Alabama Social Studies SS24.CWI.3
Standard Cluster
Explain how public opinion polling is implemented, and describe how polling methods can produce intentional and unintentional bias and flawed samplings. 3a Interpret statistics included in current news stores related to political, social, and economic issues.
2024 Alabama Course of Study: Social Studies
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Standards in This Cluster
SS24.CWI.3 is a cluster heading. These are the individual standards under it.
Teacher's field guide
What This Cluster Means
What Students Need to Do
- Students describe how pollsters choose people to ask, collect answers, and report percentages. They read poll figures in current news. They explain how question wording or the choice of people asked can skew a result.
What Mastery Looks Like
- Given a news poll, a student can explain what its percentage means and who was surveyed. They can spot a loaded question or an unrepresentative group and say how either might affect the result.
Common Misconceptions
- Students may think 1,000 volunteers represent everyone just because the number is large. They may assume every skewed result was rigged on purpose. Some read a poll percentage as a fact about the whole population, rather than an estimate.
How to Assess It
- Exit ticket: A website asks 100 visitors about a tax increase, and 60 say yes. Can a headline claim that 60% of voters support it? Explain why or why not.
Lesson moves
Ways to Teach It
Ask front-row students whether school should start at 9, then ask the whole class anonymously. Compare the yes percentages.
Show 'Should we waste money on longer lunches?' and 'Should lunch be ten minutes longer?' Ask students which wording could skew answers.
Give pairs three sample cards: randomly chosen voters, a candidate's email list, and mall shoppers. Have them pick the best election sample.
Print a current news poll with its methods. Students circle the percentage and sample size, then check whether the headline overstates the result.
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Related Standards
- SS24.CWI.11
Identify and describe strategies that facilitate public discussion on current events.
- SS24.USG.9
Explain the role of the media in the political process, including how they shape public opinion.
- SS24.USG.9a
Analyze how public opinion is measured through polling.
- SS24.2.3
Explain the voting process.
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