IMPORTANT Your Grade Will Be Determined by Your Performance Inthreerequiredassessment

ST 311_601Course Informationpage 1

January 4, 2017

ST 311_601 Spring 2017

IMPORTANT!!Your grade will be determined by your performance inthreerequiredassessment activities:

1). Homeworkthat can be accessed at

2).Mastery Pointsthat can be earned at ourcourse content, multimedia learning aids, and mastery points quizzes website

3).Exams: two midterm exams and a finalexam taken locally at the distance education proctoring center or arranged at a remote site.

For more details see How Your Grade is Determinedon p. 6.

ImportantDeadlines 1) Saturday April22, 2017: Completion of Mastery Points. 2) Monday May 8, 2017: last day of final exam window.

**WARNING! WARNING!**

Do not over-schedule! This courserequires at least as much of your time as a traditional lecture-driven course. Do NOT assume that it can be ignored in your time-management plans for the semester just because it is a distance education class. Be realistic in your planning; for example, you probably cannot take 16 hours and work 2 part-time jobs just because this course constitutes 3 of the 16 hours. As we proceed through the semester remember that procrastination on your part does not constitute an emergency on my part.

READ ALL THE INFORMATION BELOW. CAREFULLY FOLLOW THE INSTRUCTIONS FOR REGISTERING AT OUR COURSE-CONTENT-MULTIMEDIA-LEARNING-AIDS-AND-MASTERY-POINTSWEBSITE.

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COURSE INFORMATION QUICK-FIND TABLE(point to link and press Ctrl+click)

Course Text / Academic Integrity Policy / How Grades are Determined / Exams
Webassign Homework / Webassign Homework Due Dates / Mastery Points / Syllabus

Greetings!

Welcome to ST 311! I hope your enrollment in this course proves to be a very positive experience for you. It is very important that you read this letter and the accompanying course information material in their entirety so that you are properly informed of all details concerning the administration of the course. I will be sending you course-related email throughout the semester, but if you have a question at any time, email me at , or call (919) 515-1939 (email is preferred). Course information and important advice on how to be successful in this course are available on the web at

To take the course you will have to frequentlyaccessthe following two web sites:

i) ST 311-601 Introduction to StatisticsSpring 2017course contentwebsite at

course content, multimedia learning aids, and mastery points quizzes website

ii) WebAssign (an NCSU web-based homework/exam delivery, collection, grading and recording system) at

IMPORTANT:

1) PURCHASE WEBASSIGN ACCESS!

The useof WebAssign requires an online credit card transaction to purchase access.The costforWebAssign access will be approximately $29 for each class; there is a reduced rateforAll Class Access if you are enrolled in 3 or more classes that use webassign. Access can be purchased online after logging into WebAssign; I cannot distribute access codes to students in the class. There is a grace period at the beginning of the semester that enables you to use WebAssignfor free; the grace period ends at midnight EDTMondayJan.16. After this time you cannot use WebAssignunless you have purchased access.

2)REGISTER AT THE COURSE CONTENT WEBSITE!

To register so you can access all the course content, learning aids, and mastery points quizzes, follow the directions in this file; use the following course id:

Course ID: reiland84531

After you have registered and enrolled, you are ready to log in to our course.

To log in and access our course:

Go tocourse content, learning aids, and mastery points quizzes website and click the SignIn button.
Enter the login name and password you created during registration.
You will be taken to the course content website ST 311-601 Introduction to StatisticsSpring2017-- the online learning environment that corresponds to our Stats: Data and Models text. Click and explore this website; it has a wealth of information and learning aids that will help you succeed in the course.

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ST 311_601 is a self-paced (to some extent) course during the semester in which it is offered. Due dates for homework will assist you in maintaining a steady work pace throughout the semester and increase the benefit you derive from the course. Since topics later in the course depend on material introduced earlier in the course, you would find yourself quickly overwhelmed if you attempted to cover everything in a short period at the end of the semester. The deadline for earning the mastery points is 11:59 pm Saturday April22, 2017; the last day for taking the final exam is Monday May 8, 2017.

TEXT

Two purchase options:

1.Recommended purchase option

Purchase an ebook version of the text by making an online credit card purchase at course content, multimedia learning aids and mastery points quizzes website; follow the directions after clicking STUDENT under Register, or follow the directions in this file; use the

course idreiland84531.

The cost is approximately $95 for one year of access. This purchase includes the ebook and access to a wide variety of high-quality multimedia-enhanced course content and learning aids. (videosof worked examples, powerpoint slides for each chapter, video clips, interactive activities, java applets, and more) to assist students.

