Welcome to MATH 1342/MATD 0342 – Stats Express

A co-requisite combination of MATH 1342 Elementary Statistics and 

MATD 0342 Statistics Foundation

Fall 2024 Syllabus

the Basics

About Your Instructors            

Name: Dr. Theresa Hoang

The best way to reach me is: Email

Phone number:  512-223-0157

Email: theresa.hoang@austincc.edu

Office location and hours: 

To schedule a conference outside of office hours: Email me for an appointment.

Name: Pedro Merced

The best way to reach me is: Email 

Phone number:  512-223-4870 (this is for my NRG office, please email)

Email: pedro.merced@austincc.edu

Office location and hours: 

To schedule a conference outside of office hours: Email me for an appointment.

About Your Course

Instructional Methodology: 

Classroom Section: This course is taught in the classroom primarily as a lecture/discussion course.

Synonym: MATH 1342-91490; MATD 0342-91284 Section: MATH 1342-043; MATD 0342-002

Meeting location: HLC, Building 2000, Room 2221 Meeting times: 9-11:50 am

Prerequisites: NCBM 0222 with a C or higher. Or appropriate score on math TSI Assessment test. Corequisite(s): MATH 1342.

Paired Course Policy: This is a paired course.  Students who withdraw from MATD 0342 will automatically be withdrawn from MATH 1342.

Required Materials  

This is a First Day™ class. The cost of required course materials, including an online version of the textbook and software access, has been added to your tuition and fees bill.     

1. Textbook: Statistics: Unlocking the Power of Data, 3rd Edition by Lock, Lock, Lock Morgan, Lock, Lock. Wiley (WileyPlus software) ISBN: 9781119682288
2. Access to videos: of examples and explanations
3. Access to Statistical Applets: for students to explore the concepts
4. Required Technology: 

• You will need a handheld scientific calculator.  You may use one that you already have, or if you want to buy a handheld scientific calculator, I recommend the TI-30XS. Graphing calculators are fine but not required.

• Internet access to use the statistical software StatKey, the Visualize applets, and the material in WileyPlus. 

1. Recommended: 3-ring binder to organize daily handouts

Course Calendar 

Note: Schedule changes may occur during the semester. Any changes will be posted on Blackboard. 

Important Dates

Last day to withdraw: November 21, 2024

Holidays (College is Closed): Monday, Sept 2 (Labor Day); Friday, Nov. 8 (Professional Development Day for Faculty); Monday, Nov. 11 (Veterans Day); Wednesday, Nov 27 at noon to Sunday, Dec 1 (Thanksgiving Break)

(Please note these are the ONLY holidays this semester.)

Making Time to Learn

We learn math by thinking about and working on mathematical problems, which takes time. Practice is crucial in a math course. To ensure that you have adequate time, set aside 8-12 hours per week outside of class time to practice and study for this course.  Ask for help immediately when something isn’t clear.  

Getting Help

ACC provides several free resources for students who need help; descriptions and links are below:  

Office hours: Another name for office hours is “student hours.” This is the time your instructor has set aside to answer student questions, so feel free to drop by if you have questions. Office hours may be virtual or on campus; see information above. 

Instructional Associates: Instructional Associates specific to the course you are taking are available for tutoring. To make an appointment, go to https://sites.google.com/a/austincc.edu/math-students/meet/list and then click on your course. 

Learning Labs: The ACC Learning Labs provide tutoring in math and other subjects. To schedule an appointment, go to https://www.austincc.edu/students/learning-lab. This site includes information about in person and virtual tutoring options.

Academic Coaching: Academic coaches offer extra support to students with study strategies; they want to help you learn to be an active participant in your own learning process. For more information or to make an appointment with an academic coach, go to https://www.austincc.edu/students/academic-coaching. 

ACC Student Services: Services are offered in many areas, including Academic, Financial, Personal, and Technology Support.  For more information, go to https://www.austincc.edu/student-support.

