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MTH 1008
General Elementary Statistics
Course Syllabus

Contact Information    Email Protocol

Materials    Description   

Schedule    Grading and Assessments    Course Policies

Course: MTH 1008, General Elementary Statistics, 12/SP

Prerequisite: MTH 0907 and MTH 0908 both with C or better, or the appropriate score on a math placement exam.

Contact Information:

E-mail (preferred): Dawn_Wiggins@ivcc.edu  
Phone: (815) 224-0339
Address
: 815 N. Orlando Smith Ave.
                Oglesby, IL 61348
Office: E-307
Office Hours: See Web Site
Web Site: http://www.ivcc.edu/dwiggins
Correspondence Replies: Barring unforeseen circumstances, I will check and reply to messages at least once per day during the week.  I will check and reply to messages once over the weekend.  I hope that my schedule for checking messages will result in a reply within at least 48 hours, but most likely less than 24 hours.

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Email Protocol:
Unless otherwise instructed, send email to my campus email account.  When composing the message, please put the course, meeting time, your name, and email subject in the subject line.  (e.g. "MTH 1008 10AM - D. Wiggins Take an Exam Early")

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Materials:

Text (optional): Statistics, 2007 Sp. Ed. by Sullivan & Black is optional (IVCC special edition based on the second edition of Statistics, Informed Decisions Using Data by Sullivan).  The custom published text is available at the IVCC bookstore.  An electronic version of the text is available in MyMathLab/CourseCompass.

Calculator: Scientific calculator required; I recommend the TI-30X IIS or TI-30X IIB.  (Graphing calculator, PDA, cell phone, etc. NOT permitted for exams.)

Online:

Reliable internet access.  Use a personal computer or the computer facilities in the Learning Commons on campus, http://www.ivcc.edu/studenthelpdesk.aspx?id=16720.  If you use a personal computer, it must meet the minimum system requirements as identified by CourseCompass (http://www.coursecompass.com/html/system_requirements.html) and MyMathLab (http://www.mymathlab.com/system.html).  NOTE: MyMathLab does NOT support Linux operating systems.

A valid email address.  Use a college provided account (http://www.ivcc.edu/email).  (Be sure that you set up your CourseCompass/MyMathLab account with an email address that you check daily; per IVCC policy, I strongly encourage you to use your college email account.)

A student access code to access to MyMathLab powered by CourseCompass.  Purchase through the IVCC bookstore or online, http://www.coursecompass.com/html/student_register.html.(Be sure that you set up your CourseCompass/MyMathLab account with an email address that you check daily; per IVCC policy, I strongly encourage you to use your college email account.)

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Description:
This course is intended to provide students with a basic understanding of the role of statistics in society along with a workable knowledge of statistical methods. Topics include graphical methods of organizing data, numerical descriptions of data, basic probability theory, probability distributions, statistical inference, estimation, hypothesis testing, correlation and regression.

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Schedule and Topics:

MWF Schedule    TR Schedule    Thursday Night Schedule

Section 1.1- Introduction to the Practice of Statistics
Section 1.2- Observational Studies, Experiments, and Simple Random Samples
Section 1.3- Other Effective Sampling Methods
Section 1.4- Sources of Error in Sampling

Section 2.1- Organizing Qualitative Data
Section 2.2- Organizing Quantitative Data
Section 2.4- Graphical Misrepresentations of data

Section 3.1- Measures of Central Tendency
Section 3.2- Measures of Dispersion
Section 3.4- Measures of Position
Section 3.5- Five Number Summary and Boxplots

Section 4.1- Scatter Diagrams and Correlation
Section 4.2- Least-Squares Regression
Section 4.3- Diagnosis of Least-Squares

Section 5.1- Probability Rules
Section 5.2- The Addition Rule and Complements
Section 5.3- Independence and the Multiplication Rule
Section 5.4- Conditional Probabilities and the General Multiplication Rule
Section 5.5- Counting Techniques

Section 6.1- Discrete Random Variables
Section 6.2- The Binomial Probability Distribution

Section 7.1- Properties of the Normal Distribution
Section 7.2- The Standard Normal Distribution
                        Corrections: #17 is 2.05
Section 7.3- Applications of the Normal Distribution
                        Corrections: #3 is 0.9838, #5 is 0.2389, #11 is 0.7175
                        The textbook has published the results for 3, 5 & 11 using Excel, rather than the results using Table IV.

Section 8.1- Distribution of the Sample Mean

Section 9.1- Introduction to Confidence Intervals
Section 9.2- More Confidence Intervals

Section 10.1- The Language of Hypothesis Testing
Section 10.2- Hypothesis Testing
Section 10.3- More Hypothesis Testing

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Grading and Assessments and Study Guidelines:

On average, you should plan for at least 6 hours per week of study time outside of class.  Some weeks may require more, others less.  Also, the amount of time the you need to spend will depend on your comfort level with mathematics and your skill base.

See also the assessment policies below.

