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tarting next fall, Dordt College will offer a major and minor in actuarial science and a minor in applied statistics. Actuarial jobs rank high on most “Top Professions” lists. Positive hiring outlook, good pay, job security, and relatively low stress are some of the reasons. It is an interdisciplinary field that studies mathematical and statistical modeling of financial situations, specifically risk management. Actuaries have worked mainly in the insurance and pension management fields, but today they are being used as consultants for a variety of financial risk management areas. “It gives students who are interested in mathematics and business another excellent career choice to consider,” says Karoline Bootsma (’01), a fellow in the Society of Actuaries who works for Midland National Life Insurance Company in Sioux Falls, S.D. The minor in applied statistics is compatible with any major.
“One outcome of the information age is that statistical reasoning is used by almost all professions to evaluate evidence and make decisions based on data,” says Dr. Nathan Tintle, professor of statistics. “The applied statistics minor will give Dordt students a leg up on their peers in being able to critically evaluate and produce statistical arguments.”
Gary De Young, Professor of Mathematics
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DOUG BURG
new options for math lovers S
Because introductory statistics is one of the most widely taken college courses, Dr. nathan Tintle hopes to dramatically change the way the course is taught in order to improve the critical thinking abilities of college graduates.
tintle is proJect leader for new stats curriculum D
ordt College has been awarded a $180,000 grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) for work on a project that could revolutionize the way statistics is taught across the country. Dordt College Statistics Professor Nathan Tintle is the leader on the project, coordinating a seven-member team of statisticians from Hope College, California Polytechnic State University, and Mount Holyoke College. The goal is to publish a book that will change the content and teaching methods for introductory statistics courses. “Dordt will be one of the first places in the world to pilot this very student-focused, learningfocused curriculum,” he said.
“Traditional statistics courses can be technical to the point where students miss the big picture,” Tintle says. “Understanding the logic involved in drawing conclusions from data, and the limitations of those conclusions, is a critically relevant skill in an increasingly data-driven society.” He says students will be well-served by
“The panel feels the ultimate impact of this proposal could bring about a transformation of the teaching of undergraduate statistics.”
In its review of the project, —NSF reviewer a NSF panel said that a strength of the proposal is that “students will benefit from the a new approach: “We feel it is critical to experience of working with technology dramatically change the way the course and real data.” All reviewers on the is taught in order to significantly impact panel gave the proposal the highest the critical thinking abilities of college possible rating, calling it “innovative and graduates,” Tintle said. transformative.” The team will be piloting and evaluating Tintle is excited about working with new teaching methods and will use their the seven-person team, which includes findings to write a textbook. Wiley, a Professor George Cobb, whom Tintle major higher education publisher in the describes as a national visionary in field, has already signed a contract to statistics education. publish the textbook.