User:ASnieckus/Statistics/Introductory Statistics Syllabus

Teacher
Alison Snieckus, Ed.D. [mailto:alison.snieckus@gmail.com email]

Course Description
Introductory Statistics introduces students to the major concepts, logic, and issues in statistical reasoning and to the tools involved in collecting, analyzing and drawing conclusions from data. Four broad conceptual themes are explored:


 * Exploring Data: Observing patterns and departures from patterns
 * Planning a Study: Deciding what and how to measure
 * Anticipating Patterns: Producing models using probability and simulation
 * Statistical Inference: Confirming models

Online course
The main content of the course is delivered online via the Open Learning Initiatives (OLI) Statistics course (created by Carnegie Mellon University). We will use the Probability and Statistics version. The free and open version of Probability and Statistics is available for preview and independent learning. Introductory Statistics students will register for the course by entering a provided admit code.

Statistical Software
OLI's Probability and Statistics course includes many hands-on learning activities, termed "Learn by Doing". To complete these activities students need access to one of the following software tools:
 * Microsoft Excel 2007 or 2003, spreadsheet software available for purchase
 * OpenOffice.org Calc, open source spreadsheet software
 * R, an open source statistical computing software program
 * Minitab, a statistical software program available for purchase
 * Texas Instruments calculator which includes the statistical functions (e.g., TI-83 or TI-84)

Note that the Probability and Statistics course is designed to use Microsoft Excel, R, Minitab, or TI calculator, however all required activities can be completed using OpenOffice.org Calc, version 3.2. Instructions are provided for completing activities, and additional support offered as needed, for students choosing to use OpenOffice.org Calc.

Although students may choose to do the learning activities using a statistical software program or a TI calculator, use of spreadsheet software is recommended, either Calc or Excel, because it offers students the opportunity to practice working in a spreadsheet. Knowing how to use a spreadsheet is a broad-based and transferable skill, as compared with using the statistical functions on a calculator, or knowing how to use a statistical software program.

Online course classroom
Course assignments and discussion forums are provided in an online classroom. More than likely you are reading this on the Canvas Intro Stats course page. Students access the online classroom using a secure login. Although the pages and structure of the course are publicly available, student data remains private.

Notebook/Journal
Each student should keep a notebook/journal for the course. As it implies, the notebook/journal has a dual role.
 * The notebook is a place to take notes on the online course content (recommended for content that is new as a way to help you remember it).
 * The journal is a place for writing about interesting uses of statistics and any questions, ideas (e.g., for a stats project), or opinions. Each week students will be asked to offer examples of the uses of statistics for discussion at in-person sessions.

In-person meetings
Interested students will meet in person once/week for 1 1/2 hours to review the assigned content for the week, as needed, and to extend the concepts learned via group activities, projects, and discussion of statistics in current events.

Projects
Students are encouraged to complete two projects:


 * perform exploratory data analysis of an available dataset


 * design and implement a study to test a hypothesis

Customizing Course for Individual Students
Students are encouraged to carve out or add on to the course as needed. Some options might be: online coursework only, weeks 1-11 (Descriptive Statistics) only, weeks 12-21 (Probability) only, adding in topics to cover AP Statistics content specifications. Students are encouraged to discuss possible adaptations with the course teacher.

Time Commitment
Including online coursework and 1 1/2 hour weekly in-person session:


 * Point estimate: 6 hrs/wk


 * 95% confidence interval: 5-7 hrs/wk

Caveat: No actual data contributed to the creation of these statistics. These statistics are pure guess work and should be interpreted with extreme caution. Also note that these statistics represent time commitment...on average. Actual weekly time invested in learning statistics will vary from one week to another AND for different individuals. However, the teacher sees these estimates as a goal and will be flexible in all aspects of the course in order to accommodate student needs.

Evaluation
The flexibility described above extends to the area of assessment and evaluation. For all participating students, the teacher will provide a written evaluation of the student's progress at about week 15 and at the end of the course. Students can request an evaluation of proficiency: on a 4-point scale: very proficient, moderately proficient, adequately proficient and not proficient.

Students are encouraged to demonstrate their knowledge of concepts learned using various formats, as suited to their needs. For example, if a student does poorly on a quiz, he/she may work to learn the material more thoroughly and then may choose to retake the quiz or demonstrate his/her learning in another way. Evaluation is based on level of proficiency gained, not on the steps performed along the way.

Cost
Access to Online Course Materials: $25 USD payable to Carnegie Mellon University upon login to course

Teacher Fee: $300 USD for full-year course; cost negotiable for other course adaptations

Course Schedule
The full course is scheduled to run for 2 semesters, about 32 weeks to complete online coursework and 5 additional weeks to design and run a research study.


 * The schedule for online course work for 2009-2010 provides an example of the course organization.