The eighth lecture in the Teaching Statistics Trust Lecture series is being hosted by the Royal Statistical Society Merseyside at the University of Liverpool. Attendance can be on campus or via a livestream.
In addition to the Teaching Statistics Trust Lecture 2025/26 by Prof. Rachel Hilliam on A Data Literate Society Without the Fear Factor, there will also be a talk by Dr Bryony Parsons on Establishing Statistics Support at the University of Liverpool.
Please see Full Event Information for more details. Abstracts for the talks are available under the Speakers tab.
Please see below for details about the Teaching Statistics Trust Lecture 2025/26 by Prof. Rachel Hilliam on A Data Literate Society Without the Fear Factor, and also a talk by Dr Bryony Parsons on Establishing Statistics Support at the University of Liverpool.
4.00 - 4.05 Welcome/Chair's introduction
4.05 - 4.40 Dr. Bryony Parsons (University of Liverpool) - Establishing Statistics Support at the University of Liverpool
4.40 - 4.45 Refreshment break
4.45 - 5.45 (TST Lecture 2025/26) Prof. Rachel Hilliam (The Open University) - A Data Literate Society Without the Fear Factor
5.45 - 6pm Discussion and close
The event will take place on-campus at the University of Liverpool on Friday 4th September from 4pm in Seminar Room 3 of the Management School (building 427 in squares F2, F3: https://www.liverpool.ac.uk/files/docs/maps/liverpool-university-campus-map.pdf).
The event will also be available to watch live when the event starts on the Merseyside Local Group YouTube channel homepage: https://www.youtube.com/@RSSMerseyside.
Access to the event event is free and open to all, including students and non-university members.
Prof. Rachel Hilliam (Head of School of Mathematics and Statistics, Open University) - A Data Literate Society Without the Fear Factor
Data is everywhere and for everyone, but are we equipping our young people with the skills they need to extract meaning from vast datasets? Whilst data drives everything from the world’s economy, climate modelling, transport planning, predicting disease outbreaks through to individuals using fitness apps, watching recommendations from streaming services and GPS navigation, we still live in a society where there is poor statistical understanding amongst the public. Perhaps more concerning is the anxiety that many people exhibit when encountering statistics. Is our current school curriculum providing students with the correct skills to turn this around?
In 2024 two reports were produced setting out recommendations for the statistics curriculum in schools. The report from the Royal Statistical Society, “Key recommendations for the statistics curriculum in the UK”
(https://rss.org.uk/RSS/media/File-library/Policy/2024/Recommendations-for-statistics-curriculum-in-the-UK-full-paper-final.pdf), suggested teaching mathematics and statistics as separate disciplines at secondary school level or putting a greater emphasis on the problem-solving cycle in the current mathematics GCSE.
The Royal Society report, “A new approach to mathematical and data education” (https://royalsociety.org/-/media/policy/projects/maths-futures/mathematical-and-data-education-policy-report.pdf), recommended a mathematical and data education framework with a general literacy strand based on developing the existing Core Mathematics qualifications. Both of these reports emphasize the need to embed data literacy skills throughout many school subjects and the need for long-term investment in professional development for teachers. Whilst the aspirations in these reports equate to a marathon and not a sprint, there is plenty that we
can all do to prepare for the race ahead.
In this talk we will explore some aspects of statistical anxiety and how we can combat this in our teaching, statistical communication and outreach. I will highlight how statistics is used daily and in many school subjects without students realising and we will consider our role in shaping a future curriculum and what this could look like.
Dr. Bryony Parsons (Learning Developer, University of Liverpool) - Establishing Statistics Support at the University of Liverpool
Demand for statistics support in higher education continues to grow across disciplines. This presentation describes the development of statistics support at the University of Liverpool, from its origins within the Library's academic skills programme in 2018 to the creation of a dedicated service supporting students and staff through workshops, online resources, drop-ins, and one-to-one appointments.
Central to this development has been collaboration with academic staff across the University, the establishment of a network of statistics educators, and the launch of Stats@Liverpool, a near-peer support scheme delivered by postgraduate tutors. Since 2020, the service has supported over 870 students, with consistently high satisfaction rates and strong engagement with its online resources.
The talk will discuss the successes and challenges of building a sustainable statistics support service, including changing patterns of student engagement. It will also present findings from recent research into students' preferences for AI versus human support, highlighting opportunities and challenges for future statistics education and support provision
Gareth Liu-Evans, gareth.liu-evans@liverpool.ac.uk