EPSE 482: Introduction to Statistics

Section: 075 (Spring 2023)

Class Meetings: Tuesdays from 4:30– 7:00 pm in Neville Scarfe Building, Room 1020.

Instructor: Dr. Bozena Zdaniuk

Email: bozena.zdaniuk@ubc.ca

Office Hours: Tuesday 7:00-7:30 (after class) or please email me for individual appointment

Prerequisites: The prerequisite for this course is “proficiency in modern high school algebra”.
Students needing a brief review of basic mathematical concepts are referred to
Appendix A in the Gravetter and Wallnau (2016) text.

Overview: Statistics is the science of collecting, organizing, and interpreting data. An

understanding of statistics is an important aspect of many professions, and training in
this science is valuable preparation for a variety of careers. In this course, you will
learn about the social and applied context of statistics, descriptive and inferential
statistics, sampling distributions, hypothesis testing, and a variety of statistical
techniques including t-tests, analysis of variance, correlation, and chi-square tests.
This course will prepare you for more advanced courses in statistics. However, you do
not need to be a math whiz to succeed in this course! There will be many calculations
to perform, but these require nothing more than elementary high school algebra.

Required Reading
Statistics for the Behavioral Sciences. Author: Frederick J. Gravetter & Larry B. WallnauI; ISBN: 978-
1-305-50491-2; Publisher: Nelson; Edition: 10; Publication Date: Jan. 1, 2016

Textbook link: https://shop.bookstore.ubc.ca/p-127679-statistics-for-the-behavioral-

sciences-10-e.aspx

Earlier editions and study guides can be used for this course. The text is available in both a
hard copy and e-book version. Differences between editions reside primarily in the end of
chapter questions and chapter numbers. Answers for odd numbered end of chapter
questions are in the back of the text. Answers for even numbered end of chapter homework
questions can be provided upon request: please send me your answers for those questions
and I will check them for you.

Assigned chapters for each lecture are from Gravetter and Wallnau (2016) textbook. You
are expected to have read the assigned readings before the class for which they are
assigned. Class time will be used to provide an overview of the material, discuss examples,
work on problems and answer any questions students may have regarding the readings.

Assignments There will be two assignments that will involve the analysis of data. You will need
 SPSS on your computer. SPSS is available to UBC students for free and can be
downloaded from: https://ubc.onthehub.com. Also see
https://it.ubc.ca/services/desktop-print-services/software-licensing/spss for more
information.
I recommend that you use SPSS. However, you can also use Jamovi which is a
version of R that looks like SPSS and can be downloaded for free from
www.jamovi.org. General information on using Jamovi can be found at:
https://www.jamovi.org/user-manual.html.
I will provide instructions during lecture meetings for using SPSS.
You will be doing the assignments in 2-3 person groups. These two data analysis
assignments will be on (1) descriptive statistics and (2) on t-test. These assignments will
involve conducting an analysis and interpretation of a real data set (accessible via SPSS)
using SPSS and answering corresponding questions. Each assignment is worth 15% of your
grade. See course schedule below for due dates for each assignment. Assignments are
due by midnight on the due date. Failure to submit by the due date will result in a 10%
deduction for each day late.
Midterm Exam
The midterm exam will be conducted in class, on your personal computer, during the class time
from 4:30 to 6:30pm. The exam will cover chapters 1 to 8. Questions will consist of multiple-choice
questions, short-answers and hand calculations. Details will be provided in class.

Final Exam
The final exam will be conducted during the class time from 4:30 to 6:30pm. The exam will cover
chapters 9 to 17. Even though it does not cover the first eight chapters, the thorough knowledge of
those chapters will be necessary for understanding and learning the material in the chapters
covered by the final exam. Questions will consist of multiple-choice questions, short-answers and
hand calculations. Details will be provided in class.

* Only if you are unable to write the exams due to illness, and provide suitable documentation or
obtain permission from me, will you be permitted to write a make-up test. No test “rewrites” will be
permitted.

Note: All assignments and exam answers must be neat, legible, and show all intermediate steps! If
your answers are illegible or incomplete, you will not receive credit for those portions which are
unclear, even if the final answer is correct. Partial marks are awarded for short-answer and
computational questions.

Evaluation:
Assignments 30%
Midterm Exam 30%
Final Exam 40%

Course Policies: [attendance, participation, academic dishonesty]

Excerpt from the UBC calendar:

Regular attendance is expected of students in all their classes (including lectures, laboratories,
tutorials, seminars, etc.). Students who neglect their academic work and assignments may be
excluded from the final examinations. Students who are unavoidably absent because of illness or
disability should report to their instructors on return to classes.

The University accommodates students with disabilities who have registered with the Disability
Resource Centre. The University accommodates students whose religious obligations conflict with
attendance, submitting assignments, or completing scheduled tests and examinations. Please let
your instructor know in advance, preferably in the first week of class, if you will require any
accommodation on these grounds. Students who plan to be absent for varsity athletics, family
obligations, or other similar commitments, cannot assume they will be accommodated, and should
discuss their commitments with the instructor before the drop date.

It is recommended that students retain a copy of all submitted assignments (in case of loss) and
should also retain all their marked assignments in case they wish to apply for a Review of Assigned
Standing. Students have the right to view their marked examinations with their instructor,
providing they apply to do so within a month of receiving their final grades. This review is for
pedagogic purposes. The examination remains the property of the university.

Academic Dishonesty:
Please review the UBC Calendar “Academic regulations” for the university policy on cheating,
plagiarism, and other forms of academic dishonesty. Also visit www.arts.ubc.ca and go to the
students’ section for useful information on avoiding plagiarism and on correct documentation.
 Lecture Topics, Readings, and General Schedule
Date Topic Chapters Other

Introduction
Jan 09 Appendix A
Basic Concepts
Week 1 1
Variables of Measurement
Jan 16 Frequency Distributions Not including
2,3
Week 2 Central Tendency sections 2.4 & 2.5
Jan 23 Instruction on using
Variability 4
Week 3 SPSS for Assignment 1
Jan 30
Z-scores 5
Week 4
Probability
Feb 06 Assignment 1 due at
Sampling Distribution of 6, 7
Week 5 midnight on Feb 06
Sample Means
Feb 13
Hypothesis Testing 8
Week 6
Feb 20 NO CLASS – SPRING BREAK
Feb 27 During class time, in
Midterm Exam (Ch. 1-8)
Week 7 class
March 06
Introduction to t-statistic 9 , 10
Week 8
March 13 t-statistic cont’d Instruction on using
10, 11
Week 9 SPSS for Assignment 2
March 20 Analysis of Variance (ANOVA)
12, 13
Week 10
March 27 ANOVA cont’d Assignment 2 due at
13, 14
Week 11 midnight on March 27
April 03 Correlation & Chi-Square 15 (pp. 485-509),
Week 12 17 (pp. 559-589)
April 10 During class time, in
Final Exam (Ch. 9-17)
Week 13 class

Note: January 20 is the last day to drop without a W standing; March 03 is the last day to withdraw
with a W standing.