STAT220: Basic Statistics: Winter Quarter 2008

This page specifies course requirements and expectations.
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To link to the schedule, click here

Course requirements

Course grades will be based on Your total percentage score will be converted to a grade: this does not mean that your grade will be that percentage of 4.0.
Your grade will be based only on your score, and a higher score will convert to a higher grade.
That is, if Fred gets a higher score than Jane, Fred's grade will be at least as high as Jane's.

That is we "grade on the curve":
This does not mean a bell-shaped curve with predefined mean and SD.
It does mean that grade-point percentiles will be similar to other Stat220 offerings.

Homeworks

Homeworks will include problems from the FPP text, and also things arising from discussions in class and sections. Some parts may involve group projects.

There are expected to be 9 homeworks, due each Thursday from Week 2 through Week 10. The homeworks are of equal weight. Your lowest-scoring homework will be dropped in computing your overall homework score.

Assignments are due at the beginning of the class period corresponding to the due date. Late assignments will not be granted credit. Submissions by fax or email are not generally acceptable, and require specific prior agreement on each occasion. If you cannot attend class on a day that an assignment is due, mail the assignment to your TA: the postmark will validate the submission date. Unless your absence is due to illness, you should let your TA know in advance that you will be mailing your homework.

You are encouraged to study with your classmates and to discuss the material and examples with them. You are also encouraged to make good use of the Statistics Study and Tutoring Center. However, you must write up your own homework solutions: homeworks that appear to be identical copies will both receive a zero score.

Quizzes

There are expected to be three quizzes: probably in the Thursday sessions of weeks 3, 7, and 9. Quizzes are expected to take 20 minutes. If you have done and understood the homeworks of the preceding two weeks, you should find the quizzes straightforward.

The quizzes are not cumulative: they will cover recent material.

Your quiz score for your grade will be based on the best 2 of your 3 quiz scores. If a quiz is missed for reasons other than illness or personal emergency, that quiz will score 0. If 1 or 2 quizzes are missed due to documented illness or personal emergency, some adjustment will be made.

Exams

The midterm is expected to be in class on Friday February 8. See the schedule for more details.

The final exam will be at the officially scheduled UW time for the final exam for this class. See the schedule for more details. (Please let me know if you think this is NOT the correct time.)

The midterm and final exams are cumulative. They will cover all the material to that point in the class.

If you are going to miss an exam you must notify me in advance of the exam period. Failure to do so will result in an exam grade of 0. An unexcused absence from the final exam will result in a course grade of 0. There will be no make-up exams.

Due to the size of the class, we may try to get an extra room for midterm and final exams: details will be provided nearer the time.

You will benefit from attendence!

Attendance is not mandatory, but hopefully you will find it beneficial! Other students benefit, when each student participates. Some class meetings (in addition to the quizzes and exams) may involve in-class work that will form a part of homework assignments. In addition, announcements may be made in class, such as modifications of assignments or due dates. It is your responsibility to be aware of such announcements.

You are encouraged to ask questions and to contribute to discussion during class, rather than waiting until afterwards. If something is unclear to you, ask about it.