This article presents an extensive collection of references on the teaching of probability and statistics. The bibliography includes articles published in statistical and subject-matter journals and in conferences.
This article presents an extensive collection of references on the teaching of probability and statistics. The bibliography includes articles published in statistical and subject-matter journals and in conferences.
In recent years the focus of research in survey sampling has changed to include a number of nontraditional topics such as sampling errors. In addition, the availability of data from large-scale sample surveys, along with computers and software to analyze the data, have changed the tools needed by survey sampling statisticians. It has also resulted in a diverse group of secondary data users who wish to learn how to analyze data from a complex survey. Thus it is time to reassess what we should be teaching students about survey sampling. This article brings together a panel of experts on survey sampling and teaching to discuss their views on what should be taught in survey sampling classes and how it should be taught.
This article discusses different ways in which middle school students can be taught the concept of the mean, or the average.
The purpose of this paper is to describe and analyze the first steps of a pair of 7th-grade students working through an especially designed curriculum on Exploratory Data Analysis (EDA) in a technological environment. The verbal abilities of these students allowed us to follow, at a very fine level of detail, the ways in which they begin to make sense of data, data representations, and the "culture" of data handling and analysis. We describe in detail the process of learning skills, procedures and concepts, as well as the process of adopting and exercising the habits and points of view which are common among experts. We concentrate on the issue of the development of a global view of data and its representations on the basis of students' previous knowledge and different kinds of local observations. In the light of the analysis, we propose a description of what it may mean to learn EDA, and draw educational and curricular implications.
This study provides an investigation of relationships among different types of errors occurring during probability problem-solving. Fifty non-mathematically sophisticated graduate student subjects enrolled in an introductory probability and statistics course were asked to solve a set of probability problems, and their attempts at solution were analyzed for presence and type of errors. The errors contained within these solutions were categorized according to a coding scheme which identifies 110 specific kinds of errors in four categories: text comprehension errors, conceptual errors, procedural errors, and arithmetic/computation errors. Relationships among types of errors included in each category were investigated using hierarchical clustering via additive trees. Implications of these relationships for the teaching and learning of probability problem-solving are discussed.
Laboratory, workshop, and cooperative learning approaches are some pedagogical methods that raise student interest and involvement in their course work. The present article describes an experiment in applying such methods to teaching a general statistics course to non-mathematics majors, and its statistical assessment. A voluntary, one-hour weekly lab was offered to the general statistics course students. It was developed using computers, e-mail, and Minitab, in conjunction with learning groups, and with the utilization of a Lab Assistant. The results of such experience was then assessed through several instruments, including a student survey that collected their reactions, comments, and suggestions for improvements. Then, a preliminary statistical analysis of some of the course data collected, comparing grade results of students who attended the workshop with those who did not, is presented. Finally, some general conclusions regarding this workshop's effectiveness, its recruitment and retention efforts and directions for future work, are also discussed.
During the Spring of 1995 a statistical experiment to assess the effects of two methods of teaching introduction to Computer programming concepts was developed. The experiment implemented two teaching approaches: traditional lecture vs. laboratory (tehcnology). Several performance measures were defined and then collected throughout the course, to assess student learning. Among them are: results from common tests, quizzes, and homework/projects. In this article we assess the effects of these two teaching approaches on students' learning, retention, and success rates. We analyze statistically the data collected, testing several hypotheses based on our teaching experience. Finally, we give several conclusions drawn on the analyses results.
Discrete event simulation has been nurtured by statistical analysis for many years. The converse is not true. However, recent advances in computer technology and software development have made PC's running specialized simulation languages readily available. This paper discusses how discrete event simulation, implemented via specialized simulation languages (e.g., GPSS) can become a useful teaching resource and motivate statistics students. In addition, simulation helps to present more effectively interdisciplinary case studies, to increase group learning and to relieve students and instructors from statistical drudgery. Examples of teaching with such GPSS simulation approach are developed.
In the information age, middle school students must be intelligent consumers of information. To instill critical thinking with respect to statistical data, the interpretation and creation of graphs are essential. Although vast amounts of information can be gleaned from traditional text sources, the World Wide Web (WWW) offers information that is updated far more frequently. Because of the motivational aspects and expedient nature of using data from the Web, this article focuses on its use; however, each of the activities can be adapted for use with traditional, text-based media.
In this article, we describe a hands-on, in-class demonstration using M & M's candy to illustrate the concept of the sampling distribution of the mean. With the class serving as the population, each student receives a small package of M & M's. The instructor draws samples from the population and constructs an actual sampling distribution. Students in two statistics courses received either the M & M demonstration or a comparable demonstration using a textbook example. They took a quiz on their knowledge and rated their attitudes toward the demonstration. Results indicated that students who participated in the M & M demonstration answered more questions correctly on the quiz, believed they had learned more, enjoyed class more, and had fewer negative feelings toward the demonstration than those who received the textbook example demonstration.