Course: EPPS 3405.002 Introduction to Social Statistics with Lab Instructor: Caitlin McKillop Term: Fall 2013 Meetings: Tuesdays & Thursdays 1:00-3:00PM Classroom: GR 3.402 Instructor's Contact Information Email Address cnm094020@utdallas.edu E-mail communication through elearning only Office Location GR 3.416 Office Hours Thursdays 11:30-12:30 PM or by appointment Teaching Assistant Contact Information Information Nina Barbieri Email Address nbarbieri@utdallas.edu General Course Information Course Pre-requisites, Co-requisites, and/or Other Restrictions Course Description Learning Objectives College Algebra (MATH 1314 or equivalent) This course introduces students to the basic tools of statistics and shows how they are used in the analysis of social science data. A fundamental understanding of these tools is a critical foundation for social science research in many fields. The course covers descriptive statistics, inference from samples, hypothesis testing, and the basics of regression analysis. Students will take the initiative to learn, understand, and apply statistics to real world research data. Class sessions will be a combination of lecture, lab, and in-class exercises. At the end of this course, students should be able to: - Understand basic statistical measures and tests - Understand and apply concepts of probability - Formulate and test hypotheses in research models - Apply statistical models to real world research questions - Have a basic knowledge of statistical software applications Required Textbooks and Materials Moore, David S. (2011). The Basic Practice of Statistics, 6th edition. WH Freeman. The CD is not required. A basic calculator that can take square roots and raise number to powers is required. Course Syllabus Page 1
Software Stata 11, 12 or 13. There is a 6-month license for students available for $69 (plus shipping and taxes). Be sure to include your UTDALLAS email address when ordering. http://www.stata.com/order/new/edu/gradplans/campus-gradplan/ Additionally, you can still complete class assignments in the EPPS computer labs on the 2 nd floor of Green Hall if you don t want to purchase a copy for your personal computer. Suggested Course Materials Acock, Alan C. A Gentle Introduction to Stata, Revised Third Edition. Stata Press. ISBN: 978-1-59718-109-9 Salkind, Neil J. (2010). Statistics for People Who (Think They) Hate Statistics. 4 th edition. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications. Assignments & Academic Calendar Students are expected to have read the assigned chapters prior to coming to class. Dates Topics Assignments Due Week 1 Aug 27 Introduction Ch. 1: Describing Data Aug 29 Ch. 1: Describing Data Ch. 8: Population and Sampling Week 2 Sept 3 Ch. 8: Population and Sampling Ch. 2: Descriptive Statistics and Central Tendency Sept 5 Ch. 2: Descriptive Statistics and Central Tendency Week 3 Sept 10 Ch. 4: Correlation Coefficients Quiz #1 Sept 12 Ch. 4: Correlation Coefficients Week 4 Sept 17 Ch. 10: Probability Quiz #2 Sept 19 Ch. 10: Probability Week 5 Sept 24 Ch. 12: Probability Ch. 11: Sampling Distributions Sept 26 Ch. 11: Sampling Distributions HW #1 Due Week 6 Oct 1 Review for Exam #1 Quiz #3 Oct 3 EXAM #1 Exam #1 Week 7 Oct 8 Ch. 3: Normal Distributions Oct 10 Ch. 15: Significance Week 8 Oct 15 Ch. 15: Significance Ch. 14: Confidence Intervals Oct 17 Ch. 14: Confidence Intervals HW #2 Due Course Syllabus Page 2
Week 9 Oct 22 Ch. 18: t-tests Ch. 19: t-tests Oct 24 Ch. 19: t-tests Quiz #4 Week 10 Oct 29 Ch. 25: Analysis of Variance Oct 31 Ch. 25: Analysis of Variance HW #3 Due Week 11 Nov 5 Ch. 5, 24: Linear Regression Quiz #5 Nov 7 Ch. 5, 24: Linear Regression Week 12 Nov 12 Review for Exam #2 Nov 14 EXAM #2 Exam #2 Week 13 Nov 19 Ch. 28: Multiple Regression Nov 21 Ch. 28: Multiple Regression Ch. 23: Chi-Square tests Week 14 Nov 26 NO CLASSES- FALL BREAK HW #4 Due Nov 28 NO CLASSES- FALL BREAK Week 15 Dec 3 Ch. 23: Chi-Square tests Ch. 26: More Non-Parametric tests Dec 5 Review for Exam #3 Quiz #6 Week 16 Dec 10 EXAM #3 Exam #3 Grading Policy Exams (3 out of 3): 60% Homework Assignments (4 out of 4): 20% Quizzes (5 out of 6): 15% Class Participation: 5% Final course grades will be based on total points earned throughout the course, per the below: A+ = 97-100 B+ = 87-89 C+ = 77-79 D+ = 67-69 F = 59 and below A = 93-96 B = 83-86 C = 73-76 D = 63-66 A- = 90-92 B- = 80-82 C- = 70-72 D- = 60-62 Midterm grades will be calculated: [Quiz Avg.]*.25 + [Homework Avg.]*.25 + [Exam 1]*.50 The descriptions and timelines contained in this syllabus are subject to change at the discretion of the Professor. Course Syllabus Page 3
Course Policies Homework Quizzes Exams TA Sessions Extra Credit Late Work Class Attendance Technology Policy Classroom Citizenship Throughout the semester there will be four homework assignments which will incorporate elements from both lectures and lab sessions. Use of statistical software for solving some portion of each assignment is expected, and any datasets required for the completion of the assignment will be provided on e- Learning. Homework will be turned in at the beginning of class on the due dates indicated by the syllabus. Each student must turn in his or her own copy. Either handwritten or typed submissions are accepted, but any assignment done on the computer must be turned in using your own words. Handwritten work must be readable. NO late assignments will be accepted. Since there is a great deal of material in this course with which students may be unfamiliar, quizzes based on important concepts and basic computation will be given to encourage you to stay current with the