MATH 1231 Introductory Statistics Online
Course Policies: Fall 2006, CRN 85569

Link to WebCT Vista

TEXT: Intro Stats, 2nd edition, custom CSU version, by R. D. DeVeaux, Velleman, & Bock bundled with MathXL
TECHNOLOGY:  ActivStats by P. F. Velleman (inside the textbook, not bought separately)
INSTRUCTOR:  Kim Robinson, Ph.D.

OFFICE HOURS: TBA
OFFICE PHONE:  (678) 466-4438
E-MAIL: kimrobinson@clayton.edu

DEPARTMENT APPROVAL IS REQUIRED TO TAKE THIS COURSE ONLINE.  The approval form is available at  https://secure.clayton.edu/MATH1231/ .  IF YOU ARE APPROVED AND YOU DECIDE TO TAKE THIS COURSE, YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR SETTING UP YOUR CCSU EMAIL IMMEDIATELY.  I will send at least 2 emails to the class list before the drop/add period ends.  You MUST read these emails (and do some work) BEFORE YOU ATTEND THE ORIENTATION. 

ABOUT THE COURSE: Math 1101, Math 1111, or a placement score that allows you to begin your college math courses beyond the introductory level IS A PREREQUISITE!    Statistics is often referred to as the "science of data analysis." The purpose of this course is for you to understand statistical analysis by working with data.  Statistical thinking involves understanding variation and uncertainty, and their impact on decision-making.  You will apply the scientific method to issues and problems.  Students who have completed this course have said the thinking required is similar to that in "critical thinking" or "logic." One goal is to improve your ability to read, understand, and critique statistical work published by others (newspapers, magazines, professional journals). Another major goal is for you to learn how statistics is used in the process of asking a research question, gathering the data to address this question(s), analyze the data, and make conclusions/state new questions. You will learn this by doing each of these parts separately and tying them all together. Throughout the semester, concepts will be stressed.  This course addresses the following outcomes:

·        Communication:  Students will gain a knowledge base of basic statistics in analytical, graphical and numerical form.  Students will communicate their ideas in classroom discussions, and in written form on quizzes, projects, and tests.

·        Critical Thinking:  Students will apply their knowledge to solve problems presented on quizzes, discussions, projects, homework, and examinations.  Students will analyze the question, determine appropriate techniques, and draw conclusions.  Students will provide evidence of a logical answer.

MATERIALS REQUIRED FOR THE COURSE:

1. The textbook.
2. Inside the front cover of a NEW textbook, you'll have a copy of MathXL (click here to purchase MathXL directly from the publisher).  This package is required and will be used for all homework assignments.
3. Inside the back cover of ALL texts is a CD-Rom that contains two different programs. The first,  ActivStats, is a tutorial for the course content.  ActivStats emphasizes conceptual understanding of statistical ideas.  You must have the CD in your computer to access the ActivStats icons.  The second component of the CD is a statistical software program called Data Desk.  We will rarely compute statistics without the assistance Data Desk. YOU ARE REQUIRED TO USE DATA DESK AND NOT USE EXCEL.  Excel is NOT a statistical analysis package and there are differences between what it does and what we need done.  Assignments submitted using Excel will be returned as unacceptable (and if they are not re-submitted by the deadline, they will be considered late).
4. The materials that drive the course are the textbook and the bundled CD but supporting course materials are available in Vista.
5. In addition, you will be responsible for sending and receiving email from your CCSU account (I will NOT maintain a separate list of non-CCSU email addresses), accessing websites, downloading files from my site and possibly other sites, submitting papers using Word combined with Data Desk via email, and participating in a Vista Bulletin Board. 

NEW UNIVERSITY POLICIES:  See the current Academic Catalog for details on:

STUDENT RESPONSIBILITIES have been established for all CCSU students.  It is your responsibility to read and adhere to all stated policies stated.

