Accreditation workshop
Robert Platt presented the 2024 accreditation workshop on “Statistician as Expert Witness: Data and the Legal System.” Dr. Platt described the role of an expert witness in general, and ways in which statisticians contribute to legal decision-making. Statisticians have a critical role in many aspects of litigation and criminal law, as data are often used, often by non-statisticians, to justify a position, but lawyers, judges, and juries do not have the expertise to evaluate claims about data. The group discussed the roles experts can play, what qualifies one to be an expert witness, what constitutes good work by an expert, and some pitfalls that must be avoided. The group considered some case studies of good and bad practice, considered some famous cases in which statisticians played roles, and reviewed some video examples of testimony. The audience was engaged and active, and there were some excellent discussions. The audience was diverse, and included early-career teaching stream faculty who were hoping to include the topic in consulting courses, an experienced statistician who wished he had received this introduction when he needed it 30 years ago, and others who thought their careers might lead them into this area. A task ahead of us is to make SSC accreditation better known and recognized as a qualification for a statistician to be an expert witness.
Accreditation invited session
20th anniversary of SSC accreditation: Core principles
The audience included some accredited members and some “accreditation curious.” We were pleased to have Ron Wasserstein, executive director of the ASA, in the audience to learn about current issues with SSC accreditation. This session continued the 2023 meeting theme of promoting SSC accreditation foundational principles. The focus in 2023 was mentoring of early-career Associate Statisticians (A.Stat.) by more experienced Professional Statisticians (P.Stat.), and the take-away was that successful mentoring involves development of a relationship between an A.Stat. and a P.Stat. which is enjoyable and beneficial to both.
Peter MacDonald, P.Stat. (065)—University course requirements for accreditation
Peter MacDonald reviewed the educational requirements for A.Stat. and showed how applicants are asked to fill out a checklist of their courses. These courses are meant to define the skills an accredited statistician should have. Several universities have submitted their course lists for preapproval, and it makes the accreditation committee’s job much easier if a candidate comes from one of those universities. A concern now is that the list of courses was drawn up 20 years ago and represent a statistics education of 30 years ago, before the emergence of data science, so a review of the educational requirements is overdue. There was agreement that principles of study design and quantification of uncertainty in analyses of data were core to a statistician’s toolbox, and audience members were asked to think about this and how the educational requirements should evolve. Another concern for the accreditation committee is applicants for P.Stat. who do not meet the A.Stat. educational requirements or the alternative, that they have made a substantial contribution to statistical methodology. This is particularly troubling if the applicant has already been given the equivalent of P.Stat. in another country and is expecting P.Stat. to be granted automatically for practice in Canada.
Tony Panzarella, P.Stat. (105)—The Statistical Society of Canada’s Code of Ethical Statistical Practice: An effective road map to promoting high professional standards
Tony Panzarella outlined the Code of Ethical Statistical Practice. Few in the audience were familiar with it and all appreciated the opportunity to consider it in detail. There was general agreement that it was well thought out and well stated and all statisticians should be aware of it and follow it. SSC accreditation ethics goes beyond simple judgement about what is “right” and “wrong” to implications that sound application of statistics should reflect a balanced integration of formal statistics knowledge appropriate to the subject matter area to which it is applied.
Milena Kurtinecz, P.Stat. (067)—Accessible variety of professional development
Professional development is an essential requirement for receiving and maintaining P.Stat. accreditation. Milena Kurtinecz outlined the many opportunities available. There are workshops, seminars, conferences that are local, regional, national, or international, some general, some on special topics. There are courses offered by statistical software companies, and in-house training by some employers. Self-directed study also counts. There is an SSC book club that meets monthly and offers lectures and group discussions. Accredited members can log into ssc.ca and find an extensive list of professional development resources. Professional development for SSC accreditation recognizes the importance of maintaining subject-matter expertise in the areas of statistical practice and includes attendance and reading appropriate for those areas.
