Seminar focus: defend the investigation under questioning
Ākonga present a final argument, then respond to questions about sampling, representation, measures, and limitations. They finish by revising one claim and explaining which challenge improved their reasoning.
- Seminar move: Short oral defence, peer questions, and written reconsideration
- Seminar outcome: A defended statistical argument and evidence-based reflection
🎯 Learning Intentions
- Present a complete statistical investigation and defend key choices with evidence
- Use peer questions to test the strength of a conclusion
- Reflect on the PPDAC cycle and identify a worthwhile next investigation
🗂️ Evidence Selection (8 mins)
Groups lay out every graph, table and figure they have produced and choose the two that carry the conclusion. Everything else goes in an appendix. (Presentation delivery is covered in Lesson 9 — this step is about which evidence earns a slide.)
- Which evidence slide best proves your final conclusion?
- What feedback question will improve your next investigation cycle?
1. Evidence Conference (10 mins)
In pairs, students point to one piece of evidence for each PPDAC stage. A missing stage is repaired before presenting; this is a final workshop, not a memory test.
2. Presentations (25 mins)
Students present their findings to the class, a small group, or another authentic audience.
Audience Responsibility: Ask one question about the data or method. (e.g., "Why did you choose a bar graph?")
3. Self-Assessment (10 mins)
Rate your own investigation using the rubric:
- Problem: Is the question clear?
- Plan: Was the method sound?
- Data: Is it precise?
- Analysis: Are graphs accurate?
- Conclusion: Is the answer supported by evidence?
4. Final Whakataukī Reflection (5 mins)
Recall: "He aha te mea nui o te ao? He tangata, he tangata, he tangata."
Discuss: How did your investigation help you understand people better?
(e.g., "I learned that most people in our class worry about climate change, which connects us.")
📋 Teacher Planning Snapshot
Ngā Whāinga Ako — Learning Intentions
The class completes and critiques a full PPDAC cycle, judging the method rather than the answer.
Ngā Paearu Angitū — Success Criteria
- ✅ I can follow one question through the whole PPDAC cycle.
- ✅ I can critique an investigation's method and say what I would change.
Differentiation & Inclusion
Scaffold support: A critique frame aimed at the method. Extension: write the protocol you would hand next year's class.
ELL / ESOL: Support the critique with the stems used across the unit.
Inclusion: Judging your own method harshly is the assessed skill; an honest uncertain conclusion outranks a confident wrong one.
Mātauranga Māori lens: One turn of the PPDAC cycle is what generational monitoring does across years. Ākonga have now completed one turn of it.
Prior knowledge: Students should have basic familiarity with data displays (bar graphs, dot plots). No prior statistical investigation experience required — the PPDAC inquiry cycle provides accessible scaffolding for first-time investigators.
Curriculum alignment
This lesson develops the Level 4 statistical-investigation objective through a real stage of the PPDAC cycle. See the unit curriculum companion for the exact source statement and lesson-to-evidence map.