The Use of Investigations in the Introductory Statistics Course

Reasons for including investigations in a first course in statistics are presented. Investigations create an environment of participation and give the student the opportunity to experience statistics in action. This participation highlights the interaction between science and statistics. Suggestions are made regarding the integration of investigations into a formal course environment. One investigation is presented in detail. Thirteen other investigations are outlined. Emphasis is placed on experiments that require minimal set-up time yet illustrate important statistical concepts.     

Introductory Statistics Textbooks and the GAISE Recommendations

The six recommendations made by the Guidelines for Assessment and Instruction in Statistics Education (GAISE) committee were first communicated in 2005 and more formally in 2010. In this article, 25 introductory statistics textbooks are examined to assess how well these textbooks have incorporated the three GAISE recommendations most relevant to implementation in textbooks (statistical literacy and thinking; use of real data; stress concepts over procedures). The implementation of another recommendation (using technology) is described but not assessed. In general, most textbooks appear to be adopting the GAISE recommendations reasonably well in both exposition and exercises. The textbooks are particularly adept at using real data, using real data well, and promoting statistical literacy. Textbooks are less adept—but still rated reasonably well, in general—at explaining concepts over procedures and promoting statistical thinking. In contrast, few textbooks have easy-usable glossaries of statistical terms to assist with understanding of statistical language and literacy development. Supplementary materials for this article are available online.     

Statistics for Quality and Productivity: A New Graduate-Level Statistics Course

The growing popular realization that American product quality and productivity are no longer without challenge for world leadership presents an opportunity for the American statistical community to make stronger contributions to sound industrial practice than it has in the past. Management consultants, such as Deming and Juran, are promoting philosophies that contain strong statistical components and are being heard by top U.S. executives. There are thus growing opportunities for industrial statisticians. Upon reviewing the content of typical graduate-level statistical quality control courses and books in the light of the present situation, we find them to be inadequate and in some cases to suffer from inappropriate emphases. In this article we discuss our perceptions of what is needed in the way of a new graduate-level course in statistics for quality and productivity (SQP). We further offer for discussion a syllabus for such a course (which is a modification of one used at Iowa State in the 1983 spring semester), some comments on how specific topics might be approached, and also a partially annotated list of references for material that we believe belongs in a modern SQP course.     

A Review of Eight Statistics Software Packages for General Use

Eight statistical software packages for general use by non-statisticians are reviewed. The packages are GraphPad Prism, InStat, ISP, NCSS, SigmaStat, Statistix, Statmost, and Winks. Summary tables of statistical capabilities and “usability” features are followed by discussions of each package. Discussions include system requirements, data import capabilities, statistical capabilities, and user interface. Recommendations, based on user needs and sophistication, are presented following the reviews.     

What Your Future Doctor Should Know About Statistics: Must-Include Topics for Introductory Undergraduate Biostatistics

The increased emphasis on evidence-based medicine creates a greater need for educating future physicians in the general domain of quantitative reasoning, probability, and statistics. Reflecting this trend, more medical schools now require applicants to have taken an undergraduate course in introductory statistics. Given the breadth of statistical applications, we should cover in that course certain essential topics that may not be covered in the more general introductory statistics course. In selecting and presenting such topics, we should bear in mind that doctors also need to communicate probabilistic concepts of risks and benefits to patients who are increasingly expected to be active participants in their own health care choices despite having no training in medicine or statistics. It is also important that interesting and relevant examples accompany the presentation, because the examples (rather than the details) are what students tend to retain years later. Here, we present a list of topics we cover in the introductory biostatistics course that may not be covered in the general introductory course. We also provide some of our favorite examples for discussing these topics.     

改革开放30年中国统计学发展的回顾与展望

 本文对我国改革开放30年来统计学的发展历程进行了回顾,充分肯定了在学科认识、学术交流、人才培养和理论研究与应用等方面取得的成绩,并在次基础上进行了总结和展望,认为：要从历史的角度客观看待我国统计学的发展成就;要珍惜已经达成的某些共识,促进我国统计学全面发展;要着眼于中国统计学发展的未来,进一步提高我国的高等统计教育水平;要从创新与应用相结合的角度,进一步提高我国的统计研究水平。     

A Survey of the Teaching of Statistics in M.B.A. Programs

A survey of business schools was conducted to obtain information about the current state of the teaching of business statistics to students enrolled in M.B.A. degree programs. The survey was undertaken for and presented at a June 1986 conference on “Making Statistics More Effective in Schools of Business,” held at the University of Chicago's Graduate School of Business. Information was elicited concerning both the required statistics sequence and elective statistics courses for M.B.A. students, as well as computer usage in these courses. This article summarizes the information obtained from the survey.     

Applying Cognitive Theory to Statistics Instruction

This article presents five principles of learning, derived from cognitive theory and supported by empirical results in cognitive psychology. To bridge the gap between theory and practice, each of these principles is transformed into a practical guideline and exemplified in a real teaching context. It is argued that this approach of putting cognitive theory into practice can offer several benefits to statistics education: A means for explaining and understanding why reform efforts work; a set of guidelines that can help instructors make well-informed design decisions when implementing these reforms; and a framework for generating new and effective instructional innovations.     

Easy Implementation of Writing in Introductory Statistics Courses

In the past decade there has been a substantial increase in the number of introductory statistics courses taught at the undergraduate level. Many have argued successfully for the extensive use of writing in such courses in an attempt to highlight the interdisciplinary role of statistics and acknowledge that a good statistician must also be good at summarizing his or her analyses to nonstatisticians. This point was made by Radke-Sharpe, who went on to add that incorporating writing demands time, energy, and creativity, but that it is usually well worth the effort. This article discusses the efforts made by the authors to include writing in their courses, and some of the techniques that made the writing process painless and productive for both students and faculty.     