 

Course Grading Course Assessments

100 - 90%

A
89 - 80% B
79 - 70% C
69 - 60% D
59 - 0% F
Online Homework 100 pts
Surveys, Quizzes, Activities, etc. ~150 pts
Exams 400 pts (4 @ 100 pts each)
Cumulative Final 200 pts

Online Access: It is your responsibility to arrange for reliable online access to the course.  Please keep in mind that technology problems (e.g. lost internet service, broken computer, etc.) or personal difficulty with the course content do not exempt you from the assigned deadlines.  Plan accordingly: complete assessments with enough time left to allow for possible problems; and, have at least two computer alternatives for accessing the online course materials (e.g. IVCC's Learning Commons, a friend, a local library, work, etc.).

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Online Homework: The online homework is located online in MyMathLab/CourseCompass.  Be sure to complete the homework by the assigned deadlines posted in MyMathLab.  Any homework not completed by the assigned deadline posted in MyMathLab will be assigned a score of zero.

See also Online Access.

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Surveys, Quizzes, Activities, etc.: You are expected to be in class each day for the duration of the class period.  Missed or late assessments will be assigned a score of zero.   

Possible quiz formats include in-class, online, and take-home; and, announced or unannounced.

See also Online Access.

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Exams: You are expected to take the exam during the class period in which it is administered.  You may take an exam early, so plan accordingly.  If you miss an exam, you may make up the points for a single missed exam at the end of the semester with your cumulative final exam score.  You will earn a score of zero for any subsequent missed exam(s)

Replace Lowest Exam Score:
The score from the cumulative exam will be used to replace your single lowest exam score.  If you have missed an exam, then the score from the cumulative exam will be used to replace the score for the missing exam.

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Course Policies:

Email: Be sure that you set up your CourseCompass/MyMathLab account with an email address that you check daily; per IVCC policy, I strongly encourage you to use your college email account (http://www.ivcc.edu/email). 

Attendance: You are expected to attend each class in its entirety.  The points for missed class assessments can NOT be made up.

Academic Conduct: Academic honesty is expected.  Violations will not be tolerated.  The instructor reserves the right to assign a score of zero on any assignment where academic dishonesty occurs.  The instructor also reserves the right to file an Academic Dishonesty Report with the office of  Academic Affairs.  Other possible disciplinary action includes failure of the course or withdrawal from the course; and, possibly, withdrawal from the college.

Respect: IVCC's core values of respect, caring, honesty, fairness and responsibility are represented by the acronym ReaCHFaR.  Respect has been chosen as this year's campus wide theme. Respect influences each of us daily -- at school, in our homes, at work, and in our fields of study. Keep the theme in mind as you complete course activities this semester.

Classroom Computer Etiquette:  You may use the computers during class for CLASS RELATED materials (e.g. notes, textbook, etc.).  If you choose to use a computer, please be sure to shut it down prior to leaving the class.  I reserve the right to immediately dismiss any student from class who uses the computers for anything other than class related materials; repeated offenses may result in withdrawal from the course, or failure if it is past the last day for withdrawal.

Electronic Devices: To avoid disruptions to fellow students, please silence all electronic devices (e.g. phones, alarms, etc.) prior to the beginning of each class. 

School Closings:   In the event of inclement weather, please tune to a local radio station for possible school closings.  Check the Announcements in CourseCompass for further instructions.

Class Cancellations:   To determine if class is cancelled, check IVCC's Class Cancellations page (http://www.ivcc.edu/cancellations.aspx?id=2810).  Check the Announcements in CourseCompass for further instructions.

Special Needs Educational Support ServicesYou may be eligible for academic accommodations through the Disability Services Office if you have a documented physical, psychiatric, or cognitive disability such as a learning disability or ADD/ADHD. If you have a disability and need more information regarding possible accommodations, please contact Tina Hardy at 224-0284 or Judy Mika at 224-0350; or, stop by office B-204.

Withdrawals: Effective Summer 2011, students will have the ability to initiate a withdrawal from classes. By completing the form in the Records Office or through the form located within WebAdvisor, the student is authorizing IVCC to remove him/her from the course. Entering the student ID number serves as the student’s electronic signature. IVCC has the right to rescind a withdrawal in cases of academic dishonesty or at the instructor’s discretion.

Students should be aware of the impact of a withdrawal on full-time status for insurance purposes and for financial aid. It is highly recommended that students meet with their instructor or with a counselor before withdrawing from a class to discuss if a withdrawal is the best course of action for that particular student.

All withdrawals earn a grade of "W", which does not affect the GPA, but deletes the course credit(s) for the involved course(s).  Withdrawal from the course is NOT automatic.  Even if you cease all activity in the course, you must be withdrawn from the course.  All students on the roster at the end of the course will be assigned a grade.  The last day for withdrawal is Monday April 9th 2012. 

To initiate a withdrawal, you can

  1. Email your name AND student ID number to me.
                OR

  2. Complete the form in the Records Office or at www.ivcc.edu/withdrawals.  (IVCC has the right to rescind a withdrawal in cases of academic dishonesty or at the instructor’s discretion.)

You should be aware of the impact of a withdrawal on full-time status for insurance purposes and for financial aid. It is highly recommended that you consult with me, a counselor, and the Financial Aid Office before withdrawing from a class to discuss if a withdrawal is the best course of action for you.

It is your responsibility to make sure the withdrawal is processed prior to the deadline. 

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NOTE: This course syllabus is subject to change to meet the learning needs of the students and/or the needs of the professor.

Last Updated: 09 January, 2012

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