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Syllabus – Spring 2015
STA 250 – PRINCIPLES AND METHODS OF STATISTICS
Section 18 -
Room L2.79 NB (L2 Level –New Building)
Instructor: Agron Kaci
Office: 6.63.34 NB Math Dept.
Contact Hours: Mon/Wed: 6-
Phone: (646) 504-
E-
COURSE DESCRIPTION
This course, STA 250, is offered every semester as a required class in the Undergraduate Program for a total of 3 (three) credits. It provides an introduction to statistics as applied to the social sciences. It will introduce students to basic methodological and statistical issues in managing and analyzing data using specific and sophisticated computer applications.
There will be emphasis on the basic assumptions underlying statistical concepts and the role of statistics in the analysis and interpretation of data. Problems in frequency distribution, measures of location and variation, probability and sampling, tests of hypotheses and significance, linear regression and correlation, time series and index numbers will be tackled.
In addition patterns and relationship between variables and data will be examined. Using SPSS (Statistical Package for Social Sciences) software, students will calculate needed statistics for reaching correct and sound conclusions about research hypotheses. We will not use much formal mathematics. We will cover most of the text at the rate of about one chapter per week.
All classes meet in L2.79 NB computer classroom. Students will be able to access course materials and are required to complete work using WebAssign and the Blackboard Learning Management System Course web page, which is accessed through the CUNY web page (CUNY Portal) or directly here>>>. Students must establish email accounts, and communicate regularly with the instructor via email (akaci@jjay.cuny.edu).
Please note that the syllabus and course outline is subject to change based on class progress.
PRE-
STA 250 requires having taken ENG 101. In addition, MAT 108 and MAT 141 should have been taken prior to taking STA 250.
LEARNING OUTCOMES
STA 250 will try to address questions on the study of Statistics and lead you through a series of statistical tools and their use in criminal justice research. Through statistical procedures, you will gather, describe and summarize data. Additionally, this course will measure your ability to communicate statistical procedures and the corresponding results to an audience.
At the end of the semester, students will be able to:
1. Learn the language of statistics and research – concepts that frame our knowledge of crime and deviant behavior, as well as our analysis of causation, methods of sampling, measurement, and research design.
2. Students will develop a practical grasp of descriptive statistics (measures of central tendency and variation, co-
3. Students will develop a secure understanding of the principles of probability, sampling and inferential statistics, sufficient for statistical reasoning and to employ tests of significance in standard procedures up to multiple regression, but including t tests, ANOVA, ChiSquare and correlation.
4. Students will become confident users of the dominant software used for data analysis (SPSS/Excel/PSPP) and able to create and interpret graphical displays of data.
5. Students will learn to be confident users of primary data, able to download and transform those data sets, and to incorporate their data analysis results into written reports.
6. Students will be prepared to undertake upper-
7. Inspire reasonable enthusiasm and creative thinking about the possibilities for the improvement of justice and safety through statistical analysis and computer technology.
COURSE COMMUNICATION
Success in this course depends on the level and method of communication. If you seek help when you need it your path to success in this course will be clearer.
E-
You will need an email account to make the best use of this class. See the Communication section below for more information on e-
I suggest that all students use the John Jay College email account, because the LOGIN and PASSWORD from your email account allow you to create accounts and/or use the electronic resources, at places such as: the Library, ICPSR (Inter-
Consultations and/or meetings are limited to a 30-
There are two types of consultations:
• Face-
• Virtual
Since my availability on campus is limited, face-
RULES of COMMUNICATION
However, there are some rules as to how to communicate with your instructor:
1. Use my faculty e-
2. In every Subject line put "STA 250", so I know that your inquiry is about our class.
3. Enter appropriate greeting and introduce yourself. Not only it’s polite, it’s mandatory.
4. Explain the problem you are having.
5. btw, if u r 2 use e-
Also, addressing the instructor in an unprofessional manner will result in your email being ignored, until it’s replaced by a proper email. I expect you to be professional, as we are teaching and learning in a professional environment—a higher education institution.
6. Remember: THERE ARE NO "DUMB" QUESTIONS. Ask about anything related to the course!
7. I reserve the right to not respond to your question if I see that you have not complied with the readings of the class. In this case, I may tell you to read the assignment. If you have read the assignment, but you did not understand it, that is a different story, and I will certainly advise you on to the next step.
8. Also, please familiarize yourself with Netiquette. "Netiquette" is network etiquette, the rules of online communication. Netiquette covers both common courtesy online and the informal "rules of the road" of cyberspace. Follow the rules of Netiquette by going to this link>>>. Email Netiquette is found here>>>. (On a Word document, hold keyboard key and when the mouse changes to pointing hand, click on the link to open them in your default Web Browser).
