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A lesson in statistics
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Posted on Apr 27 2009
It is clear that Galvin Guerrero needs a lesson in statistics. In a recent article in the Saipan Tribune, Mr. Guerrero violated the basic statistic rule of “association is not equal to causation” by saying that “just by reviewing the data, ‘abuses’ by principals and administrators were quite evident.” The rule of association not being equal to causation means that upon looking at a set of data, you cannot simply jump to a conclusion saying that “this set of data is obviously caused by so and so.” I looked at the suspension data, and the first thing that came into my mind is that, 1) minors are more unruly today than in recent years and 2) that the PSS staff is doing a wonderful job in taking a no-tolerance attitude toward trouble makers. But wait, I don’t have any evidence to support this conclusion, so I won’t be going around telling newspapers that the number of suspensions is obviously caused by what I think is the cause. You see, there’s this thing called “proof,” and you need this thing called “proof” to “prove” to other people that what you’re saying is correct.
[B]Jessie Savellano Jr.[/B] [I]Dandan, Saipan[/I]