reading. Quizzes will be based both on material covered in the previous week (which may include some simple math) as well as basic concepts to be covered that week. Six quizzes will be given, and five will ultimately count toward your final grade. If you miss one of the regular quizzes you will receive a 0, but as long as the other 5 are completed this will not affect your grade. If all 6 quizzes are completed (which is strongly encouraged), then the lowest quiz grade of the six quizzes will be dropped. There will be NO makeup quizzes. Students will have three exams during the semester. These are designed to test your knowledge and understanding of material covered in the readings and lectures. If you are late for an exam, you will not be given any extra time. There will be no make-up exams, except in the case where legitimate, written documentation of an emergency (e.g. a medical emergency supported by a doctor's note). Students are highly encouraged to make an appointment with me as soon as possible should an event like this occur, so that we can ensure you stay on track for the rest of the semester. TBA Extra credit is not available due to larger class sizes. Late assignments will not be accepted. Attendance will be taken at the beginning of each class via a sign-in sheet. It is the students responsibility to ensure that all sheets are signed for each class they attend. If an attendance sheet does not have a signature, it will be assumed that the student did not attend class that day. Technology both within and outside the classroom should enable your learning experience, not hinder it. In this classroom, each student will have his or her own computer, and it is expected that you will use the computer only for taking notes during lecture, view slides or use Excel or statistical software. Please be respectful and mindful of other students trying to learn. Cellphones must be turned off before coming into the classroom. Course Syllabus Page 4
University Policies Technical Support If you experience any problems with your UTD account you may send an email to: assist@utdallas.edu or call the UTD Computer Helpdesk at 972-883-2911. Field Trip Policies Off-campus Instruction and Course Activities Off-campus, out-of-state, and foreign instruction and activities are subject to state law and University policies and procedures regarding travel and risk-related activities. Information regarding these rules and regulations may be found at the website address http://www.utdallas.edu/businessaffairs/travel_risk_activities.htm. Additional information is available from the office of the school dean. Below is a description of any travel and/or risk-related activity associated with this course. Student Conduct & Discipline The University of Texas System and The University of Texas at Dallas have rules and regulations for the orderly and efficient conduct of their business. It is the responsibility of each student and each student organization to be knowledgeable about the rules and regulations which govern student conduct and activities. General information on student conduct and discipline is contained in the UTD printed publication, A to Z Guide, which is provided to all registered students each academic year. The University of Texas at Dallas administers student discipline within the procedures of recognized and established due process. Procedures are defined and described in the Rules and Regulations, Series 50000, Board of Regents, The University of Texas System, and in Title V, Rules on Student Services and Activities of the university s Handbook of Operating Procedures. Copies of these rules and regulations are available to students in the Office of the Dean of Students, where staff members are available to assist students in interpreting the rules and regulations (SU 1.602, 972/883-6391) and online at http://www.utdallas.edu/judicialaffairs/utdjudicialaffairs-hopv.html A student at the university neither loses the rights nor escapes the responsibilities of citizenship. He or she is expected to obey federal, state, and local laws as well as the Regents Rules, university regulations, and administrative rules. Students are subject to discipline for violating the standards of conduct whether such conduct takes place on or off campus, or whether civil or criminal penalties are also imposed for such conduct. Academic Integrity The faculty expects from its students a high level of responsibility and academic honesty. Because the value of an academic degree depends upon the absolute integrity of the work done by the student for that degree, it is imperative that a student demonstrate a high standard of individual honor in his or her scholastic work. Scholastic Dishonesty, any student who commits an act of scholastic dishonesty is subject to discipline. Scholastic dishonesty includes but is not limited to cheating, plagiarism, collusion, the submission for credit of any work or materials that are attributable in whole or in part to another person, taking an examination for another person, any act designed to give unfair advantage to a student or the attempt to commit such acts. Course Syllabus Page 5
