EDPSY 511 001 Introduction to Educational Statistics Syllabus

EDPSY 511 -001: Introduction to Educational Statistics

Syllabus • Key points – Introductory course – Office hours • Mondays 3: 30 to 5: 00 • Tuesdays 2: 00 to 3: 30 • Or by appointment – Pre-requires or co-requires • Edpsy 505, or equivalent

Syllabus • Key points (cont. ) – Assessment plan • Three Exams (100 points each) – Tend to select items from end of the chapter » Multiple choice » Short answer » Calculations – One page of notes – Can redo missed items for half credit • Four Homework Assignments (75 points each)

Syllabus • Assessment (cont. ) – No extra credit – No incompletes • Except for extreme circumstances (e. g. , illness, death of family member) • A comment on grades – You earn them – Rule of thumb • Three hours of outside work for every credit hour

Syllabus • Professionalism – Pathfinder • Honesty • Integrity – Cheating, plagiarism, etc. will not be tolerated and will result in a referral to whoever is in charge of this place. • Behavior – – Class starts at 4: 00 Turn off cell phones If you must leave early let me know Be respectful of others

Syllabus • Work Habits – Read – Due dates are non-negotiable – Attempt practice items at end of chapters • If you struggle with the items see tutors ASAP. – Bring a calculator • Follow class examples – Passive learning does not work • Other course policies – Religious accommodations – Disabilities • Inform and provide documentation

Homework • The assignments require hand calculations and SPSS practice – – The first assignment and tutorial are available online Typically I have you check your answers using SPSS Do not buy SPSS Do not leave the SPSS work for night before the due date. – You will need a TEC center account • Do that after class today

Who is here? • In groups of three or four – Identify yourself and get to know one another • Ask the following questions – – What are your professional experiences? What is your program of study? What topics within your program interest you? What is your favorite recreational activity? • Be prepared to introduce one member of your group. • Exchange email addresses and/or phone numbers – – Contact if you miss class. Study groups New friends Misery loves company ; -)

How to study & learn statistics: • Statistics is a Language • Read the textbook • Do the practice problems with each chapter (odd problems) • Distributed Practice – Studying once a week does not work • Use the tutors and my office hours • Don’t get behind & don’t wait to say you don’t understand

Working with your feelings & attitudes • HIGH ANXIETY! – Try to put your math fears aside. – You have the basic math skills. • Some people think the whole process is hogwash (Suspend your Disbelief!) • I cannot promise excitement; this will be intellectually taxing. • Some people like my methods and some don't.

The Big Picture: Statistics in Context • There are many different research processes • Each has its own: – Philosophies of Inquiry – Methods of Inquiry – Purposes for doing research – Processes and “Rules” • Statistics does not fit them all. • Here is one process:

Chp. 1 • Key points – Statistics is a process of collecting data in a scientific manner and making decisions based on these data. • Personal experience vs. systematic empiricism – Personal experience if useful BUT » Subject to bias » Can be haphazard – Systematic empiricism » Systematic observation » Control of bias » Replicable

Fundamentals of Research • Answering empirical questions – Observable by the senses. • Publicly verifiable knowledge – Operational definitions – Direct replication • Identical conditions – Systematic replication • Similar conditions

Variables • Variables – Characteristics that takes on different values • Achievement • Age • Condition – Independent variable (IV) • Manipulated or Experimental – Condition • Subject – Personality – Gender – Dependent variable (DV) • The outcome of interest – Achievement – Drop-out status

Populations vs. Samples • Population – The complete set of individuals • Characteristics are called parameters • Sample – A subset of the population • Characteristics are called statistics. – In most cases we cannot study all the members of a population

Descriptive vs. Inferential • Descriptive statistics – Summarize/organize a group of numbers from a research study • Inferential statistics – Draw conclusions/make inferences that go beyond the numbers from a research study – Determine if a causal relationship exists between the IV and DV

Random Sampling vs. Random Assignment • Simple random sampling – Each member of the population has an equal likelihood of being selected. • Helps ensure that our sample will represent the population of interest. • Random assignment – Assigning subjects to different conditions in a way that they have equal chance of being placed in either condition. • Controls for confounding

Goals of Scientific Research • Exploratory – What is out there? • Descriptive – What does this group look like? • Explanatory – Why and how are these constructs related? • Evaluation – Does this program work? • Prediction – Who will become depressed?

Common Research Designs • Correlational – Do two qualities “go together”. • Comparing intact groups – a. k. a. causal-comparative and ex post facto designs. • Quasi-experiments – Researcher manipulates IV • True experiments – Must have random assignment. • Why? – Researcher manipulates IV

Measurement • Is the assignment of numerals to objects. – Nominal • Examples: Gender, party affiliation, and place of birth • Ordinal – Examples: SES, Student rank, and Place in race • Interval – Examples: Test scores, personality and attitude scales. • Ratio – Examples: Weight, length, reaction time, and number of responses

Categorical, Continuous and Discontinuous • Categorical (nominal) – Gender, party affiliation, etc. • Discontinuous – No intermediate values • Children, deaths, accidents, etc. • Continuous – Variable may assume an value • Age, weight, blood sugar, etc.

Values • Exhaustive – Must be able to assign a value to all objects. • Mutually Exclusive – Each object can only be assigned one of a set of values. • A variable with only one value is not a variable. – It is a constant.

Chapter 2: Statistical Notation • Nouns, Adjectives, Verbs and Adverbs. – • Say what? Here’s what you need to know – X Xi = a specific observation • – N • – # of observations ∑ • Sigma – – Means to sum Work from left to right • • • Perform operations in parentheses first Exponentiation and square roots Perform summing operations Simplify numerator and divisor Multiplication and division Addition and subtraction