MATH 2332

Welcome to the resource page for Dr. Joe DeMaio's STAT 2332 classes at Kennesaw State University. I am constantly fiddling with notes and exercises. So, this site is almost always under construction!!!! Visit early and often.

STAT 2332 online in Summer 2024 will be taught differently than my usual style of face-to-face lectures and interaction. This term, ALEKS videos will be your starting point for learning the material. Here is the link to McGraw-Hill's ALEKS website with a little intro video. Next this guide provides info on logging in and setting up a new account. From there you can select our course. There you will find access to the electronic copy of your textbook, homework and additional resources. You will also need a course code from me to activate our specific course. It can be found in the D2L version of this announcement (for security reasons I do not post it to this public web page). You must complete the "Initial Knowledge Check" to open access to the course (ALEKS' idea; not mine).

In particular, videos can be watched after you login and select our section from your available courses. Now select assignments. All the videos, homeworks and eventually tests in that section appear for viewing. Videos run anywhere from 3 to 10 minutes. Note that we always use technology for complex computations. For example, I don't require you to compute standard deviation by hand. I do require you to be able to compute standard deviation using the TI-84 or R Studio or some other appropriate technology.

What is R Studio you ask? R Studio is open source software and available to download for free. It is also already installed on our computers at KSU. Here is an overall guide to R Studio from Geeks for Geeks. Most pertinent for us is the Statistics subsection.

If you prefer you may make use of the TI-83/84 for statistical calculations and tests. Here is a quick guide with pictures from Austin Peay State University on using the TI-84.

You will not have the time available on tests to conduct complex computations by hand. The assignment of videos reflects this philosophy. Particularly noteworthy is that we always compute normal curve values with the TI-84 or R Studio and NOT with tables. Ditto for confidence intervals. After watching videos the next critical step is practicing the techniques. Watching videos without practicing the techniques is insufficient preparation for tests. Videos provide the instruction needed for this course. Cramming videos and homework on the day of the test has proven to be wildly insufficient for earning a strong grade. Slow and steady wins the race here. Hey, look at that! Your first lesson in using data.

After watching videos, one should proceed to practice the techniques of the section. Once again, proceed to resources and then practice. These problems are not graded. You may attempt them as many times as you would like. Guides to solving each problem are available along with references to key sections of the textbook. Practice provides the learning needed for this course. Keep asking ALEKS to "try another" until you are perfectly adept at the problem types.

Since homework is not graded, all videos and homeworks are "open" all semester long with "submit" dates after the semester ends. That just ensures everything is available for viewing and practice all semester long. If you sort assignments by start date, everything should line up as videos and their companion homework.

One of my philosophies is the use of real data in the classroom. One favorite source of mine is Sports Reference since it is loaded with easy to find and interesting statistics. Another favorite site is the KSU factbook.

The following timeline documents our pace and test dates for the semester. Note that you should watch the videos prior to attending class/problem sessions for each date. For example, prior to meeting with me on say a 1/10/2024 meeting you should watch videos and attempt homework for the sections listed for that date in our calendar below. Homework is assigned for each topic. However, the number of problems attempted is up to you the student and your comfort level with the topic. You might feel comfortable after one problem (don't be) while someone else might require ten problems for a similar comfort level on a topic. It is up to you to click the try another button on the different homework topics. I strongly suggest at least five different problems for each topic. Your mileage should only vary going above five.

Tests and the final exam will be conducted via ALEKS. Tests will be open in a fixed window (1 day for tests, three days for the final) for which the student self-schedules their time to begin the exam. Once begun, the test must be completed within time period (120 minutes for a test). You have one attempt at each test. You cannot exit ALEKS and restart the test. If you wait to begin the test at 11:50 PM on the test day, you will only have nine minutes for the test. Tests close at 11:59 PM on their open day irregardless of when you begin.

ALEKS is a great system for remote, asynchronous courses! However, ALEKS can be very picky about rounding. It frequently wants accuracy to 4 decimal places. I think that's a bit much. While I am open to returning points on any test where ALEKS was too picky regarding rounding, it is most likely to happen in problems where you need to compute in the normal curve. While you should always check your tests to see what you did right (and congratulate yourself) and what you did wrong (to fix for a cumulative final), also check to see if ALEKS was overly picky regarding rounding. Send me question numbers of problems where you think this may have occurred. If it is picky rounding, I will be happy to restore points.

When you read the syllabus you will see that your grade is based entirely on tests. If you don't like that, you should drop the course rather then wait until the end of the term to complain on rate my professor. It makes you look like you can't or don't care to read a syllabus. Hey, look at that! Your second lesson in using data.

Syllabus Summer 2024 STAT 2332

Kennesaw State Syllabus general information

Asynchronous, remote learning is not for everyone. One needs to diligently self-schedule and adhere to study time. If you need an authority figure nagging you to study and reminding you of test dates, this modality might not be for you. To guide your self-study, I've prepared the following calendar of topics and test dates.

Summer 2024 STAT 2332 Study Calendar

This calendar is based on a Tuesday/Thursday timeline for meeting deadlines and 11 AM online office hours.

5/30/2024 Welcome; read syllabus; setup ALEKS; Chapter 1
6/4/2024 Chapter 2, Section 3.1
6/6/2024 Section 3.2, Section 3.3
6/11/2024 Section 4.1, Section 4.2
6/13/2024 Test 1: Easiest of the four tests; study hard and grab all the points you can
6/18/2024 Section 5.1 Basic Probability, Section 5.2 Complements and the Addition Rule
6/20/2024 Section 5.3 Product Rule and Conditional Probability
6/25/2024 Section 6.2 Binomial Distribution, Section 6.3 The Poisson Distribution
6/27/2024 Test 2: This is much more challenging than test 1; probability is hard!
7/2/2024 Section 7.1 The Standard Normal Curve, Section 7.2 Applications of the Normal Curve, Section 7.3 Central Limit Theorem for Means
7/4/2024 Holiday
7/9/2024 Section 7.4 Central Limit Theorem for Proportions, Section 8.1 Confidence Intervals for means with known standard deviation, Section 8.2 Confidence Intervals for means with unknown standard deviation and/or small sample size
7/11/2024 Section 9.1 and 9.2 Hypothesis Testing for means with known standard deviation, Section 9.3 Hypothesis Testing for small samples or unknown standard deviation
7/16/2024 Test 3: This is easier than test 2 but harder than test 1
7/18/2024 Section 9.4 Hypothesis Testing for Proportions, Section 11.1-11.3 Two variable hypothesis testing
7/23/2024 Review
7/24-25/2024 Final Exam

Of course, videos and homework problems do a poor job of responding to your questions. That’s where I come in with online office hours. These online help sessions are designed to assist one after watching the videos and doing the homework. I will host via MS Teams an optional (though highly recommended) discussion and problem session beginning at 11AM on Tuesdays and Thursdays. These are online office hours. I will be start a session at the scheduled time and stay until all student questions are answered. Depending upon the number of students and questions, these online office hours might end at 11:05 AM. 11:20 AM or 1PM. In these sessions, it is up to you as the students to determine what we want to do. I am happy to discuss statistics in general, work specific problems, discuss the big picture, etc. I like this stuff! Your questions are never a bother to me. It is my job and what I like to do. I know this time isn't perfect for everyone. However, even in an asynchronous, remote class, I like to have a drop-in time available.

The STAT Tutoring Lab is available for STAT 2332 assistance.

The following are old notes from a different textbook than we use now. They do not perfectly align with ALEKS and the Navidi/Monk text. However, the basic ideas haven't changed. Proceed with caution.

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MATH 2332