Plagiarism, especially from the web, from portions of papers for other classes, and from any other source is unacceptable and will be dealt with under the university s policy on plagiarism (see general catalog for details). This course will use the resources of turnitin.com, which searches the web for possible plagiarism and is over 90% effective. Copyright Notice The copyright law of the United States (Title 17, United States Code) governs the making of photocopies or other reproductions of copyrighted materials, including music and software. Copying, displaying, reproducing, or distributing copyrighted works may infringe the copyright owner s rights and such infringement is subject to appropriate disciplinary action as well as criminal penalties provided by federal law. Usage of such material is only appropriate when that usage constitutes fair use under the Copyright Act. As a UT Dallas student, you are required to follow the institution s copyright policy (Policy Memorandum 84-I.3-46). For more information about the fair use exemption, see http://www.utsystem.edu/ogc/intellectualproperty/copypol2.htm Email Use The University of Texas at Dallas recognizes the value and efficiency of communication between faculty/staff and students through electronic mail. At the same time, email raises some issues concerning security and the identity of each individual in an email exchange. The university encourages all official student email correspondence be sent only to a student s U.T. Dallas email address and that faculty and staff consider email from students official only if it originates from a UTD student account. This allows the university to maintain a high degree of confidence in the identity of all individual corresponding and the security of the transmitted information. UTD furnishes each student with a free email account that is to be used in all communication with university personnel. The Department of Information Resources at U.T. Dallas provides a method for students to have their U.T. Dallas mail forwarded to other accounts. Withdrawal from Class The administration of this institution has set deadlines for withdrawal of any college-level courses. These dates and times are published in that semester's course catalog. Administration procedures must be followed. It is the student's responsibility to handle withdrawal requirements from any class. In other words, I cannot drop or withdraw any student. You must do the proper paperwork to ensure that you will not receive a final grade of "F" in a course if you choose not to attend the class once you are enrolled. Student Grievance Procedures Procedures for student grievances are found in Title V, Rules on Student Services and Activities, of the university s Handbook of Operating Procedures. In attempting to resolve any student grievance regarding grades, evaluations, or other fulfillments of academic responsibility, it is the obligation of the student first to make a serious effort to resolve the matter with the instructor, supervisor, administrator, or committee with whom the grievance originates (hereafter called the respondent ). Individual faculty members retain primary responsibility for assigning grades and evaluations. If the matter cannot be resolved at that level, the grievance must be submitted in writing to the respondent with a copy of the respondent s School Dean. If the matter is not resolved by the written response provided by the respondent, the student may submit a written appeal to the School Dean. If the grievance is not resolved by the School Dean s decision, the student may make a written appeal to the Dean of Graduate or Undergraduate Education, and the deal will appoint and convene an Academic Appeals Panel. The decision of the Academic Appeals Panel is final. The results of the academic appeals process will be distributed to all involved parties. Copies of these rules and regulations are available to students in the Office of the Dean of Students, where staff members are available to assist students in interpreting the rules and regulations. Incomplete Grade Policy Course Syllabus Page 6
As per university policy, incomplete grades will be granted only for work unavoidably missed at the semester s end and only if 70% of the course work has been completed. An incomplete grade must be resolved within eight (8) weeks from the first day of the subsequent long semester. If the required work to complete the course and to remove the incomplete grade is not submitted by the specified deadline, the incomplete grade is changed automatically to a grade of F. Disability Services The goal of Disability Services is to provide students with disabilities equal educational opportunities. Disability Services provides students with a documented letter to present to the faculty members to verify that the student has a disability and needs accommodations. This letter should be presented to the instructor in each course at the beginning of the semester and accommodations needed should be discussed at that time. It is the student s responsibility to notify his or her professors of the need for accommodation. If accommodations are granted for testing accommodations, the student should remind the instructor five days before the exam of any testing accommodations that will be needed. Disability Services is located in Room 1.610 in the Student Union. Office hours are Monday Thursday, 8:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m., and Friday 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. You may reach Disability Services at (972) 883-2098. Guidelines for documentation are located on the Disability Services website at http://www.utdallas.edu/disability/documentation/index.html UT Dallas Syllabus Policies and Procedures The information contained in the following link constitutes the University s policies and procedures segment of the course syllabus. Please go to http://go.utdallas.edu/syllabus-policies for these policies. The descriptions and timelines contained in this syllabus are subject to change at the discretion of the Professor. Course Syllabus Page 7