MANDATORY CLASS MEETINGS for CRN 85569 -- TBA

GRADING:             

HOMEWORK: Approximately every other week, a homework assignment will be completed using MathXL. Each assignment will be worth 20 points. You will be able to drop one homework grade, but not the first one.  If you fail to do the first homework assignment, you will receive zeros for all remaining homework assignments.

WEEKLY ONLINE ASSIGNMENTS:  Almost every week, you will have an online assignment.  These will rotate, every other week, between a group discussion held on the WebCT Bulletin Board or an online quiz.  If you do not do any consecutive online assignments or 2 out of 3 online assignments, you will receive zeros for ALL subsequent quizzes and discussions.

ONLINE DISCUSSIONS:  About every other week, you will participate in GROUP discussions about class material.  These discussions require that you post comments on different days.  In other words, you must read the assignment and any comments that others may have posted, think about what's there, post a comment yourself, go back later and read any new postings and then compose another thoughtful posting yourself.  This cannot be done in one day.  

ONLINE QUIZZES: Approximately every other week, you will take an online quiz.  These assignments will alternate weeks with the online discussions.  Quizzes will cover all material since the previous quiz. 

All electronic correspondence must follow Etiquette Rules for Communication.

EXAMS:  All 3 tests are administered on campus.  The final exam is cumulative from the beginning of the semester.  Each are worth 100 points.  They will both be a mix of multiple choice questions and open-ended questions.  A Practice Midterm and a Practice Final are available in Vista.  You will have access to these materials after you enroll in the course.

MIDTERM ADVISORY GRADE:  The mid-term grade in this course will be issued by October 10, and will reflect approximately 40% of the entire course grade.   Based on this grade, students may choose to withdraw from the course and receive a grade of "W."  Students pursuing this option must fill out an official withdrawal form, available online from the Office of the Registrar, before the midterm date of October 13.

ACCESS TO WEBCT VISTA: Click on the link here or go to Internet Explorer and enter http://vista.gsu.edu:8000/webct/entryPageIns.dowebct  as the address. You may want to add this address to your favorites. 

NATIONAL EDUCATION STANDARDS: The content of this course syllabus correlates to education standards established by national and state education governing agencies, accrediting agencies and learned society/ professional education associations.  Please refer to the course correlation matrices located at the following web site:  http://a-s.clayton.edu/teachered/Standards%20and%20Outcomes.htm

DISABILITY SERVICES:  Students with disabilities who require reasonable accommodations need to register with Disability Services (DS) in order to obtain their accommodations. You can contact them at 678-466-5445 or disabilityservices@clayton.edu. If you are already registered with DS and are seeking accommodations for this course, please make an appointment with your instructor to discuss your specific accommodation needs for this course and give the instructor your accommodations letter.

LEARNING SUPPORT RESOURCES:  Your instructor holds regular office hours and is willing to help.  The Center for Academic Assistance (CAA) is located on the lower level of the Library, and the CAA home page is http://adminservices.clayton.edu/caa/ .  The CAA sponsors a Peer Tutoring Program.  Please see the CAA website for more information and to schedule an appointment with a Peer Tutor.  Additional group instruction is available from the members of the CAA staff who have advanced mathematics training.  There is also a Student Solutions Manual available in the CAA; purchase of the Student Solutions Manual is optional.  There are materials and computer software which may be of help.  If you need help on background arithmetic or algebra, there are also videotapes which may be of help. There are numerous books on algebra in the CSU library for further reference and study.

DEPARTMENT APPROVAL FOR MATH 1231 ONLINE: If you are still interested in taking this course online, you must apply for department approval.  Click here to access the application form.  If you apply early in registration period, allow 3-4 business days for a reply.  If you apply close the beginning of the semester (or during drop/add), I will respond much quicker.

You will NOT have to memorize formulas for the midterm or final exam.  Most calculations will be performed by Data Desk.  However, you will be required to do the following calculations by hand (formulas will be provided): midterm - z-score; final exam - confidence intervals for one-sample means and one-sample proportions; test statistics for one-sample means and one-sample proportions.