Statistics activities: Learn by doing

Project to Create Statistics Content Modules
Project	StatisticsContent
Design	Objectives  |  Learning Design
Resources	Reading in statistics  |  By type  |  By topic
Content	Learn by doing
Intro Stats course	Syllabus  |  Online course schedule  |  Schedule for in-person meetings  |  Plans for in-person meetings
GSE Stat Methods II	Review notes  |  Topic resources

Hands-on experience accomplished through well-designed real-life activities is critical to effective learning, no less in statistics than, say, brain surgery.

Instructions for completing OLI Statistics Learn by Doing activities using Calc

The Statistics course available through Carnegie Mellon University's Open Learning Initiatives (OLI)} integrates hands-on Learn by Doing and StatTutor activities, offered in three versions: Excel, Minitab, and R, a free software environment for statistical computing and graphics. The pages listed below provide instructions for doing the Excel version of the OLI Statistics Learn by Doing and StatTutor activities using OpenOffice.org Calc.

Exploratory Data Analysis

• One categorical variable
• Histogram
• Boxplot, 1 of 2
• Boxplot2, 2 of 2
• StatTutor: Drinking habits and integrity of college students
  • Conduct Analysis: College drinking (Question 1)
  • Conduct Analysis: College integrity (Question 2)
• Case II - Two-way table
• Case III - Scatterplot
• Linear relationships, calculate correlation
• Linear relationships2, calculate & plot regression line
• StatTutor: Body image and academic performance of college students
  • Conduct Analysis: Relationship of college and high school GPAs (Question 1)
  • Conduct Analysis: Comparison of male and female body image (Question 2)
  • Conduct Analysis: Relationship of seat location and academic performance (Question 3)

Producing Data

• Sampling
• Causation and experiments
• Locating a full-text research report - (note that this is not an OLI exercise, but rather support for a supplemental assignment.)
• StatTutor: Treating Depression: A Randomized Clinical Trial
  • Conduct Analysis: Checking randomization
  • Conduct Analysis: Prevented recurrence of depression (Question 1)
  • Conduct Analysis: Delayed recurrence of depression (Question 2)

Probability

• Relative frequency
• The end of change (Non-OLI collaborative activity)
• Probability simulation - true false test - a collaborative activity to simulate the results of pure guessing
• Normal random variables
• Behavior of sample proportion
• Behavior of sample mean

Inference

• Point estimation - German tank problem - a collaborative activity on estimating the total number of German tanks given a small sample
• Hypothesis testing - unfair deck of cards - a demonstration wherein students intuit and calculate Ho, Ha, p-value, and alpha
• Hypothesis testing of a single mean and/or single proportion - a collaborative activity to practice the steps to be performed in hypothesis testing
• Hypothesis testing of a single mean--hrs/wk watching tv - a collaborative practice activity
• Hypothesis testing of a single mean--verbal and math ability of CS students - independent practice
• StatTutor: Survey of intro stats students (cellphone.xls)
  • Conduct Analysis: Mean SAT verbal score (Question 1)
  • Conduct Analysis: Cellphone ownership (Question 2)
  • Conduct Analysis: How much sleep (Question 3)
• Comparing means for two independent samples--math ability of male and female CS students - a collaborative practice activity
• Comparing means for two independent samples--teacher ratings - independent practice
• Two independent samples
• Matched pairs
• Matched pairs--ADHD treatment - a collaborative practice activity
• Hypothesis testing - case studies using research reports
• Hypothesis testing - exploring research studies
• Two-way tables--drinking and class attendance - a collaborative practice activity
• ANOVA
• One-way ANOVA--music training and spatial temporal reasoning in preschool children - independent practice
• One-way ANOVA--smiles and leniency - independent practice
• StatTutor: Analyzing Data From a Course's Grade Book (gradebook.xls)
  • Conduct Analysis: Extra credit and final score (Question 1)
  • Conduct Analysis: Comparison of midterm scores (Question 2)
  • Conduct Analysis: Class effect (Question 3)
• StatTutor: Risk Factors for Low Birth Weight (low_birth_weight.xls)
  • Conduct Analysis: Smoking during pregnancy and low birth weight
  • Conduct Analysis: Race of mother and low birth weight
  • Conduct Analysis: Low birth weight and age of mother
• Case III - Linear relationship
• StatTutor: Monthly Premiums of Auto Insurance (auto_premiums.xls)
  • Conduct Analysis: Gender and monthly auto premium (Question 1)
  • Conduct Analysis: Driving experience and monthly auto premium (Question 2)
• Multiple regression--predicting achievement index score for elementary schools - an independent practice activity
• Two-way ANOVA--do level of education and gender explain US income?