Navigating numbers – the ONS data education programme

We have developed a data education programme for students aged 16 years and over, in further education or sixth form. Its aim is to make the public more aware of what we do at the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

“Navigating numbers: how data are used to create statistics” includes a series of five classroom toolkits. Each toolkit is centred around an ONS tool or dataset that relates to a part of everyday life.

These toolkits are free for teachers to reuse, subject to the Open Government Licence. Any use should include a reference to the ONS as the source of the information in the resources.

Created with the support of the Association of Colleges (AoC), these toolkits will help students understand how and why we use the public’s data to produce statistics.

AoC is a not-for-profit organisation set up by further education colleges to act as their collective voice.

To get you started, we've created a helpful teachers' guide to Navigating numbers.

Resources

Download the teachers' guide presentation slides

Download the teachers' guide toolkit

This toolkit explores the concept of gender pay gaps, considering how and why they are measured. Students can use the Gender pay gap explorer tool and data from the Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE) dataset. This will allow them to see trends and patterns in the data.

The gender pay gap data toolkit can be used for lessons in:

• maths
• sociology
• geography

Resources

Download the gender pay gap presentation slides

Download the gender pay gap student toolkit

This toolkit looks at how inflation is measured and what the data are used for. Students can use the Shopping prices comparison tool and data from the Consumer Prices Index including owner occupiers’ housing costs (CPIH) dataset. They can use them to explore the implications of inflation for consumers, businesses and policy-makers. The inflation data toolkit can be used for lessons in:

• maths
• sociology
• business

Resources

Download the inflation presentation slides

Download the inflation student toolkit

This toolkit explores the census and its significance in understanding population dynamics. Students can use the Census maps tool, Build a custom area profile tool and access raw data from the census. They can:

• discover how statistical inferences are made about populations
• compare different places
• look at change over time in the same place
• consider the role of census data in decision-making

The census toolkit can be used for lessons in:

• maths
• business
• sociology
• geography

Resources

Download the census presentation slides

Download the census student toolkit

This toolkit investigates the complexities of measuring health and well-being. Students can use the Health index tool and access the raw data that are used to calculate it. This will allow them to analyse and interpret health and well-being trends and patterns within a local area or across different regions.

The health and well-being data toolkit can be used for lessons in:

• geography
• sociology
• business

Resources

Download the health and well-being presentation slides

Download the health and well-being student toolkit

This toolkit explores important economic indicators and trends in the UK economy. Students can use the World trade explorer and access a range of raw data about different economic indicators. These can help them to analyse and interpret trends and patterns within the UK economy. They can also explore the economic relationships between the UK and other countries.

The business, industry and trade data toolkit can be used for lessons in:

• geography
• sociology
• business

Resources

Download the business, industry and trade presentation slides

Download the business, industry and trade student toolkit

We have produced a series of videos to help with learning about data. The videos and web pages answer some of the questions your students might have about what we do at the ONS.

Find out more about who we are and what we do.