Grading the Curve

In order to make informed decisions, students must know how to properly analyze and interpret data. This is one of the main learning goals in my physics classes. In order to help prepare students for data analysis in a physics setting, we must first practice these skills in a context that is both tangible and meaningful. In this ETP, I plan on using house energy usage data from smart meters to build an introductory unit where students develop the graphical analysis skills that they will need throughout our course and throughout their lives. Specifically, students will be able to find trends in graphs through statistical noise and apply concepts of slopes, maxima, minima, and y-intercepts to provide insights on graphs from real-world data.