Due date: Tuesday, April 26
Instructions
(powerpoint)
What this assignment involves:
- Writing a coherent and interesting analysis (approximately
2,000 words) on a political or social
policy topic
based on sound reasoning from quantitative evidence. Depending on how
much data is in each chart, the paper should include about 6 to 10 tables
and charts, there should be at approximately a full paragraph of text for each
chart and table, an introduction, conclusion and a literature review.
[note: A chart or table with a lot of data would include a 50-state scattergram or (better) bubble chart, a multivariate time series chart, a
table with several policy outcome measures. ]
- Literature review: The paper will incorporate a good review of the
relevant literature. {General newspaper or magazine sources may work
well for the introductory section, but the research component will require a
good summary of the relevant social science research on your topic}.
- Finding statistical data in published government documents and on the
Internet.
- Constructing Excel datasets from variously-formatted data.
- Constructing tables and charts.
- Applying standards for visual display of quantitative data.
- Developing appropriate measures of concepts.
- Assessing bias, reliability and validity in data.
- Appropriate citation of the cited literature and statistical sources.
Possible Topics:
Voter Turnout, Educational Achievement, Crime and\or Punishment, Abortion,
Infant Mortality, Gender Equality Taxes, Status of Children, National
Defense, Global Warming\the environment, Obesity.
Key sources:
Education
NEW DATA;
"America":
education
higher ed
Education Gender (View
Table/Figure)
quick tables
Education General
NCES search
International tests:
PISA
IDE OECD (math science reading) (select OECD or OECD and other nations)
National averages, averages by gender; and separate scores for US race and
ethnicity
PISA 2003 -2006
college graduation rates (tertiary)
OECD Countries, 2006, % of
GDP & $US per student (OECD in Figures 2009)
Educational Expenditure per Student
Top Performing Students
Environment
*new data*
OECD
Renewable energy
see
energy and environment links here
EarthTrends
Searchable database
"EarthTrends is a comprehensive
online database, maintained by the World Resources Institute, that focuses
on the environmental, social, and economic trends that shape our world."
The searchable database allows you to select from a large number of
variables on many topics, countries by category and years. The data are
downloadable as Excel files (before downloading select the "reverse years"
option.)
Global Temperatures (copy and paste text, use annual mean J-D
column)
Data on CO2 concentrations can be obtained from the
Global
Monitoring Division (formerly CMDL) of the National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration.
Crime and Punishment
NEW DATA;
"America" crime
Death Penalty costs
Drug Treatment costs and benefits
SMSHA
STUDY
(readings:
the sentencing
project
prisons and poverty )
Bureau of Justice Statistics
key tables
drug use trends
Substance Abuse and Mental Health
Statistics
OECD drug use
Prison population rate (OECD)
BJS, Lifetime
likelihood of going to prison (.pdf)
*new data*
Obesity
Obesity (CDC)
key data on trends
Obesity
(OECD) (note compare with
Life expectancy) report:
Obesity and the
Economics of Prevention:
Fit not Fat
Overweight or obese females*
Overweight or obese males* (*note: use most recent year)
Earth Trends :
Nutrition: Percentage of population that is undernourished
Nutrition: Calorie supply per capita
(select high income countries, all years, get data, reverse years)
State Data:
State Health Facts
Poverty
Poverty (OECD)
Income inequality
US POVERTY (especially see historical tables)
LIS Poverty
data -- by country (use most recent year for each country)
xls.
Historical Income tables
*new data*
Statistical Abstract TANF enrollment
new data*
Gender
Historical Income tables
*new data*
readings and data:
Institute for Women's Policy
Research
Expectations for Science-Related Careers by Gender
Mean scores and gender differences in PISA 2006
Employment rates: men
Employment rates: women
War
Statistical abstract: Military personnel and expenditures
*new data*
Defense Department’s
Statistical Information Analysis Division
the
Statistical Abstract
(also table 1369: Military Expenditures, 2006, and Manpower, 2009,
by Country
[Excel 124k] |
[PDF 460k])
Brookings data: Iraq War
AFGHANISTAN INDEX
Operation Iraqi Freedom
Operation Enduring
Freedom/Afghanistan
STOP this is old stuff
.
The
PIRLS IDE provides results for the United States and 44 other
jurisdictions [NOTE RANDOM SELECTION OF COUNTRIES] from the
administration of PIRLS in 2006. Results include reading achievement of
fourth-grade students; responses to a student questionnaire about their
background, attitudes, and school experiences; responses to a teacher
questionnaire about instructional practices, resources, and background and
training; and responses to a school questionnaire about school
characteristics and resources.
Women's Representation
Amy Caiazza,
Does Women’s
Representation in Elected Office Lead to Women-Friendly Policy?
Gender Gap Index
ARTICLE
http://www.physorg.com/news131290579.html
Energy and Environment:
Earth
Trends Global warming(use J-D column)
Incarceration War on
Drugs Capital punishment
Prison population rate (OECD)
Crime Rates (BJS data
online)
Poverty
Luxembourg
Income Survey
National Debt (US Budget
Historical Tables)
Education Gender (View
Table/Figure)
quick tables
Education General NCES search
Obesity
War
Brookings
Date Resources by topic:
Major Components
Annotated Bibliography
Descriptive Data. The first part of the data profile assignment will
focus on descriptive statistics. This will involve presenting and
interpreting statistical data on your topic based on international comparisons,
US trends, demographic comparisons, and other comparisons.
Research component: For the second half of the data profile assignment, the
paper will address a more specific research question, such as:
What effect do state laws (handgun laws, death penalty) -- or incarceration
rates -- have on state crime rates?
What effect does having a Republican mayor have on city crime rates?
What effect do state parental notification laws have on abortion rates?
What effect do state voter registration laws have on voter turnout?
What effect do class size, school size, education spending and other policies
have on student educational achievement?
What effect does women's representation in state legislatures have on state
policies?
What do stat Medicaid programs have on infant mortality rates?
