ATLANTA METROPOLITAN COLLEGE

The Division of Social Sciences

Course Outline for Spring 2008

COURSE ABBREVIATION SOSC 2225

CREDIT HOURS 3

COURSE TITLE Statistics for the Social Sciences

PREREQUISITES Exit from Learning Support English, Reading, and Math; MATH 1111 or Professor's Permission

INSTRUCTOR Michelle Geisert, Assistant Professor

Office S156  Phone 404-756-4711

Office Hours M/W TBA  T/R 12:30-1:00 pm

email mgeisert@atlm.edu or michellegeisert@aol.com

This course examines descriptive and inferential methods of statistical analysis with emphasis on the application and interpretation of statistics in social science disciplines.

COURSE GOALS Students read material, analyze and apply statistical methods to the social sciences.

Healey, Joseph  Statistics: A tool for Social Research.  2005.  (7^th ed)  Belmont, CA Thompson Wadsworth ISBN 0-534-62794-3

CALCULATOR

Expensive Model TI83 (approximately $90)

Moderate Model: TI30X IIS (approximately $20)

Budget Model: whatever you have

1. Personal/Social Development

Successful students will:

a. Complete all reading prior to class.

b. Complete all assigned homework

c. Listen actively, follow directions, and evaluate information.

d. Attend all class periods on time.

2. Oral Proficiency

Successful students will:

a. Demonstrate confidence in ability to communicate.

b. Contribute constructively to class discussion.

c. Use terminology appropriate to Statistics and the Social Sciences.

3. Reading Proficiency

Successful students will:

a. Use a dictionary for unfamiliar terminology.

b. Outline main topics in chapter.

c. Draw inferences and generalize from material presented in textbook.

4. Writing Proficiency

Successful students will:

a. Conduct scholarly research utilizing appropriate sources and technology that focuses on issues pertinent to the social sciences.

b. Formulate and express thesis topic.

c. Provide adequate support for topic.

d. Develop a paper with a clear focus, logic and order.

e. Understand the difference between plagiarism and paraphrasing and quoting as well as write and cite sources according to professional guidelines.

f. Use words, sentences and paragraphs that are complete, clear, correct, and concise.

g. Proofread for grammar and spelling.

h. Write a word processed paper and present findings to class.

The following activities will take place in the course:

a. Lecture and discussion of assigned readings

b. Instructor and students will work problems on the board

c. Assigned homework problems

d. Presentations of group research projects

e. Six exams

f.  Cumulative Final Exam

ASSESSMENT: Course Grade

Exam 1 10 pts                                90-100% (90-100 pts) = A

Exam 2 10 pts                                80-89%    (80- 89 pts)  = B

Exam 3 10 pts                                70-79%     (70- 79 pts) = C

Exam 4 10 pts                                60-69%     (60- 69 pts) = D

Exam 5 10 pts                                Below 60% (0-59) = F

Exam 6 10 pts

Project  10 pts

Assignments/Participation 5 pts               

Final Cumulative Exam 25 pts 

Total   =   100 pts

CONTENT OUTLINE: (Any changes will be announced in class.)

