Create two charts and write paper

QUANTITATIVE LITERACY / UPDATED INSTRUCTIONS AND WEB LINKS

This assignment focuses on teaching quantitative literacy using information available in the United States census.  You will create a minimum of two charts/bar graphs in Excel or Microsoft Word showing data and write a 1.5-2 page paper interpreting similarities and differences between two geographic locations.

How to complete this assignment:

1. Open the 2010 census data, by clicking on the following link: 2010Census Viewer (Links to an external site.)

2.    Using US census data available, select 2 Pennsylvania counties and find data for 2-3 of the following (This data can be found by clicking on the drop down menus that are available if you scroll down the page to “Overview Statistics and Quick Facts”:

• Population according to racial-ethnic composition
• Population according to age distribution
• Population according to educational level
• Population according to family size
• Population according to unemployment rate
• Population according to poverty levels
• Population according to marital status

Look critically at the data. Look for similarities and differences between the counties.

3.    Create a bar charts/graph in Excel/or Microsoft Word to illustrate the data you have collected. Be sure to appropriately label each chart and make the charts meaningful by grouping related concepts (i.e. educational level, income, and employment or family size, number of children, and poverty level).

4.    Next, based on the data you have captured and put into charts, (and after examining the data) develop 2 questions about these two counties.

For example:

• Why are the educational levels higher in county X and in county Y?
• What has contributed to higher levels of unemployment in county Y than county X?

5.    Finally, write a 1.5-2 page paper (in APA style) in which you do the following:

• Describe the 2 counties (Be sure to support any facts you share with source material).
• Using the charts you have created (be sure to include them in this paper!), explain what these charts show and what the similarities and differences are. Explain the answers to your questions.
• Finally, what dont you know about these counties that you wish you knew? What questions do you still have about these two counties?
• Be sure to provide a cover sheet and a reference page in APA style.