Introduction to Statistics Psychology 200 (section 001),  Fall 2007.              Instructor: Marnie LaNoue, PhD

MWF 9-9:50 in Mitchell Hall room 101

Office Hours: Wednesdays 3-4:30 in Logan 105C, and by appointment

MarnieLanoue@comcast.net

Course Description: This course serves as an overview of some basic statistical techniques that are commonly used in the behavioral sciences (particularly psychology). The course is both conceptual (understanding and processing ideas) and computational. We will learn about data: what it is, how to think about it, how to collect it, how to look at it, and how to come to conclusions about it. We will also learn about how research is conducted in the real world, and examine some examples of research from psychology journals and the popular press.

Text and Materials:

v      Understanding statistics in the behavioral sciences, by Robert Pagano, 7th or 8th edition. Available in the UNM bookstore.

v      A scientific calculator. BUT - you do not need a 60$ graphing calculator! Your calculator cannot learn this material for you. A good calculator for this course is the TI-30 (or equivalent basic scientific calculator) - which is available at our bookstore for about 19$.

v      Also: you must have access to the internet. Come and see me if you do not have a CIRT account. The course webpage is required reading! You will also be able to check on schedule changes and check your progress in the course.

Specific Notes on Course Policies:

  1. Attendance will be monitored via sign-in sheets in class. As of Fall06, the university requires that I report the last date you attended class for all non-passing grades assigned. There is NO credit assigned for attendance, but if you have a problem during the course of the semester, such as a poor grade, or you are needing to drop,  I will look at how much class you have attended when deciding what to do.
  2. If you are registered for the course but fail to complete any assignments or WebCT quizzes, I will either drop you from the course, or assign you an ‘F’ at the end of the semester. Do NOT count on me to drop you.

3.        It is your responsibility to get the notes if you miss class. You may NOT get the notes from me, you must make other arrangements, like getting them from a classmate. I do not give out my notes – no exceptions.

  1. Absolutely no exams, homeworks, quizzes, etc, may be made up after the last day of classes (during finals week and beyond). There are no exceptions to this rule.
  2. Assignments are due at the BEGINNING of the class period. Late means any time after the beginning of class.  Late quizzes and homeworks will be penalized as follows: 10% per day is deducted from your points for the assignment, up to one week late. No late assignments will be accepted after one week.
  3. If there is a reasonable reason to believe that a situation will arise that might prevent your taking of an exam at the scheduled time (such as participation in an approved extra-curricular activity), it is your responsibility to make arrangements with the me ahead of the scheduled exam time. At least 2 days’ notice is customarily expected, and more time may be required in many cases to make adequate alternative arrangements.
  4. If you  miss an exam because of a legitimate excused absence (such as documented illness or death in your family) – you must contact me within 24 hours after the exam was administered (but preferably before the exam). I will offer make-up exams sparingly, and at the convenience of myself or the TA for the course. 
  5. NO emailed assignments will be accepted. Please do not attempt to email me assignments if you were not in class.
  6. Please attempt to type or neatly write your homework. For assignments that have both computational and conceptual questions, you can type the written answers and turn in a separate page for the computational problems. If I can’t read your answers, you do not get credit for them.
  7. If I catch you cheating on an in-class assignment/exam, I will fail you for that exam. Under certain circumstances I reserve the right to fail you for the entire class, and/or to recommend to the dean of students that further disciplinary action be taken against you.
    1. If  I suspect that students have worked together or cheated on an out-of-class exam or assignment, I reserve the right to decide on the penalty fitting the magnitude of the infarction. This will be at a minimum failure of that assignment.
    2. Further, your word that “I didn’t cheat” is also not adequate. The handbook says “judged to have engaged in”……This judgment is made by me and the chairperson of the psychology department. Therefore, do not open yourself up to situations that may lead to a judgment of academic dishonesty.  When a classmate asks for your help, or to see an assignment of yours, it is common for your words to then end up on that other student’s assignment, and I judge that as cheating on both your parts. If you are in question about these policies, please speak to me.
  8. There is a calendar in WebCT that clearly lists the drop dates for this course (for example, Friday April 13th is the last day you may drop this course without approval from the Dean). Make sure you pay attention to these dates and keep track of your progress in the course. I will only assign ‘WP’ grades to students who have 58% of the total points AT THE TIME THEY DROPPED THE COURSE.
  9. When assignments are handed back in class, it is your responsibility to keep them. If there is an issue with a grade on your assignment, it is your responsibility to bring me the assignment is question.

 

Note*** If you have a special need or circumstances, such as needing extra time on tests or if you have (or think you may have) a learning disability, you MUST go through student services and get clearance to have special accommodations. I am sorry, I cannot offer you extra time, a quiet room, additional help with questions or exams unless you have a documented special need. Contact the Office of Student Support Services or the Office of Equal Opportunity for information regarding accommodations.

Studying and Doing Well in This Course:

ü       It is important that you try to attend class every session. Class will be a mix of lecturing on conceptual material and solving problems. Seeing problems solved in class will help you immensely.

ü       Do the sample problems in your textbook;  in most cases these problems are solved in the back of the book. Do the problems yourself first, then check your answers. Just looking at the problems solved will not aid you in learning the material.

ü       Check the website often. I will be posting additional material, tutorials, and sample problems to help you master the material and study for exams.

ü       Schedule study groups with other students. Often students find that explaining and discussing material with other students helps to solidify the concepts. If you give me advance notice, I can try to schedule study sessions for us as a class.

ü       Come and see me during office hours, or make an appointment to see me at another time, if you are getting lost or don't understand something that we have done.  

ü       Note on solving computational Problems: Neatness is worth a lot! In problems with many steps, write out all the steps and all the answers to each step before going on. The use of graph paper is helpful to organize tables of numbers, etc....

ü       SLOW DOWN! Many students work too quickly, and in doing so, skip easy steps or fail to notice a number that is obviously out of the range of the problem. Work slowly and neatly. The small amount of extra time that this takes is certainly less than the amount of time it would take you to redo the entire problem when you get to the end and your answer is not one of the multiple choice answers.

Course Mechanics: Grading:

Exams: 4 x 50 points = 200 points

The exams will be multiple choice, short answers, and long answers.

Quizzes:  6 x 10  points = 60 points

Homework: 4 x 25 points = 100 points

Extra Credit: To be announced in class. I DO make extra credit available!

 

Grades:

will be awarded based on the following percentages:

97 – 100+ % = A+ // 92– 96 = A //  88-92 = A-,  78 – 80 = B- // 81 – 84 = B // 85 - 87 = B+,  68 – 70 = C- // 71 – 74 = C// 75 - 77 = C+, 58 – 67 = D

57 and below = F

 

Schedule: Please allow for schedule changes.  All changes will be announced in class and posted on the website. Assignments may not be due the day the schedule indicates, if we get a little behind or ahead. It is your responsibility to keep up.