Usually, I respond pretty quickly. If you don't get a timely e-
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Very Important!
1. I will assume that you use the John Jay e-
2. The first thing you will have to do is find out what email address you have on the Blackboard system.
a. To find this, log into your Blackboard page and in the Home tab look for the Tools module (upper-
b. In that module/box click on Update Email.
c. In the next page you will see the email you have on file. If you do not have an email address there, enter your John Jay email address (example: john.smith@jjay.cuny.edu).
d. If you have some other email address but not John Jay email address, please update it with your John Jay one.
3. An alternative solution for you is to forward your John Jay e-
4. If you don’t complete an assignment because of failure in communication, (not checking my e-
TEXTS, TOOLS, AND SOFTWARE
The most important tools for success in this course are time spent working at the computer and patience to learn what you don't know. This prescription may seem simplistic, but shortchanging yourself in either time or tolerance for errors will make this learning process much harder and much more stressful.
NOTE: It is necessary you save your work and have a backup copy. Lost files or crashed computer hard drives will NOT be an excuse at the end of the semester to submit work late. Make sure work is saved on your disk/flash drive, your home computer and your personal folder at school.
TEXT/MATERIALS/WEB:
This section of STA 250 will be taught in a computer lab (L2.79 NB) and will use hardware (computers and other components) and software (Blackboard, Microsoft Office, and SPSS) in every class.
You will need to acquire the textbook, which is mandatory for this course. The text is:
"Discovering Statistics Using IBM SPSS Statistics", 4th Edition by Andy Field, Sage Publisher.
YOU WILL BUY THE BUNDLE: FIELD: DISCOVERING STATISTICS USING IBM SPSS STATISTICS 4E + EBOOK + WEBASSIGN SINGLE TERM + SPSS VERSION 22.0
Bundle price estimated at : $133.00
ISBN-
Important: You should buy the bundle: The textbook + SPSS + WebAssign key, to create an account where you will take the assignments in this course.
Handouts: Additional handouts may be required. The instructor will provide information on obtaining this material, if necessary.
Online Companion: http://www.sagepub.com/books/Book244832?
The options for getting the textbook and USB Flash Drives are:
1. Textbook information:
Buy the textbook in the John Jay Bookstore. It will come bundled with WebAssign and SPPS.
If you want to buy this textbook (make sure it is bundled with WebAssign + SPSS, so double-
2. Flash drive and cloud space details and instructions:
I advise you to also consider purchasing a USB flash drive (2 GB is sufficient, but 4GB is recommended) which starts at approximately $20 (4GB).
There are other options where you can save your work on the “cloud”, a term that refers to the space you can have online. One such service is Dropbox. You may want to click here to create a free account:
https://www.dropbox.com/
SOFTWARE
The following software (programs) will be explored during the course:
1. WebAssign.
2. IBM SPSS (Statistical Package for Social Sciences).
3. Microsoft Excel.
4. Blackboard.
ASSESSMENT & GRADING
Grades will be based on 2 examinations (Midterm and Final), Homework assignments and In-
Weekly Homework Assignments will be provided to students via WebAssign. There is generally one assignment to be done at home per chapter and it is usually due at 11:59 pm on a Sunday.
Midterm and
Final examinations are mandatory and will be administered in class. No one will be excused from them or allowed to take it at another time.
All Exercises and Exams will be graded upon how correct you are on your already given answers, as well as how thorough, interesting and sophisticated your answers are. In addition, the logical and structure of your answers, as well as the validity of your argumentative support will certainly be considered. For more information, read the STA250 Rubric thoroughly.
Students are required to work on the computer each week, to practice weekly software exercises, and to submit assignments on time. Please use email to consult with me about this course!
No individual letter grades will be given for any of these components. Your letter grade for the course will be based on your overall score, according to the assignments’ weight below:
Assignment | Weight | Points | Possible | Venue
Weekly Assignments | 35% | vary | WebAssign
Midterm Exam | 25% | 100 | WebAssign
Final Exam | 40% | Points may vary | WebAssign /or Blackboard
Total | 100%
Feedback may be given via Blackboard, WebAssign, or/and e-
The final grade will be the cumulative score of all assignments together. The maximum score will be 100. Please refer to the Undergraduate Bulletin (pg. 232) for our college’s policies on grades, and find out which grade you will receive based on your final cumulative score. So, if you accumulate 93 or more points at the end of the semester, you will get an “A”.
The table below explains in more details the CUNY grading schema:
Grades scored between… | will equal | Explanation
93 % and 100% Outstanding
90 % and less than 93% Excellent
87% and less than 90% Very Good
83 % and less than 87% Good
80 % and less than 83%
77 % and less than 80%
73 % and less than 77% Satisfactory
70 % and less than 73% Poor
67 % and less than 70% Very Poor
63 % and less than 67% Passing
60 % and less than 63% Passing
0 % and less than 60% Failure
Cell Phones:
It is requested that all mobile phones be TURNED OFF or SILENCED prior to class, except in emergency situations.
