STATS 150G Lies, Damned Lies and Statistics
This page describes the General Education course, STATS 150G Lies, Damned Lies and Statistics. Includes the learning outcomes, topics covered, delivery format and timetable.
Schedule
Schedule F: Mathematical and Information Sciences
Semester
Semester Two
Campus
City Campus
Note: You cannot take this course for General Education if you have a prior or concurrent enrolment in a course in any of the following subjects: COMPSCI, ENGGEN, ENGSCI, INFOSYS, MATHS, PSYCH or STATS.
This course examines the uses, limitations, and abuses of statistical information in a variety of activities such as polling, public health, sport, law, marketing, and the environment.
We will explore:
- Statistical concepts and thinking that lie beneath data-based arguments.
- Comprehension, interpretation, and critical evaluation of statistically-based reports.
- Construction of statistically-sound arguments and reports.
Some course material will be drawn from topics currently in the news. The course will include guest speakers who are experts in the fields of polling, medical statistics and journalism.
This course is designed for critical consumers of statistical information but particularly aspiring journalists, politicians, political scientists, sociologists, lawyers, public communicators, health personnel, conservationists, environmental scientists, business people, marketers, engineers, scientists.
STATS150G is an unconventional statistics course. Statistics and probability issues that arise in the real world are the focus of the course. Concepts of statistics and probability will be developed to the extent that the issue can be understood.
The course does not assume any prior knowledge of statistics. The goal is to enable you to come to your own conclusions about issues in the news, in your occupation and in your own life that involve statistics and probability.
- First, and most important, we want to instil an ability to "think statistically".
- Second, we want to enable you to critically evaluate statistically-based reports.
- Third, we want to enable you to construct statistically-sound reports.
- Introduction to Media Reports
- Surveys and Polls
- Experimentation
- Risk
- Media Reports
- Statistical Reasoning
Three 1-hour lectures (Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday) and one 1-hour tutorial (Thursday) each week.
Lectures are recorded and will be made available online.
- Assignments — 30% (two assignments, each worth 15%)
- Tutorial tasks — 5%
- Test — 15%
- Final exam — 50%
- Comprehensive lecture workbook consisting of all lecture notes, readings and tutorial tasks.
- Resources also made available through CECIL.
- Course website
Maxine Pfannkuch
Email: m.pfannkuch@auckland.ac.nz
Phone: +64 9 373 7599 ext 88794
Stephanie Budgett
Email: s.budgett@auckland.ac.nz
Phone: +64 9 373 7599 ext 82346
- "I really enjoyed this course and found it very interesting. I found the tutorials very useful and I especially liked the room for class participation and the safe and respectful atmosphere you created for discussion and different opinion. This course has been really special in the sense that it was able to be applied in my everyday life. I would certainly recommend this course to someone else and I would take other papers that led on from it. Thank you for a great course!!"
- "Really enjoyed class discussions, practical nature of the course, relevance and topicality of media reports used. STATS150 certainly improved my ability to read and interpret media reports. Clear handouts that were easy to understand. Great lecturers who were enthusiastic about their topics. Tutorials very worthwhile and provided good "hands on" help. I would thoroughly recommend the course to others."
- "Thanks a lot for doing such a great job teaching STATS150. I really enjoyed the course and have already recommended it to some of my friends looking for elective papers."
- "It was good to get a range of different types of reading materials rather than just the text book all the time — a range of material was used in lectures, e.g. videos and newspaper articles and a range of guest speakers to place things in the real world."