2.Alternative purchase option

Purchase a traditional version of our course textStats: Data and Models (with MyStatLab Student Access Card and The ActivStats DVD), by Richard DeVeaux, Paul Velleman and David Bock, 4th ed., 2016. Addison Wesley Publishing Co., ISBN: 978-0-133-95649-8. New and used copies of the text are available at the NCSU Bookstore.

New copies of the text purchased at the NCSU Bookstore include at no extra charge the MyStatLab Student Access Card that, with the course id reiland84531,gives the student access to our online course content website at course content, multimedia learning aids and mastery points quizzes website.

IMPORTANT:

MyStatLab Student Access Cards included with used copies of the text will not be usable. Students who purchase used copies will need to use a credit card to purchase access to the course content website at course content, multimedia learning aids and mastery points quizzes websiteby following the directions above under Recommended purchase option.
New copies of the text purchased on the internet or at other bookstores will not include a MyStatLab Access Card unless the book has the same isbn shown above.
VERY IMPORTANT: ALL students will need to access our course content, multimedia learning aids and mastery points quizzes website course website to completeauto-generated 5-question quizzes to earn mastery points; mastery points are a required component of your final course grade.

ACTIVSTATS

If you purchase a text with the ActivStatsDVD, you’ll want to set up ActivStats on your computer. To begin using ActivStats, use the setup program for the ActivStatsDVD that will appear on your screen after you place the ActivStats DVD in your CD/DVD drive. During setup you will be asked to enter the serial number on a card that came in the pocket with the ActivStatsDVD. Do not throw this card away! Keep it for possible future use! During the ActivStatsDVD setupmake sure that the “Supplementary Text” is Stats: Data and Models by Deveaux, Velleman, Brock. You will not have to enter the serial number every time you start ActivStats on the same computer, but if you have to re-install ActivStats or desire to install it on another computer you will need the serial number. Note that to run ActivStats the ActivStatsDVD must be in the CD/DVD drive. The Introduction chapter on the ActivStatsDVD will acquaint you with all the features and "bells and whistles" on the disk.

SOFTWARE: EXCEL, DATADESK, AND STATCRUNCH

Statistics is not a spectator sport! In this course you will be doing statistics rather than listening to someone talk about doing statistics. The main tools that will facilitate your involvement are one or more of the following: Excel, your graphing calculator, if you have one (you do not need to purchase a graphing calculator for this course),the DataDeskstatistics software package included on the ActivStatsDVD, or Statcrunch.

It is very important, especially for Mac users, that you read the information in the Computers/Calculators section of our class webpage concerning the use of Excel and Statcrunch.

Statcrunch is available online at two locations: 1) login required), and 2) our course content, learning aids, and mastery points quizzes website (click on “Statcrunch” in the left column, then click “view data from text”). Statcrunch is a cloud-based award-winning spreadsheet-type statistics program that is superior to Excel for doing statistics. You will use these tools in many of the homework problems to analyze interesting real-world data sets included with the problem. After completing this course many students have foundStatcrunchand DataDesk to be very useful in subsequent courses and in their work.

HOMEWORK

The homework activity consists of two required components: i) 12 webassign assignments; ii) 15mastery points earned by taking 5-question quizzes at the ST 311-601Introduction To StatisticsSpring 2017course content, learning aids, and mastery points quizzes website. A mastery point quiz consists of a few questions associated with a specific textbook chapter objective. See the Course Information section below for more details concerning the webassign assignments and mastery points.

Students are encouraged to discuss the homework problems; you can learn a great deal from each other. Each webassign homework assignment will have its own forum on webassign to encourage and facilitate discussion of the homework. However, the actual submissions of the answers must be done independently.

WEBASSIGN HOMEWORK ASSIGNMENTS

There will be twelve30-point assignments during the semester with due dates shown below. Each assignment must be submitted by 11:59 pm on the due date; after its due date anassignment will no longer be accessible and answers cannot be submitted. Webassign at be used to administer the assignments.

AssignmentSubmit No Later Than:

Homework 1Mon. Jan. 16, 2017

Homework 2Mon. Jan. 23, 2017

Homework 3Mon. Jan. 30, 2017

Homework 4Mon. Feb. 6, 2017

Exam 1 Mon. Feb. 6 – Mon. Feb. 13(75 minute time limit)

Homework 5Mon. Feb. 20, 2017

Homework 6Mon. Feb. 27, 2017

Homework 7Mon. March13, 2017

Homework 8Mon. March20, 2017

Exam 2 Mon. Mar. 20 – Mon. Mar. 27(75 minute time limit)

Homework 9Mon. April3, 2017

Homework 10Mon. April10, 2017

Homework 11Mon. April17, 2017

Homework 12Mon. April24, 2017

Final Exam Mon. May 1 – Mon. May8, 2017 (3 hour time limit).

