Dear Colleagues/Members:
I want to sincerely thank those persons who responded to my inquiry:
Should we emphasize calculation or concept in the teaching of introductory
statistics in the behavioral sciences (undergraduate)?
I posted this question via ALLSTAT (a UK-based worldwide email broadcast for
the statistical community) and [log in to unmask] (the email list of
the Survey Research Methods Section of the ASA - American Statistical
Association). The question was circulated on the 12/10/02, and by 10/12/02
forty-three (43) responses from unique e-mail addresses were received:
ALLSTAT = 17 (40%) and ASA = 26 (60%).
All participants referred to either their current or previous teaching
experience. In addition, a few mentioned statistical consultancy.
In the final analysis, there were three response categories for the stated
question:
1. Emphasize concept
2. Emphasize calculation
3. No dichotomy, both must be emphasized (concept and calculation are not
separate elements). NOTE: This third category was formulated after examining
the responses. The term "dichotomy" was stated by a few respondents.
Further, 37 (86%) respondents supplied open-ended text to support their
position. Most of the open-ended responses are well-structured and detailed
and provide interesting and helpful information on motivation for teaching
approach, which appears to be quite heterogeneous. I will perform thematic
analysis of the data and report at a later date.
Results
ALLSTAT (n=17) Concept (12) Calculation (3) No Dichotomy (2)
ASA (n=26) Concept (18) Calculation (1) No Dichotomy (7)
Total (N=43) Concept (30) Calculation (4) No Dichotomy (9)
Associated methodological limitations must be considered when interpreting
these results.
Thanks again,
Rossi A. Hassad, MPH, PhD
Assistant Professor,
Mercy College, New York
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