Mathematics provides students the opportunity to evaluate reports based on data when making inferences and justifying conclusions of statistical experiments. In contemporary mathematics instruction, the potential exists for information literacy skills to be integrated with high school statistics and probability standards where students may recognize when arguments based on data are flawed based on randomization and its role in drawing statistical conclusions. Information literacy is a set of skills that enables an individual to recognize when information is needed and to locate, evaluate, and effectively use information. This practice brief focuses on how educators can leverage information literacy skill instruction in the mathematics classroom.

Educators: A goal for mathematics education is the development of quantitatively and analytically literate citizens that engage productively in an information-driven society. This statistical literacy is an essential component of quantitative literacy, defined here as “the ability to understand and critically evaluate statistical results that permeate our daily lives—coupled with the ability to appreciate the contribution that statistical thinking can make in public and private, professional and personal decisions” (Wallman, 1993). The research on the Guidelines for Assessment and Instruction in Statistics Education: A Pre-K–12 Curriculum Framework (American Statistical Association, 2007) which informed the Statistical Education of Teachers (ASA, 2014) and the New Jersey Student Learning Standards for Mathematics, emphasizes that “our lives are governed by numbers” and that “every high school graduate should be able to use sound statistical reasoning to cope with the requirements of citizenship, employment, and family and to be prepared for a healthy, happy, and productive life” (American Statistical Association, 2007).

School Leaders: The ability to think critically and strategically to assess quantitative relationships, to craft solutions to complex problems, and to leverage data in decision-making and in responding to practical questions is vital for academic growth, personal decision making and the functioning of democratic societies.

• Information literacy includes the economic, legal, and social issues surrounding the use of information and the ethical production of information. School library media specialists may, in collaboration with teachers of mathematics, engage learners in interdisciplinary lessons about:
  • legal issues related to the use of information contained in reports that are based on data; and
  • ethical consideration of information contained in reports and how harming the dignity and privacy of others can be avoided.
• The ability to critically evaluate statistical claims related to sampling, appropriate use of statistics, causal claims made, and probabilistic statements are essential statistical literacy skills. Interdisciplinary lessons that situate these skills within broader conceptualizations of quantitative and qualitative research processes can deepen student understanding of both research and the role of researchers.
• Effective information literacy instruction will assist students as they evaluate content generated by artificial intelligence (AI). Verifying factual information, understanding the sources of content, and recognizing the limitations of AI-generated text will inform students’ decision-making as AI becomes more prevalent in society. 

• Students who have the opportunity to critically examine issues become informed citizens in a diverse society. Contexts such as health inequality, correlation between postal codes and academic achievement, and the relationship between lives lost during natural disasters and aid received can present engaging socio-cultural perspectives accessed through the evaluation of reports that are based on data.
• The practice of assigning students to groups randomly has been observed to have many positive effects in the mathematics classroom. Specifically, the decrease of social barriers to interaction and the greater valuation of more diverse ideas are noted.
• Student strengths should be affirmed daily in ways that cultivate positive mathematical identities and support students in developing agency.

• Collaborate with a school library media specialist to adapt high-quality mathematics instructional materials so that information literacy is elevated seamlessly.
• Invite a school library media specialist to instruct students on research practices, protocols, and methods, including ascertaining the credibility of resources from which data in reports may be sourced.

• How can information literacy practices be integrated with the teaching and learning in mathematics?
• What collaborative conversations can teachers and school library media specialists have about information literacy practices in the mathematics classroom?

• Implications and Imperatives for Equity, Opportunity, and Achievement from the IES 2023 Mathematics Summit.
• Mathematics Teaching and Learning Focused on Social Justice from the Increasing Opportunities to Learn and Raising Expectations For All strand of the IES 2023 Mathematics Summit.
• Watson, J. M. (1997). Assessing statistical thinking using the media. The assessment challenge in statistics education, 12, 107-121. Retrieved March 19, 2024.

• American Statistical Association. Statistical Education of Teachers (2014). Retrieved Feb. 27, 2024. 
• American Statistical Association. Guidelines for Assessment and Instruction in Statistics Education (GAISE) Report: A Pre-K–12 Curriculum Framework (2007). Retrieved Feb. 27, 2024. 
• Wallman, K. K. 1993. “Enhancing Statistical Literacy: Enriching Our Society.” Journal of the American Statistical Association 88 (421, March 1): 1–8.

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