EXAMS

There are 2 midterm exams and a final exam . The exams are administered through the Distance Education Exam Proctoring Facility located on NC State’s Centennial Campus. The exams are scheduled for the following time periods:

first midterm exam:Mon. Feb. 6 – Mon. Feb. 13;(75 minute time limit).

second midterm exam: Mon. March20 – Mon. March27;(75 minute time limit).

final exam:Mon. May1 – Wed. May8; (3 hour time limit).

Exams at the Proctoring Facility are administered on a walk-in basis (see links immediately below).

Students in the Raleigh area (within 50 miles) should make use of the local proctoring option. Students outside the Raleigh area should make use of theremote site proctoring option; the Proctoring Facility will assist you with the process of finding a suitable exam proctor in your area. A suitable proctor is typically someone currently employed in a professional or managerial occupation and preferably a representative from a university, college, or school in an academic or administrative capacity.

The Course Information document below contains the syllabus and more detailed information about grading, exams, and homework.

I wish you a good semester and success in the course. GOOD LUCK!

Sincerely,

Thomas W. Reiland

Associate Professor, Statistics and Operations Research

COURSE INFORMATION

STATISTICS 311_601 DISTANCE EDUCATION

INTRODUCTION TO STATISTICS

"We shall not cease from exploration and the end of all of our exploring will be to arrive where we started and to know the place for the first time." T. S. Eliot

IMPORTANT!!Your grade will be determined by your performance inthreerequiredassessment activities:

1). Homeworkthat can be accessed at

2).Mastery Pointsthat can be earned at our course content, multimedia learning aids and mastery points quizzes website

3).Exams: two midterm exams and a final exam taken locally at the distance education proctoring center or arranged at a remote site.

For more details see How Your Grade is Determined on p. 7.

The deadline for completing the final exam and earning mastery points is 11:59 pm Wednesday May 6, 2017.

READ ALL THE INFORMATION BELOW. CAREFULLY FOLLOW THE INSTRUCTIONS FOR REGISTERING AT THE COURSECOMPASS WEBSITE AND FOR INSTALLING THE ACTIVSTATS CD.

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To register so you can access all the course content, learning aids, and mastery points quizzes, follow the directions in this file; use the following course id:

Course ID: reiland84531

After you have registered and enrolled, you are ready to log in to our course.

Instructor: Thomas W. Reiland, 5278 SAS Hall, Tel. 919-515-1939, Fax 919-782-5204;

Email:

personalhomepage:

class homepage:

course content homepage: course content, multimedia learning aids and mastery points quizzes website

WebAssign:

Course Description: ST 311-601 is NOT a math course. The central theme of the course is to help you learn to understand the world from data. Specifically, the course will enable you to: i) incorporate statistical thinking into your everyday lives; ii) acquire the necessary data-gathering, data-analysis, and interpretation/communicationexpertise to meet the challenges of a more demanding cognitive global environment.

“Beyond the formula” skills are emphasized. This course will require you to: think critically, be skeptical, think about variation (rather than just about the center), move beyond a “memorize the answer” approach, and think about conditional probabilities and rare events (humans just don’t do the latter very well). Some mathematical skill is required to work with elementary statistics (basic high school algebra is the mathematical prerequisite), but mathematical manipulations will be replaced by relying on technology for the calculations and graphics; this will allow more emphasis to be placed on the “beyond the formula” skills mentioned above.

This course requires more intellectual effort than the low mathematical level suggests! It is related to every other course you may study. The course is elementary in mathematical level but conceptually rich in statistical ideas and serious in its aim to improve your data-analytic skills and your ability to apply statistical methods with understanding.

You can choose from three formats to view and learn the course material: the course textbook Stats: Data and Models, the award-winning interactive multimedia ActivStats DVD bundled with the text, and an online version of the text atcourse content, multimedia learning aids and mastery points quizzes website. You can tailor the course to suit your particular learning style by “mixing and matching” these sources of course content throughout the semester. TheStats: Data and Modelstext has short, teachable chapters and an approachable, colloquial style that makes the text very readable. The organization, notation, and content of the ActivStatsDVD exactly match the Intro Stats text. Each chapter on the ActivStatsDVD consists of a rich, multimedia presentation that enables the student to interact with the examples and ideas as they are presented. The high-quality interactive nature of the ActivStats DVD allows the student to tailor each chapter to suit his or her learning style. The course web site matches the organization of the Stats: Data and Models text and includes the actual book online with links to a wide variety of resources available to students.

Course Text: Students have two textbook options:

1.Superior, Strongly Recommended purchase option

course idreiland84531

The cost is approximately $95 for one year of access. This purchase includes the ebook and access to a wide variety of high-quality multimedia-enhanced course content and learning aids. (Quicktime movies of worked examples, powerpoint slides for each chapter, video clips, interactive activities, java applets, and more) to assist students.

2.Alternative purchase option