The Australian Capital Territory Branch of the Statistical Society will be holding its next meeting on Tuesday 24th March 6:00pm (AEDT) in person and online via Zoom. For those attending in person, there will be the opportunity to meet for dinner afterwards in Canberra City.
Date: Tuesday 24th March 2026
Time: 6:00pm (AEDT) followed by dinner (details below)
Venue: Allan Barton Forum, Level 2, ANU College of Business & Economics, Building 26C, The Australian National University (ANU Building 26C)
Online by Zoom: https://anu.zoom.us/j/89348508529?pwd=562qFygvdYGFN0qaMZYvOMah4yXRQb.1
NB: registration not required for this event
Title: Missed Adventures into Missing Data - The Extended Edition
Missing assessment grade data is an accepted reality for most high school teachers across Australia. Ad-hoc imputation methods are often used to impute missing data without any consideration for why the data are missing in the first place due to minimal guidance and policy in this area. This research essay reframes mark estimation as a missing data problem that requires understanding of the three missing data mechanisms - MCAR, MAR and NMAR. Through a simulation study of n = 1000 simulated teacher markbooks, various imputation methods were compared for performance and ease of use. The study found that without truly knowing the missingness mechanism, a definitive imputation procedure could not be recommended but offer a few suggested approaches that could be adopted across school systems. (Supervisor: Dr Bronwyn Loong).
Presenter: Zoe Coffa
Zoe Coffa is a statistician and former mathematics educator whose work focuses on applying statistical modelling and data analysis to complex real-world problems. She holds a Master of Statistics from The Australian National University and a Bachelor of Mathematics Education from University of Wollongong, where she is also currently completing a Master of Education specialising in Educational Leadership. She is also accredited as a Graduate Statistician by the Statistical Society of Australia. Her professional and research interests include statistical modelling, the appropriate and responsible use of data, and the application of quantitative methods to inform practice and policy, as well as promoting accessible and inclusive approaches to data and statistical understanding so people can better navigate an increasingly data-rich world.
Dinner: After the talk, there will be a dinner at 7.15pm at Madam Lu Restaurant, 20 West Row, Canberra.
If you plan to attend the dinner, please RSVP by 5:00 pm on Monday 23 March by entering your details in the SSA ACT Branch dinner attendance sheet, or by contacting Warren at wjmstats@outlook.com or 0407 916 868. Please treat your RSVP as a firm commitment rather than an expression of interest.
If you need to withdraw after the deadline, please remove your name from the attendance sheet and notify Warren by phone or text on 0407 916 868. Please note that last-minute requests to attend during the event cannot be accommodated, so be sure to RSVP through the attendance sheet in advance.
NOTE: SSA ACT branch are offering discounts to SSA early career and student members who attend dinner! For this meeting, dinners will be a fixed charge of $15 for student members and $25 for early career members.
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