. If you need additional help locating an article, contact a Strayer
librarian for more assistance. Remember to review the examples in the Week 6 Discussion.
STEP 2: Using the data from your article, use the template included in this assignment to answer the following questions asked by the conference organizers. Remember to consider their
expertise as mathematical professionals and use appropriate language to communicate your findings:
Highlight the purpose of the article and the problem it is trying to solve. Think summary, in bullet form.
Explain how the article uses descriptive statistics to communicate information found in the study and/or any conclusions/solutions.
Explain how the article applies to the real world, your major, your current job, or your future career goal.
Recommend solutions using the mathematical and visual data provided.
STEP 3: An additional part of the application process requires you to create a presentation based on the information provided in the template.
Based on your topic, choose an audience (outside of the field of mathematics) that could benefit from the information you will present. For example, this could be your local city
council member, staff or administrators of a school, or employees at a company.
Analyze the data in the article to determine the best visual (graph or chart) to tell the story to your audience.
In PowerPoint or other presentation tool, create one visualization of the data appropriate for the conference audience. NOTE: If the article already contains a visual, you must create
a different type of graph or chart.
Explain how the audience can benefit from the data.
Recommend your identified solutions using language appropriate for the audience.
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STEP 4: In the notes section of your final slide, answer the following questions:
Explain why you chose the audience in Part B.
Describe how the language, purpose, and visuals used in the PowerPoint are appropriate for the audience.
STEP 5: This course requires the use of Strayer Writing Standards. For assistance and information, please refer to the Strayer Writing Standards link in the left-hand menu of your course.
Check with your professor for any additional instructions.
STEP 6: Submit your assignment in two parts:
The conference application template.
Your presentation.
Note: See an example Conference Application Template Example [DOCX] and Education and Life Expectancy [PPTX] example to see the length and content expected for this
assignment.
Grading for this assignment will be based on the grading rubric found here.
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Conference Application: Data-Driven Decision Making
Name:
Title of Presentation: Education & Life Expectancy
Title of Article (include publication and publishing date): Education May Be Key for a
Longer Life. New York Times. February 20, 2020.
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/02/20/well/live/education-may-be-key-for-a-longerlife.html?searchResultPosition=41
Part A:
●
Provide a summary of the article you have chosen by identifying the purpose and what
real-world problem it is addressing/trying to solve. (Bulleted format is acceptable).
○ The purpose of this study was to examine causes of premature death and
whether race/ethnicity or education level were associated with premature
mortality.
○ Researchers (Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults study
(CARDIA)) followed 5,114 study participants (approximately equal white and
black Americans) from 1985 through 2015. The average age of the participants
was 25. During these 30 years, 395 participants died.
○ The death rate of black participants was 70% higher than the death rate among
white participants.
○ When researchers controlled for factors that affect length of life, such as age,
sex, and socioeconomic status, the life expectancy of black participants was
almost equal to the life expectancy of white participants who had similar levels of
education.
○ In both black participants and white participants, the rate of those who died
during the course of the study was higher in those with less education. 13.5% of
white participants with a high school education or less died during the course of
the study, as compared with 13.2% of black participants. 4.3% of white
participants with a college degree died during the course of the study, as
compared with 5.9% of black participants.
●
Explain what category(s) of descriptive statistics is used in the study and how it is used
to communicate the information found in the study and/or any conclusions/solutions
posed (1-2 paragraphs).
○ This study uses measures of frequency, including percent, frequency, and
frequency distribution. These statistics are used to show that there is a disparity
in life expectancy between black Americans and white Americans. However,
differences in education levels contribute to the vast majority in this disparity. The
study concludes that those with a higher level of education have a higher life
expectancy.
Conference Application: Data-Driven Decision Making
○
The conclusions from this study may be useful in addressing disparities in life
expectancy. Because correlation does not equal causation, we cannot assume
that improving educational opportunities for black Americans will increase their
average life expectancy. However, it’s worth noting that racial disparities in life
expectancy are drastically decreased when other variables are controlled, while
educational disparities in life expectancy stay constant. Further study should be
pursued to determine whether racial disparities in life expectancy may be
reduced by promoting educational equity.
●
Explain how the article applies to the real world, your major, your current job, or your
future career goal (1-2 paragraphs).
○ This article provides useful information to me as I pursue a degree in education
policy. The data highlights the importance of promoting higher education, and
furthermore, making college equally-accessible for all students. In my career, I
may be able to study the specific obstacles to pursuing higher education among
various populations and determine policies that can be created to address these
obstacles.
●
What solutions do you recommend based on analysis of data and conclusions drawn?
○ Based on the analysis from this article, systems and policies should be
developed to promote higher education and improve accessibility of continuing
education, especially to people of color. Additionally, further studies should be
completed to determine if improving educational equity improves life expectancy
among black Americans.
○ Looking at populations outside of white/black Americans, and looking at
combinations of factors (age, gender, socioeconomic status) would also be
beneficial in making comparisons and seeing patterns among different groups.
Part B:
An additional part of the application process requires you to create a presentation based on the
information provided above. To do so, choose an audience (outside of the field of mathematics)
that could benefit from the information you will present:
1. Create one visualization of the data appropriate for the conference audience. (1 slide). In
the notes section of this slide, provide a brief description of what the visual is showing.
NOTE: If the article already contains a visual, you must create a different type of graph
or chart.
2. Explain how the audience can benefit from the data. (1 slide)
3. Recommend your identified solutions using language appropriate for the audience.
In the notes section of your final slide, answer the following questions in 1-2 paragraphs:
Conference Application: Data-Driven Decision Making
1. Explain why you chose the audience you identified above.
2. Describe how the language, purpose, and visuals used in the presentation are
appropriate for the audience.