Expectations

The Nature of This Course 

This is an applied math class, which means it will be different in many ways from your other math classes. Statistics utilizes real-world data, which is rarely straight-forward but is much more interesting and relevant. You will do a lot more estimating and analyzing than computation in this course. Your explanations and analysis are weighed most heavily when your instructor evaluates your work. We will utilize technology rather crunching numbers by hand for much of this course. You may not have experienced this kind of learning before, and that can be a little intimidating.  However, students who haven’t always enjoyed a typical algebra course usually enjoy the nature of this course since it is so different.      

Why use group activities in Statistics Express? 

When an instructor prepares a math lecture, they have questions in mind that they ask the class as they work through examples.  Because students process information in different ways and at different rates, it can be difficult for all students to follow a lecture.  To give students more processing time, we have written our lectures out in activities.  This way every student has time to really think about the question, form better connections between concepts, and practice writing out meaningful responses.   In-class activities allow students to practice these skills before they are expected to do it on their own on an assignment.  The more effort and thought you put into the activities, the more you will learn and be prepared for what is expected on assignments and exams. 

How does working together help you learn Math? 

Working together exposes you to other ideas you may not have considered.  Also, it gives you an opportunity to pose questions to other students and to the instructor.  Responding to questions from other students allows you an opportunity to express your explanations and justifications and check your own understanding of the content.  Your instructor is always available to help clarify as you are working through the activities, so don’t hesitate to ask for help.   

Class Expectations 

• You are expected to struggle through some complicated ideas with classmates and on your own to make more meaningful connections and synthesize ideas.   
• You are expected to work with real-world scenarios and data, which means the numbers get messy.   
• You are expected to talk with other students about your ideas and listen carefully to their ideas so you can learn to think through all kinds of different math problems.   
• You are expected to spend a lot of time thinking more deeply about mathematical ideas, and to write about your thought process.   
• You are expected to think through a problem and apply your knowledge to problems that you have never seen before. 

Grades

The same exams, quizzes, and homework are used to determine both the MATD 0342 and MATH 1342 grades. Only the weighting of the grade calculation is different.

MATH 1342 Grade Components 

Exams: 70%

Quizzes: 15%

Online Homework: 15%

MATD 0342 Grade Components

Exams: 50%

Quizzes: 20%

Online Homework: 20%

Group work and participation: 10%

Grading Scale

A: 90 - 100

B: 80 – 89

C: 70 – 79

D: 60 – 69

F: < 60

Where can I find my grades? 

Grades will be posted in Blackboard. 

What will we do in this class? 

In-Class Exams 

There are four required unit exams.  Exams will be given in a proctored setting during class time.  On exams, you may use a handwritten 1-sided page of notes that may include formulas, definitions, or general steps, but not specific examples.

Quizzes

Quizzes are designed to pull together and assess concepts from several sections. They are to be completed at home, and you can get help from instructors and tutors on quizzes.  Read the quiz as we start to cover the related material to allow time to think about the questions and to get help if needed. 

Each quiz must have an original submission and a submission of corrections. Solutions become available immediately after the original submission, and then corrections are to be completed based on a careful comparison of the original assignment to the solutions. The assignment receives one grade based on both the quality of the original submission and the quality of the corrections. Original submissions are not expected to be fully correct but are expected to be complete and to demonstrate knowledge of course content.

Both the original assignment and the corrections must be submitted by 11:59 PM on the due date in order to be accepted as on time. Assignments submitted later than midnight will be subject to the late homework policy. CORRECTIONS ARE REQUIRED FOR ALL ASSIGNMENTS, REGARDLESS OF THE QUALITY OF THE INITIAL SUBMISSION. Do not wait for me to grade your first submission and give feedback before making corrections. I don’t grade anything until after the due date. Complete your corrections right away based on a careful comparison to the written solutions. Detailed instructions are posted in Blackboard.

Online Homework

Complete WileyPLUS online problems by the homework due date. You have 5 attempts to answer the question, and your work is not penalized for using multiple attempts unless you view the solution. Grading is automatic in WileyPLUS. Each assignment has basic skills questions and a few more advanced questions. It is recommended that you do these problems before the written homework to get immediate feedback. Students are held accountable for the content on tests and written assignments, even though it may be possible to get through an online assignment without true understanding by using multiple attempts.

