Teaching Statistics is pleased to announce that the article entitled “Using interpolation in grade 5 to solve a mystery” by Jane Watson and Noleine Fitzallen has been awarded the C. Oswald George prize for 2025.
This article presents a forward-thinking approach to integrating statistical concepts into primary education through a hands-on STEM activity. It is an outstanding example of how statistical thinking can be meaningfully and creatively introduced into the primary classroom. The learning experience involves a rich and engaging topic based on the viscosity of hair conditioner, which introduces 10–11-year-olds to important concepts of statistical inquiry, and statistical reasoning, showing that interpolation is not merely a computational tool, but a gateway to problem-solving, curiosity, and evidence-based thinking.
Please see the Announcement in Teaching Statistics for further information.
HISTORY OF THE PRIZE
Dr. C. Oswald George was an eminent government statistician in the UK; one of the founders of the UK’s Institute of Statisticians who served as Chairman and President. He donated a sum of money for the ‘best paper, especially submitted by younger authors, in the field of applied statistics’. The prize was subsequently attached to the Institute’s own professional exams. After the formation of Teaching Statistics in 1979, the Institute made the prize money available for the best article in Teaching Statistics, and this prize has continued to be made available following the merger of the Institute with the Royal Statistical Society. Dr. C. Oswald George died on 6 January 1974, but we are pleased to be able to honour his legacy each year through the award of this prize to the ‘best’ article in Teaching Statistics.