Understanding Statistics Is Necessary to Be an Effective Citizen
Nagel Marriot is right when arguing that people need to think statistically. From what I can gather from this text, the author defines statistical thinking as thinking involving a broader perspective. Moreover, he continues and simplifies this thinking by defining it based on three leading groups of scholars. The first one is H.G. Wells of the 20th century, who represents statistical thinking in terms of averages, maximum, and minimum (Marriott, 2014). Wilks et al. are the second group of scholars who define statistical thinking as thinking in terms of expectations, probability, variance, risk, distribution, and correlation. Finally, the third group of scholars (21st-century scholars) holds that statistical thinking is thinking in terms of expectations, probability, data, variance, risks, visualization, distribution, correlation, and cognition (Marriott, 2014).
When critically examining statistical thinking from the explanation by Marriot and the different definitions he has given, one cannot help to conclude that statistical thinking is the same as critical thinking. Sean and Sean (2012) have defined critical thinking as an evaluative way of thinking. The Cambridge English dictionary defines the term evaluate as calculating the quality, importance, amount, or value of something (Cambridge University Press., n.d). Hence, critical thinking requires calculation, which makes it similar to statistical thinking as defined by the three groups of scholars above. In other words, since critical thinking involves data, expectations, risks, benefits, and variance, it is evident that it is the same thing as statistical thinking. I agree that it is a necessary way of thinking for influential citizens. Statistical thinking will benefit people in making excellent decisions, deciding with precision, reducing errors, and avoiding unnecessary risks.
The only area of disagreement with this article is when it concludes that people are not intuitive statisticians. I believe several people think statistically and have made it their way of thinking. Hence, it is good to conclude that there are a few intuitive statisticians, and it is essential that many people should think statistically.
References
Cambridge University Press. (n.d.). Evaluate. In Cambridge Dictionary. Retrieved 5th May 2022 from https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/evaluate
Marriott, N. (2014). The future of statistical thinking. Significance, 11(5), 78-80. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1740-9713.2014.00787.x
Sean A. Mckitrick, & Sean M. Barnes. (2012). Assessment of Critical Thinking: An Evolutionary Approach. Journal of Assessment and Institutional Effectiveness, 2(1), 1–29. https://doi.org/10.5325/jasseinsteffe.2.1.0001
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Question 
As Marriott (2014) reviews the development of statistical thinking over the last century, he provides an interesting quotation from the 1950 address given by S.S. Wilks to the 110th Annual Meeting of the American Statistical Association, in which Wilks states, “Statistical thinking will one day be as necessary for efficient citizenship as the ability to read and write” (p. 79).
Understanding Statistics Is Necessary to Be an Effective Citizen
Review the article, The Future of Statistical Thinking. Take a position. Is it true today that statistics are necessary in modern society?
First, title your post either “Understanding Statistics Is Necessary to Be an Effective Citizen” or “Understanding Statistics Is NOT Necessary to Be an Effective Citizen.”
For your initial post, address the following:
Make your case by persuasively supporting your position. Include at least one recent (within the past five years) scholarly source to support your position.
Relate one of these programmatic course themes to your position about whether statistics are indispensable in modern society. You may want to review the Programmatic Themes document.
Social justice
Career connections
In your responses to your peers, consider how well they justified their positions, making use of available sources. Consider the following questions in your response posts:
Did they support their position convincingly using scholarly sources?
Which of their points makes the most sense to you, even if you made a case for the opposing viewpoint?
Post an article, video, or visual to reinforce a peer’s idea or challenge them to see their point from a different perspective.
To complete this assignment, review the Discussion Rubric. You will also need:
Norms of Practice for Online Discussion
Ethical Usage Practices
Marriott, N. (2014). The future of statistical thinking. Significance, 11(5), 78-80. Royal Statistical Society. doi:10.1111/j.1740-9713.2014.00787.x