Statistics

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__**Contact information: **__ Jeremy Duncan E-mail:jduncan@chinquapin.org Phone: 832-414-3122

__**Course Overview **__

Statistics are everywhere . They are often used to deceive or confuse. Statistics can be hard to understand, or can be very illuminating. The goal of this course is to teach you how to be data literate. Right now, most people in America are data illiterate, and it creates all kinds of problems. Data illiteracy affects politics, marketing, the media, nutrition, and many other important areas of life. Probability is the mathematics that fuels good statistics. In order to understand statistics, you must understand probability.

The most basic misconception about statistics is that a statistic is a fact. When, in fact, a statistic is merely an estimate . Although, sometimes it is such a good estimate, it can be considered a fact for all practical purposes.

Statistics is not a mathematics course . It would be much more appropriate to label statistics as a science course. Mathematics are used heavily, but as a means to an end.

Statistics is relevant . It is relevant to you right now, and will continue to be for the rest of your life. I hope that after this course, you read articles differently, you think about studies with more skepticism, and most importantly, that you yourself can use statistical methods to accurately illuminate the truth that is hidden within large sets of data.

__**Reference Material: **__ Yates, Daniel S., David S. Moore, Daren S. Starnes. The Practice of Statistics. 2nd ed. New York: W.H. Freeman, 2003. <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">[|Khan Academy]

<span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">A Google calendar will be used for all assignments.
 * __<span style="font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 150%;">Schedule __**

__**<span style="font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 150%;">Grading Scheme **__

<span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">Your grade will be based on how many total points you earn for homework, test, and other assignments over each quarter.

<span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">Your grade = Your total points/Maximum possible points <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">There is no separate weighting scheme—1 point on homework is the same as 1 point on a test. Therefore, homework/worksheets/group projects can significantly affect your grade, and there is little reason why you cannot earn the maximum number of points for those types of assignments

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