Because of the limitations of machine-graded questions, online homework questions tend to be easier to answer than written homework and test questions. They should not be taken as an indication of the difficulty level of assessments for the course. However, they do help to provide some practice problems with immediate feedback, and to ensure that all objectives have been covered on assignments.

Group work and participation

You are going to interact with each other quite a bit and talk to each other about math. There will be group activities every day in class.  You are expected to be an active participant and contribute to the discussion of the problems on the group activities.  Though you will be working with other students, everyone will record the work on their own paper.  These will be your notes you will use to complete homework assignments, so you need to ask questions and make sure you understand the ideas in the activity.  

I know that some of you do not like to talk in class and others like to talk a lot, so we will follow a couple of easy rules. We give everyone a chance to talk. We respond to whatever anyone says with respect. We are concerned here about concepts that will help you succeed in your college-level math courses and ultimately achieve your academic goals. You are all in the same boat; I expect that students in this class will support each other and be respectful when working together.

To grade participation, your class activities/notes and reviews will be collected during exams.

What happens if I miss something? 

Late Quiz Policy:  A quiz is considered late if any part of it is submitted after the due date.

If a student chooses to redo an assignment that has already been graded, it counts as a late submission and is subject to the late written homework policy. Do not resubmit unless you prefer a late submission to your original score.

You may turn in up to three quizzes late for an exemption in the grade book. Exempt assignments are not calculated into grade averages. The three late assignments are intended to cover all cases of illness and emergency. No additional exceptions are allowed for special circumstances.

Late quizzes must be submitted no later than the unit’s test date.  For example, any quizzes in Unit 1 must be submitted by the Unit 1 test date to receive an exemption.  All unit quizzes that have not been submitted will receive a score of 0 after the unit test.

Late Online Homework Policy:  There is no late penalty for Homework Assignments after the due date.  The last day I will accept late online homework is the last day of class.

Missed Exam Policy: Email within 24 hours of a missed exam to discuss the possibility of a make-up exam.  There’s no guarantee that you can make up an exam, but please email to discuss.  

Attendance/Class Participation Policy: Regular and punctual class attendance is expected of all students. If attendance or compliance with other course policies is unsatisfactory, the instructor may withdraw students from the class.

Course Content

Course Description

Credit Hours: 6, Contact Hours: 6

MATH 1342 – Elementary Statistics (3-3-0). A first course in statistics for students in business; nursing; allied health; or the social, physical, or behavioral sciences; or for any student requiring knowledge of the fundamental procedures for data organization and analysis. Topics include frequency distributions, graphing, measures of location and variation, the binomial and normal distributions, z-scores, t-test, chi-square test, F-test, hypothesis testing, analysis of variance, regression, and correlation. 

MATD 0342 – Statistics Foundations (3-3-0). A course designed to develop the skills, including reading and thinking, and the understanding needed for non-math, non-science majors who take MATH 1342. This course surveys a variety of mathematical topics needed to prepare students for the statistical reasoning and data analysis needed in MATH 1342. Topics include: linear models; evaluating expressions and formulas; rates, ratios, and proportions; percentages; solving equations; data interpretations, including graphs and tables; and making distinctions and connections between types of data, questions being addressed, and the procedures used. This course is not for college level credit. Students who require any other college level math course other than MATH 1342 should not take this course.

MATH 1342 Course Rationale

Students will learn to

1. Determine the aspects of a question, if any, for which statistics can provide relevant information.
2. Analyze statistical studies, particularly regarding appropriate sampling and experimental design.
3. Select and use appropriate statistical analyses to get useful information from data.
4. Communicate knowledge using standard statistical language and also interpret it in non-technical language.

This course meets the Core Curriculum requirement in mathematics.  It meets the requirement for an introductory statistics course for students in many majors such as business, health sciences, and social sciences.

