It is the world-wide-web so you may have a computer at home from which you can reach the web. Also, you can use any of the computers in the university's labs to get to the web. The Bernhard center is convenient and has a many computers. Use any web browser (Netscape, Mozilla, Internet Explorer, ...) and go to the following location:
The main purpose of Stat 160 is to show the student how useful statistics is in their world. This course will give the students a basic understanding of statistics, which will enable them to see how statistics can help them to make better decisions as consumers, students, parents or professionals. The method of resampling will be used throughout the course. This will allow us to avoid the use of any higher math than the level of Math 110 which is the prerequisite level for Stat 160. Resampling will also allow us to look at some interesting probability problems without math anxiety. Students will learn basic descriptive statistical and graphical procedures for analyzing data sets. Some simple inferential procedures, parametric and nonparametric, will also be taught based on resampling. Students will use these procedures in the daily group activities. Many of these daily activities will use real data sets. One main goal of these activities will be to answer predetermined questions as well as to explore the data to formulate further ideas and questions about the variables defined in the study and their underlying relationships.
This course has the prerequisite of Math 110 which is essentially high school algebra. It will not make use of any higher math and it will not be formula driven. You do not need prior knowledge of computer analysis.
For this course, each student pays a course fee of $35 upon registering. During the first class meeting a registered student will obtain a unique pin number from his/her instructor. This number is extremely important. It allows each student to take the pre and post quizzes as well as the exams. So please record it in a safe area. Along with a pin number the student will receive his user name. This may or may not be the student's last name. The instructor keeps a list of pin numbers and user names, so if a student forgets his/her number he/she should contact his/her instructor. On the Final Exam, the student must use his/her username.
The fee paid by the student goes to the Department of Statistics which in turn pays the Statistical Computation Lab (SCL, 3379 Rood Hall) for the services that it provides for this course. These services include but are not limited to: the maintenance of the on line web server for this course; the production of the course's web page; the preparation and updating of the online text book; the production of the online statistical software; the preparation of and the record keeping of the pre and post quizzes; the record keeping of the grade book; and the preparation of and record keeping of the group activities. Some of these services are discussed next. The electronic text book is the only text book for the course. It is a book, (table of contents, chapters, index, etc.). A textbook for this course would run about $110.00. So the staff of 160 has already saved you $75.00!
Students should feel free to see the instructors during their office
hours or to make appointments if need be at more convenient times.
Please feel free, also, to contact Dr. J.C. Wang
for an appointment.
E-mail is a handy tool for answering class questions. So please feel free to use e-mail to ask the instructors questions on the material and/or the class.
The student is advised to go to the web page and click on the services described next.
The text book for this class is online. There are two ways to access it.
For most lectures, students must take two pre-quizzes. On the home page, just click on Quiz and then Pre-Quiz. The due date and time are given for each quiz. It is usually due by 2:00PM the day of the lecture. These quizzes are over the material that will be discussed in class that day. Each prequiz consists of 4 questions (multiple choice) which can easily be answered once the material is read. To take the quiz, students:
The maintenance and record keeping of these quizzes is a service of the SCL.
There will be a post-quiz after every lecture. On the home page, just click on Quiz and then Post-Quiz. The due date and time are given for each quiz. This quiz usually consists of 5 multiple choice questions over the material covered that week. Students take the post-quiz the same way as a pre-quiz.
The maintenance and record keeping of these quizzes is a service of the SCL.
Students must complete a web survey which will provide some of the data to be used during the semester. The due date for the completion of the survey will be announced in class. Successful completion will count as a 4 on the first prequiz. Failure to complete the survey by the due date will result in a ZERO score on the first pre-quiz.
The survey is a service of the SCL.
There is a question & answer section on the home page of the course. If you have an interesting question, please e-mail it to your instructor. If it has educational value in regards to Stat 160, an answer will appear.
For a typical class, we begin with a discussion (lecture) for about the first 30 minutes. This is followed by a Group Activity. These pertain to the lectures for that day and, besides counting towards a student's grade, are an important way to keep up with the material. Usually students work in pairs for these activities. At the end of class the group activity must be turned in. For the summer section usually two group assignments are done during a typical class.
Calendar There is a calandar is on the quiz page which has the quizzes by date.
The maintenance and record keeping of these group activities is a service of the SCL.
| CRN | Day | Time | Room | Instructor |
| 30986 | TR | Class 9:00 - 11:30 AM | Schneider Hall 1130 | Dr. J.C. Wang |
There will be a final exam. The date and time for the final exam is:
Final Exam: Thursday August 14th, 2008 9:00 - 11:30 AM
Please mark this time in your schedule now. The policy on makeup exams is very strict; A MISSED EXAM IS A ZERO SCORE. If you have a good reason for missing the exam, you must apply in writing to Dr. J.C. Wang for permission to take a makeup exam. You then have to obtain a form from Dr. J.C. Wang who will make the final decision. This form must be signed Dr. J.C. Wang.
The maintenance and record keeping of these exams is a service of the SCL.
To avoid memorization of formulas, crib sheets will be allowed. Two sheets (8.5 x 11) are allowed for the final.
Your grade for the course will be based on exams, quizzes and homework assignments with the following weights:
Final Exam: 30%
Group Activity 25%
Pre Quiz: 20%
Post Quiz : 25%
The following scale will be used in determining your final grade:
A: 90 - 100
BA: 85 - 89
B: 78 - 84
CB: 73 - 77
C: 60 - 72
D: 50 - 59
E: 0 - 49
Dr. J.C. Wang (5503 Everett Tower): jung-chao.wang@wmich.edu Tue & Thur: 12:00 - 1:00 PMWMU's Policy on Cheating and Plagiarism: The Faculty Senate has adopted the following policy. For Stat 160 to avoid plagiarism, we note the citation and then put the paragraph in quotes.
Citation: The Professional Concerns Committee of the Faculty Senate recommends that all faculty include the following paragraph in each syllabus that they prepare for the upcoming semester. If you have questions, contact Suzie Nagel, Associate Dean of Students, at suzie.nagel@wmich.edu or Philip Guichelaar, Co-Chair of the Professional Concerns Committee, at philip.guichelaar@wmich.edu.
``You are responsible for making yourself aware of and understanding the policies and procedures in the Undergraduate (pp. 274-276) [Graduate (pp. 25-27)] Catalog that pertain to Academic Honesty. These policies include cheating, fabrication, falsification and forgery, multiple submission, plagiarism, complicity and computer misuse. If there is reason to believe you have been involved in academic dishonesty, you will be referred to the Office of Student Conduct. You will be given the opportunity to review the charge(s). If you believe you are not responsible, you will have the opportunity for a hearing. You should consult with me [instructor] if you are uncertain about an issue of academic honesty prior to the submission of an assignment or test.''
J.C. Wang, PhD
5503 Everett Tower
Department of Statistics
Western Michigan University
Kalamazoo, MI 49008-3899
Email: jung-chao.wang@wmich.edu
Department Office: (269) 387-1420
Fax (269) 387-1419