Chapter 1: Introduction 

1.1 Why Study Statistics

1.2 The Role of Statistics in Scientific Inquiry

1.3 The Goals of This Text

1.4 Descriptive and Inferential Statistics

1.5 Discrete and Continuous Variables

1.6 Level of Measurement

Part 1  Descriptive Statistics

2.1  Percentages and Proportions

2.2 Ratios, Rates, and Percentage Change

2.3-2.6 Frequency Distributions

2.7 Charts and Graphs

2.8 Interpreting Statistics

Chapter 3 Measures of Central Tendency

3.1 Introduction

3.2 The Mode

3.3 The Median

3.4 Other Measures of Position

3.5 The Mean

3.6 Some Characteristics of the Mean

3.7 Computing Measures of Central Tendency for Grouped Data

3.8 Choosing a Meaure of Central Tendency

Chapter 4  Measures of Dispersion

4.1 Introduction

4.2 The Index of Qualitative Variation

4.3-4.4 The Rage and Interquartile Range

4.5-4.8 The Standard Deviation

4.9 Interpreting Statistics

Chapter 5 The Normal Curve

5.1 Introduction

5.2 Computing Z scores

5.3 The Normal Curve Table

5.4 Finding Total Area above and below a score

5.5 Finding areas Between two scores

5.6 Using the Normal Curve to estimate probabilities

Part II Interential Statistics

Chapter 6 Introuction to Inferential Statistics

6.1 Introduction

6.2 Techniques for probability samples

6.3 EPSEM sampling techniques

6.4-6.5 The sampling distribution

6.6 Symbols and Terminology

Chapter 7 Estimation Procedures

7.1 Introduction

7.2 Bias and Efficiency

7.3-7.5 Estimation Procedures

7.6 A Summary of the Computation of Confidence Intervals

7.7 Controlling the Width of Interval Estimates

7.8 Interpreting Statistics

Chapter 8 Hupothesis Testing 1: The One-Sample Case

8.1  Introduction

8.2 An Overview of Hypothesis Testing

8.3 The Five-Step Model for Hypothesis Testing

8.4 One-Tailed and Two-Tailed Tests of Hypothesis

8.5  Selecting an Alpha Level

8.6  The Student's t Distribution

8.7 Tests of Hypotheses for Single Sample Proportions (Large samples)

Chapter 9 Hypothesis Testing II: The Two-Sample Case

9.1 Introduction

9.2 Hypothesis Testing with Sample Means (Large samples)

9.3 Hypothesis Testing with Sample Means (Small samples)

9.4 Hypothesis Testing with Sample Proportions (Large samples)

9.5  The Limitations of Hypothesis Testing

9.6 Interpreting Statistics

Chapter 10 Hypothesis Testing

10.1 Introduction

10.2  The Logic of the Analysis of Variance

10.3 The Computation of ANOVA

10.4 A Computational Shortcut

10.5 A Computational Example

10.6 A Test of Significance for ANOVA

10.7 An Additional Example for Computing and Testing the Analysis of Variance

10.8 The Limitations of the Test

10.9  Interpreting Statistics

Chapter 11 Hypothesis Testing IV: Chi Square

11.1 Introduction

11.2 Bivariate Tables

11.3 The Logic of Chi Square

11.4 The Computation of Chi Square

11.5 The Chi Square Test for Independence

11.6  The Chi Square Test: An example

11.7  Additional Application of the ChiSquare Test: Goodness of Fit

11.8  The Limitations of the Chi Square Test

11.9  Interpreting Statistics

*May include Chapter 15 on Correlation and Pearson's r

CLASS CALENDAR

Week Topic

1         Chapter 1: Introduction 

2         Chapter 2:  Basic Descriptive Statistics 

3         Test 1  Ch 1 and 2       

           Chapter 3: Measures of Central Tendency

4         Chapter 3 cont

           Chapter 4: Measures of Dispersion

5         Chapter 4: Cont

           Test 2 Ch 3 and 4

6         Chapter 5: The Normal Curve        

7         Chapter 6: Introduction to Inferential Statistics

           Test 3 Ch 5 and 6

8          Chapter 7: Estimation Procedures

9          Test 4 Ch 7        

             Chapter 8: Hypothesis Testing I: The One-Sample Case

10         Chapter 8 Continued

11         Chapter 9:  Hypothesis Testing II: The Two-Sample Test            

12         Test 5  Ch 8 and 9

12/13    Chapter 10 Hypothesis Testing III: The Analysis of Variance

14         Chapter 11 Hypothesis Testing IV: Chi Square

15         Test 6 Ch 10 and 11

*May include Chapter 15 on Correlation and Pearson's r

16        Presentations

Last class

Final Exam  Chapters 1-11, *15 

POLICIES

1. Make-up Exams: Missed examinations are at the discretion of the instructor. Students are expected to notify the instructor as soon as possible and provide written verification of emergency.

2. Additional Assignments: Outside assignments are due when assigned and acceptance of late assignments is at the discretion of the instructor. Students who know in advance they will miss a class are encouraged to email the assignment no later than the due date. In class assignments cannot be made up. Statistics is an area where one must do the homework and practice daily.

3. Attendance

Attendance is strongly encouraged as the field of statistics builds on itself. If you miss a class, you WILL be behind!  Attendence/participation is included in your grade.

4. Cheating and Plagiarism

Cheating is passing off someone else’s work as your own and includes copying exam answers, using notes or books during examinations, and handing in someone else’s work. Plagiarism is the copying of materials directly from a source without quotation marks and the appropriate citations. It is claiming another person’s work, ideas as your own. If there is a suspicion of plagiarism, the students will be asked to submit notes and copies of research materials (books and articles). Cheating and plagiarism is grounds for failure in this class and dismissal from AMC!

Additional Resources

1. Babbie, Earl (1979). The Practice of Social Research. 2nd edition. Belmont, CA. Wadsworth Publishing Co., Inc.

2. Galileo, online library: www.galileo.gsu.edu

3. McClave, Dietrich, and Sincich (1997). Statistics. 7^th edition. Upper Saddle River, NJ. Prentice- Hall, Inc.

4. Online learning center website to accompany text: http://sociology.wadworth.com/healey/statistics7e