MATD 0342 Course Rationale

This course is intended only for students concurrently enrolled in the paired section of MATH 1342 who are TSI-mandated to take Developmental Math. Students who are mandated to take Developmental Math by the TSI rules may satisfy the TSI requirement by completing this course with a grade of C or better. Students who do not wish to take MATH 1342 concurrently, or who require MATH 1332 College Mathematics, should enroll in MATD 0485 Developing Mathematical Thinking or ask their advisor about a MATH 1332 co-requisite option. Successful completion of this course makes a student TSI complete in math for non-STEM courses, but does not qualify a student for MATH 1314 College Algebra or MATH 1324 Math for Business and Economics.

 MATD 0342 Course Objectives

Upon successful completion of the course, students will be able to: 

1. Use a variety of problem-solving strategies to solve multiple-step problems.
2. Solve application problems that require careful reading and the selection of the relevant information from a more extensive set of given information. 
3. Appropriately use order of operations to evaluate numerical expressions on a scientific calculator. 
4. Read data tables and graphs, and use the information to summarize general trends.
5. Produce and interpret graphs of two-variable data and distinguish between the variables having an exact relationship and a non-exact (noisy) relationship.
6. Work percentage problems including those based in two-way tables.
7. Solve linear equations in one variable.
8. Identify when a relationship between two variables is linear and use linear models.
9. Identify the order relation and compare orders of magnitude of multiple decimal numbers.

MATD 0342 Student Learning Outcomes

Upon successful completion of the course: 

1. Students will feel a sense of accomplishment in their increasing ability to use mathematics to solve problems of interest to them or useful in their chosen fields.
2. Students will learn to understand material using standard mathematical and statistical terminology and notation when presented either verbally or in writing.
3. Students will improve their skills in describing what they are doing as they solve problems using standard mathematical and statistical terminology and notation.

MATH 1342 Course Objectives

1. Interpret ideas of population versus sample, random variables, and techniques of descriptive statistics including frequency distributions, histograms, boxplots, and scatterplots. 
2. Calculate and interpret measures of central tendency and dispersion, including mean, median, standard deviation, and quartiles. 
3. Find and use empirical probabilities in bootstrap distributions to find confidence intervals and in randomization distributions to test hypotheses.
4. Find and use theoretical probabilities from normal, t, chi-squared and F distributions to form confidence intervals and test hypotheses. Apply the 95% rule to normal and to approximately normal distributions.
5. Analyze relationships between two quantitative variables using correlation and linear regression.
6. Analyze data presented in two-way tables to provide information about relationships between categorical variables.
7. Apply ideas of appropriate sampling techniques and experimental design to data production. 
8. Use the sampling distributions of sample proportions and sample means to answer appropriate questions. 
9. Estimate single means, difference of two means, single proportions and difference of two proportions using confidence intervals. Interpret the results. 
10. Demonstrate skills in hypothesis testing for means and proportions, for single populations and comparison of two populations. 
11. Demonstrate skills in hypothesis testing using chi-squared tests.
12. Demonstrate skills in inference for regression and ANOVA techniques.

Throughout the course, students will use statistical applets to do computations and produce graphical displays needed to analyze data.  Students will do some statistical calculations by hand with a scientific calculator.  

 MATH 1342 Student Learning Outcomes

Upon successful completion of the course, a student should be able to: 

1. Explain the use of data collection and statistics as tools to reach reasonable conclusions. 
2. Recognize, examine, and interpret the basic principles of describing and presenting data. 
3. Compute and interpret empirical and theoretical probabilities using the rules of probabilities and combinatorics.
4. Explain the role of probability in statistics. 
5. Examine, analyze, and compare various sampling distributions for both discrete and continuous random variables. 
6. Describe and compute confidence intervals. 
7. Solve linear regression and correlation problems. 
8. Perform hypothesis testing using statistical methods. 

General Education Competencies

1. Critical Thinking – gathering, analyzing, synthesizing, evaluating and applying information - is covered in every SLO. 
2. Quantitative and Empirical Reasoning – applying mathematical, logical, and scientific principles and methods - is covered in every SLO.
3. Technology Skills- using appropriate technology to retrieve, manage, analyze, and present information - is covered in SLOs # 2, 3, 5, 6, 7 and 8.
4. Written, Oral and Visual Communication – communicating effectively, adapting to purpose, structure, audience, and medium is covered in every SLO.

