CORRELATES OF EXAM PERFORMANCE IN AN INTRODUCTORY STATISTICS COURSE: BASIC MATH SKILLS ALONG WITH SELF-REPORTED PSYCHOLOGICAL/BEHAVIORAL AND DEMOGRAPHIC VARIABLES

2021 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
pp. 3
Author(s):  
LAURA A. RABIN ◽  
ANJALI KRISHNAN ◽  
ROSE BERGDOLL ◽  
JOSHUA FOGEL
Keyword(s):  
Demographic Variables ◽  
Exam Performance ◽  
Introductory Statistics ◽  
Math Skills ◽  
Course Performance ◽  
Math Assessment ◽  
White Ethnicity ◽  
Mathematics Skills ◽  
Statistics Course ◽  
Undergraduate Psychology

This study investigated whether basic mathematics skills are associated with undergraduate psychology statistics course performance while simultaneously considering self-reported psychological/behavioral and demographic variables. Participants (n = 460) completed a Math Assessment for College Students (MACS), which included questions ranging from calculating percentages to graphical interpretation. The researchers used a discriminant correspondence analysis to reveal differences in course performance evaluated as the average of three exam grades. For the variation in the average exam scores accounted for by our model, the MACS scores provided the largest contribution. Other variables associated with better exam grades included white ethnicity, non-transfer status, lower year in school, and low procrastination. The researchers discuss the implications for helping instructors identify areas of basic mathematical deficiency and strength.

scholarly journals A MEASURE OF BASIC MATH SKILLS FOR USE WITH UNDERGRADUATE STATISTICS STUDENTS: THE MACS

2018 ◽  
Vol 17 (2) ◽  
pp. 179-195
Author(s):  
LAURA RABIN ◽  
LAUREN FINK ◽  
ANJALI KRISHNAN ◽  
JOSHUA FOGEL ◽  
LORIN BERMAN ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Statistics Education ◽  
Multiple Correspondence Analysis ◽  
Course Completion ◽  
Math Skills ◽  
Math Assessment ◽  
Standardized Measures ◽  
Research Journal ◽  
Mathematics Skills ◽  
Statistics Course ◽  
Standardized Measure

Mathematical competency is related to performance in introductory statistics courses and may be a roadblock to successful course completion. We developed a new measure (Math Assessment for College Students, MACS) of basic mathematics skills that improves upon measures previously used in undergraduate settings. The MACS is freely available and contains items not typically included on standardized measures of mathematical ability. We administered the 44-item MACS to 414 undergraduate psychology statistics students, and used a multiple correspondence analysis to eliminate 14 items, resulting in a 30-item measure with strong psychometric properties. MACS scores showed statistically significant moderate correlations with a commonly used standardized measure of basic mathematics skills and with overall statistics course grade. We discuss the utility of the MACS and how the MACS may help course instructors identify areas of mathematical deficiency that require remediation. First published November 2018 at Statistics Education Research Journal Archives

Statistical literacy and the news media

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew Gelman ◽  
Deborah Nolan
Keyword(s):  
News Media ◽  
News Article ◽  
Introductory Statistics ◽  
News Story ◽  
Statistical Literacy ◽  
Process Information ◽  
Statistics Course ◽  
Reported Study ◽  
Original Report

An important theme in an introductory statistics course is the connection between statistics and the outside world. Described in this chapter are assignments that can be useful in getting students to learn how to gather and process information presented in the news and scientific reports. These assignments seem to work well only when students have direction about how to do this kind of research. Three versions of the assignment are provided. In all three, students read a news story and the original report on which the article was based, and they complete a worksheet with guidelines for summarizing the reported study. In some versions students are supplied the news story and report and in another each student finds a news article and tracks down the original report on her own. Included here are our guidelines, example instructional packets, and the process we use to organize each type of assignment.

INTRODUCTORY STATISTICS COURSE TERTIARY STUDENTS’ UNDERSTANDING OF P-VALUES

2014 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 53-65 ◽  
Author(s):  
ROBYN REABURN
Keyword(s):  
Null Hypothesis ◽  
Probabilistic Reasoning ◽  
Statistics Education ◽  
Introductory Statistics ◽  
P Values ◽  
Testing Procedures ◽  
Research Journal ◽  
Null Hypothesis Testing ◽  
Statistics Course ◽  
Teaching Programs

This study aimed to gain knowledge of students’ beliefs and difficulties in understanding p-values, and to use this knowledge to develop improved teaching programs. This study took place over four consecutive teaching semesters of a one-semester tertiary statistics unit. The study was cyclical, in that the results of each semester were used to inform the instructional design for the following semester. Over the semesters, the following instructional techniques were introduced: computer simulation, the introduction of hypothetical probabilistic reasoning using a familiar context, and the use of alternative representations. The students were also encouraged to write about their work. As the interventions progressed, a higher proportion of students successfully defined and used p-values in Null Hypothesis Testing procedures. First published May 2014 at Statistics Education Research Journal Archives

AN EXPLORATION OF STUDENT ATTITUDES AND SATISFACTION IN A GAISE-INFLUENCED INTRODUCTORY STATISTICS COURSE

2017 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
pp. 487-510
Author(s):  
WARREN PAUL
Keyword(s):  
Student Attitudes ◽  
Structural Equation ◽  
Statistics Education ◽  
Student Feedback ◽  
Introductory Statistics ◽  
Group Discussions ◽  
Research Journal ◽  
Statistics Course ◽  
Attitudes Toward Statistics ◽  
Students Attitudes

We used the Survey of Attitudes Toward Statistics to (1) evaluate using pre-semester data the Students’ Attitudes Toward Statistics Model (SATS-M), and (2) test the effect on attitudes of an introductory statistics course redesigned according to the Guidelines for Assessment and Instruction in Statistics Education (GAISE) by examining the change in attitudes over the semester and, using supplementary data from an annual Student Feedback Survey, testing for a change in overall satisfaction following implementation of the redesigned course. We took an exploratory rather than confirmatory approach in both parts of this study using Bayesian networks and structural equation modelling. These results were triangulated with analysis of focus group discussions and the annual Student Feedback Survey. First published November 2017 at Statistics Education Research Journal Archives

Designing an Online Introductory Statistics Course

2007 ◽  
pp. 93-108
Author(s):  
Charles M. Harris ◽  
James G. Mazoué ◽  
Hasan Hamdan ◽  
Arlene R. Casiple
Keyword(s):  
Introductory Statistics ◽  
Statistics Course
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