WORDS OF CAUTION ABOUT ATTENDANCE
Each class is important, and becomes the basis for the succeeding class. If you miss a class, or do not do the homework, or take time in front of the computer for the hands-
If a student falls four consecutive classes behind in attendance and the submission of at least one required assignment (Homework, Exercise, or Exams), I will assume that the student has withdrawn, and record a grade of WU (Withdrew Unofficially). There will be no incompletes given for this course. Repeated tardiness to class is a disruption for your fellow students and will negatively impact your grade. If you are more than 15 minutes late for class you will be marked absent.
Blackboard is the software chosen by John Jay College for its Distance Education and Hybrid classes. You access the course page at CUNY Portal, through the College home page, or directly here>>>. Frequent Blackboard access is required in order to succeed in this course. If you do not access Blackboard in more than a week you will be automatically notified with an email. Upon receiving the email, you need to access Blackboard and interact with the required activities.
JOHN JAY COLLEGE POLICY ON ACADEMIC INTEGRITY
Plagiarism is the presentation of someone else‘s ideas, words, or artistic, scientific, or technical work as one‘s own creation. Using the ideas or work of another is permissible only when the original author is identified. Paraphrasing and summarizing, as well as direct quotations require citations to the original source.
Plagiarism may be intentional or unintentional. Lack of dishonest intent does not necessarily absolve a student of responsibility for plagiarism.
It is the student‘s responsibility to recognize the difference between statements that are common knowledge (which do not require documentation) and restatements of the ideas of others. Paraphrase, summary, and direct quotation are acceptable forms of restatement, as long as the source is cited.
The following are some examples of plagiarism, but by no means is it an exhaustive list:
Copying another person’s actual words without the use of quotation marks and footnotes attributing the words to their source;
Presenting another person’s ideas or theories in your own words without acknowledging the source;
Using information that is not common knowledge without acknowledging the source;
Failing to acknowledge collaborators on homework and laboratory assignments.
Internet plagiarism includes submitting downloaded term papers or part of term papers, paraphrasing or copying information from the Internet without citing the source, and “cutting and pasting” from various sources without proper attribution.
Students who are unsure how and when to provide documentation are advised to consult with their instructors. The Library has free guides designed to help students with problems of documentation. (John Jay College of Criminal Justice Undergraduate Bulletin, http://www.jjay.cuny.edu/academics/654.php, see Chapter IV Academic Standards)
Cheating is the unauthorized use or attempted use of material, information, notes, study aids, devices or communication during an academic exercise. The following are some examples of cheating, but by no means is it an exhaustive list:
Copying from another student during an examination or allowing another to copy your work;
Unauthorized collaboration on a take-
Using notes during a closed book examination;
Taking an examination for another student, or asking or allowing another student to take an examination for you;
Changing a graded exam and returning it for more credit;
Submitting substantial portions of the same paper to more than one course without consulting with each instructor;
Preparing answers or writing notes in a blue book (exam booklet) before an examination.
Blackboard, in an effort to reduce plagiarism, has created a mechanism inside it, called SafeAssign. We will cover it, if it’s necessary, as we cruise through the semester. Also, the College subscribes to Turnitin.com, another plagiarism-
Please be aware that plagiarism (as defined above) will lead to failure in this course.
AMERICANS WITH DISABILITIES ACT (ADA) POLICIES
Qualified students with disabilities will be provided reasonable academic accommodations if determined eligible by the Office of Accessibility Services (OAS). Prior to granting disability accommodations in this course, the instructor must receive written verification of a student’s eligibility from the OAS which is located at 1233N (212-
Source: Reasonable Accommodations: A Faculty Guide to Teaching College Students with Disabilities, 4th ed., City University of New York, p.3. (http://www.jjay.cuny.edu/studentlife/Reasonable_Accommodations.pdf)
IMPORTANT NOTE TO STUDENTS
The material presented in this course is cumulative in nature, in that you need to understand previously presented material in order to successfully understand today’s assignments. The most successful learning method would be to learn at a regular pace. Also, you need to regularly work with the statistical software. If you don’t understand the material, stop and try again later. Reread the chapter! If you are still at a loss, ask your instructor. You really need to understand the material, so don’t feel self-
Statistics calls for class attendance. When you are in class you may be at an advantage because of the instructor’s reinforcements of concepts and procedures.
I, the professor, reserve the right to alter the provisions of the syllabus in the interest of fairness.
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“You are rewarding a teacher poorly if you remain always a pupil.” Friedrich Nietzsche