The Details

First Day Access: To enhance your learning experience and provide affordable access to the right course material, this course is part of an inclusive access model called First Day™. You can easily access the required materials for this course through Blackboard, at a discounted price, and benefit from single sign-on access.  Austin Community College includes the discounted price as a course fee in your registration fees for this course.

It is NOT recommended that you Opt Out, as these materials are required to complete the course. You can choose to Opt Out on the first day of class, but you will be responsible for purchasing your course materials at the full retail price and access to your materials may be suspended. See your course in Blackboard for details.

Importance of Completing Developmental Course Requirements:  The first steps to achieving any college academic goal are completing developmental course requirements and TSI requirements. The first priority for students who are required to take developmental courses must be the developmental courses. TSI rules state that students are allowed to take college credit courses, if they are fulfilling their developmental requirements. Because successful completion of developmental courses is so important, ACC will intervene with any student who is not successfully completing developmental requirements. This intervention can mean a hold on records, requiring developmental lab classes, working with the Instructional Associate, and monitoring during the semester.

Withdrawal Policy: It is the responsibility of each student to ensure that his or her name is removed from the roll should he or she decide to withdraw from the class. The instructor does, however, reserve the right to drop a student should he or she feel it is necessary. If a student decides to withdraw, he or she should also verify that the withdrawal is submitted before the Final Withdrawal Date. The student is also strongly encouraged to retain their copy of the withdrawal form for their records.

Students who enroll for the third or subsequent time in a course taken since Fall 2002 may be charged a higher tuition rate for that course.  State law permits students to withdraw from no more than six courses during their entire undergraduate career at Texas public colleges or universities. With certain exceptions, all course withdrawals automatically count towards this limit. Details regarding this policy can be found in the ACC college catalog.

Reinstatement Policy: Students who withdrew or were withdrawn will not be reinstated unless they have completed all coursework, projects, and exams necessary to place them at the same level of course completion as the rest of the class. Reinstatement is up to the instructor’s approval.

In-Progress Grade (MATD 0342 only): A student who is regularly attending, doing all assigned work but is still not earning a grade of C or higher, might be eligible for the IP (in progress) grade. An IP is a neutral grade with respect to the student’s GPA (it is not counted), but it might be treated like a W (non-completion) for the purposes of financial aid. Students who receive an IP grade are expected to retake (register and pay for) the course in the next semester they are enrolled at ACC.  Students may not receive more than 2 IPs in this course (or in any given developmental course.)

Incomplete Grade Policy: Incomplete grades (I) will be given only in very rare circumstances. Generally, to receive a grade of "I", a student must be up to date on coursework and have a passing grade, and after the last date to withdraw, have a legitimate reason that prevents course completion. An incomplete grade cannot be carried beyond the established date in the following semester. The completion date is determined by the instructor but may not be later than the final deadline for withdrawal in the subsequent semester.

Communication with Your Instructor: All e-mail communication to students will be sent solely to the student’s ACCmail account or math software if applicable, with the expectation that such communications will be read in a timely fashion.  Likewise, students should use their ACCmail account or math software when communicating with instructors.  Instructors will respond to student emails within 3 business days, if no response has been received by the student at the end of that time, then the student should send a reminder to the instructor.

Name Change Information: If you want to change how your name appears online at ACC, go to https://www.austincc.edu/admissions/update-student-information/chosen-name. 

General College Policies: Policies that apply to all courses at ACC can be found here: https://www.austincc.edu/offices/academic-outcomes-assessment/master-syllabi/college-policies.

Artificial Intelligence Policy: The use of artificial intelligence (AI) (for example, ChatGPT) in this course is not allowed. If a student is found to have used AI-generated content for an assignment or test, that student may fail the assignment or test and the course based on the discretion of the instructor.

The readings for this course are covered in the section above

The course subjects for this course are covered in the section above.

The student learning objectives are covered in the section above.