US Natural Gas Consumption vs US Secondary School Enrollment

US Natural Gas Consumption and US Secondary School Enrollment correlate at r = +0.42 over 35 years (1971–2022), p = 0.012. With the time trend removed, r = -0.67. Direction flips without the trend.

Verdict: Direction flips without the trend. The raw correlation is 0.42, but once each series' time trend is removed it becomes -0.67. The year-to-year movements run the opposite way to the long-run trends, so the headline number is misleading.

Pearson r: +0.42
p-value: 0.012
Years compared (n): 35 (1971–2022)
95% confidence interval: 0.10 to 0.66
Correlation with the time trend removed: -0.67

Sources

US Natural Gas Consumption (TWh): Our World in Data. US Natural Gas Consumption (Our World in Data: Gas).
US Secondary School Enrollment (% gross): World Bank. US Secondary School Enrollment (World Bank indicator SE.SEC.ENRR).

Related pairs

Atmospheric Methane (global) vs US Natural Gas Consumption (r = +0.98)
US Natural Gas Consumption vs US Federal Debt Outstanding (r = +0.94)
US Natural Gas Consumption vs US Wind Power Generation (r = +0.93)
US Natural Gas Consumption vs US R&D Expenditure (r = +0.93)
US Natural Gas Consumption vs US Renewable Energy Share (r = +0.92)
US Natural Gas Consumption vs US GDP (current US$) (r = +0.92)

Correlation does not imply causation. How the verdict is worked out.