Available online
Description
David Cameron has asked the Office for National Statistics to investigate the prospects for collecting meaningful wellbeing data. But for now, when it comes to putting a number on national progress..., there is still only one game in town: GDP, or gross domestic product. But how useful is it? We reveal the results of "The Other Census", our survey of the Today and More or Less audiences. What have we found out about - well, you? How well are British schoolchildren doing compared to their international peer group? It's an important question. And there's a way of answering it, using a set of tests called "PISA", the programme for international student assessment. But there are doubts about the validity of the PISA method, and the way the numbers are used by politicians. More or Less investigates. Listener Richard Anderson wrote to us with the following question: "I was at dinner with my wife and three friends. We discovered that all five of our fathers were called John Charles. What's the chance of that?" Matt Parker tries to figure out the answer.
David Cameron has asked the Office for National Statistics to investigate the prospects for collecting meaningful wellbeing data. But for now, when it comes to putting a number on national progress..., there is still only one game in town: GDP, or gross domestic product. But how useful is it? We reveal the results of "The Other Census", our survey of the Today and More or Less audiences. What have we found out about - well, you? How well are British schoolchildren doing compared to their international peer group? It's an important question. And there's a way of answering it, using a set of tests called "PISA", the programme for international student assessment. But there are doubts about the validity of the PISA method, and the way the numbers are used by politicians. More or Less investigates. Listener Richard Anderson wrote to us with the following question: "I was at dinner with my wife and three friends. We discovered that all five of our fathers were called John Charles. What's the chance of that?" Matt Parker tries to figure out the answer.
| Series: | More or less; Series 16 |
|---|---|
| Episode | 4 |
| First transmission date: | 2011-04-22 |
| Original broadcast channel: | BBC Radio 4 |
| Published: | 2011 |
| Rights Statement: | Rights owned or controlled by The Open University |
| Restrictions on use: | This material can be used in accordance with The Open University conditions of use. A link to the conditions can be found at the bottom of all OU Digital Archive web pages. |
| Duration: | 00:28:00 |
| + Show more... | |
| Producer: | Richard, Knight |
| Presenter: | Tim Harford |
| Contributors: | Joseph (Joseph W.) Grice; Tim Harford; Svend Kreiner; Matt Parker; Andreas Schleicher; Alan Smithers; Martin Weale |
| Publisher: | BBC Open University |
| Subject terms: | Economics; Mathematics; Statistics |
| Production number: | PEH02011741/AAA |
| Available to public: | no |
