Three-quarters of 12th graders attend schools that offer statistics courses, but less than a quarter of students actually take them, according to a recent analysis of national data.
And just 8 percent of high school seniors have taken an Advanced Placement statistics course.
Change the Equation, a nonprofit group that works with the business community to improve science and math learning, looked at data from the 2015 National Assessment of Educational Progress.
The statistics show that low-income students are less likely than their higher-income peers to attend schools that offer statistics courses and to take them when offered. Suburban students are the most likely to attend a high school offering statistics, at 86 percent. About 62 percent of 12th grade students in rural areas and towns attend schools with statistics courses, as do 67 percent of those in cities.