Meeting Student Needs for Multivariate Data Analysis: A Case Study in Teaching an Undergraduate Multivariate Data Analysis Course

Modern students encounter large, messy datasets long before setting foot in our classrooms. Many of these students need to develop skills in exploratory data analysis and multivariate analysis techniques for their jobs after college, but such topics are not covered in traditional introductory statistics courses. This case study describes my experience in designing and teaching an undergraduate course on multivariate data analysis with minimal prerequisites, using real data, active learning, and other interactive activities to help students tackle the material. Multivariate topics covered include clustering and classification (among others) for exploratory data analysis and an introduction to algorithmic modeling. Supplementary materials for this article are available online.     

A Non-Typical Least-Squares Solution to an Engineering Problem

In preposterior analysis, Bayesians use an Expected-Net-Gain chart to identify the optimal sample size. This kind of chart, it turns out, is also an excellent educational vehicle for illustrating many of the reasons given for preferring sampling from a population over taking a census, preferring one type of sampling over another (e.g., stratified sampling rather than simple random sampling), or allocating part of a fixed budget to reduce systematic error rather than using it all to reduce sampling errors. The use of such a chart in a basic statistics course is described.     

渔业统计制度的国际比较及对我国的启示

随着全球经济一体化和信息技术的快速发展,我国的经济和贸易交往将进一步增强,社会经济现象将越来越复杂。因此,了解渔业统计制度并进行国际比较分析显得十分重要,它对国家制定渔业发展及经济管理政策有着重要意义。本文通过对各国渔业的统计制度和组织机构、统计法规和统计指标以及渔业统计管理和方法等方面的比较研究,为完善我国的渔业统计制度和运行机制提供借鉴。     

Advanced Placement Statistics: Expanding the Scope of Statistics Education

A list of consequential developments in the field of statistics for the past quarter-century must include the creation and implementation of the Advanced Placement (AP) program in Statistics. This program has introduced millions of high school students to our discipline over the past 18 years, contributing to the large increase in the number of undergraduate students pursuing statistics as their major in college. ASA members and leaders have played a substantial role in shaping this program and furthering its success.     

政府债务统计国际比较研究

政府债务统计是分析一国或地区政府财政状况和评估财政风险的重要依据,欧洲主权债务危机爆发之后受到国际社会的高度重视。本文对国际组织政府债务统计体系和英、美、加、日、中等国的政府债务统计进行比较研究,分析不同体系和不同国家在概念、分类、指标、统计准则与口径、数据发布等方面的异同及主要特征。目前,中国的政府债务统计尚不完善,存在不少问题,概念与分类体系不明确,不同部门之间统计口径存在差异,统计指标单一,不利于政府债务管理与风险监控。中国应加快建立和完善政府债务统计体系,重点在于：（1）统一政府债务统计口径;（2）尽快开展政府净债务统计;（3）加快编制国家资产负债表;（4）健全政府债务统计指标体系;（5）完善政府债务信息公开制度。     

我国近现代统计学发展

本文在查阅大量文献的基础上，系统梳理了近代西方统计理论传入我国之后统计学的发展历程。从西方统计理论的传入到统计学在我国的本土化发展，从统计学“一门”与“两门”之争到“大统计”思想的兴起、再到统计学一级学科的建立，从统计学术组织的成立、发展到其对统计学科建设的推动作用，本文尽可能客观地对以上内容进行回顾和展现，以期读者对我国近现代统计学发展有一个基本的了解。     

A Note on the Role of Independence in t Statistics Constructed From Linear Statistics in Regression Models

Although the semilogarithmic chart is one of the most effective, adaptable, and dependable graphic forms, it has been subject to neglect and indifference by contemporary chart makers. At the present time, a large proportion of chart makers are simply not aware of the distinctive qualities and unusual potentials of the semilogarithmic chart. In addition to discussions of the characteristics, applications, interpretation, advantages, and disadvantages of the semilogarithmic chart, actual cases of ill-chosen graphic forms and substandard charts are analyzed and compared, which clearly demonstrates the superiority of the semilogarithmic chart for many purposes.     

Maintaining the Professional Integrity of Federal Statistics

Transactional analysis can be used to analyze personal interactions between consulting statisticians and their clients. The Parent-Adult-Child model has recently been refined to consist of six states by subdividing the Parent and Child ego states. The authors briefly define the six ego states (Nurturing Parent, Critical Parent, Adult, Adapted Child, Free Child, and Rebellious Child) and describe their occurrence during statistical consultations. Recommendations are given for identifying the ego states, setting realistic goals for relationships, and modifying unsatisfactory transactions.     

《中国统计年鉴》：政府统计窗口建设的回顾与展望

《中国统计年鉴》是显示中国发展状况的窗口,也是显示中国政府统计能力的窗口。本文以纵向历史变化为主线,首先回顾了《年鉴》从无到有和后续演变的全过程,着力发掘变化背后的原因和力量;然后着眼未来建设,对《年鉴》的内容架构和基本定位做了比较深入的讨论。     

The Many Facets of Statistics Education: 175 Years of Common Themes

The American Statistical Association's primary founder, Lemuel Shattuck, was driven by a passion for collecting and disseminating accurate information on vital statistics, public health, and other statistically related concerns. The 175th anniversary provides an opportunity to reflect on the education-related reasons ASA was founded and what it has done in education since its founding, especially in the past 25 years since the 150th anniversary. An examination of early and more recent issues of the ASA's journals reveals some common themes that have recurred over the past 175 years. We discuss what those themes are and what the ASA is doing to address them currently, and then conclude by discussing what ASA members can do to help.