College of Science and Mathematics
Department of Mathematics & Statistics
KENNESAW STATE UNIVERSITY
Department of Mathematics & Statistics
STAT 8030 Programming in R 3-0-3
STAT 8030:
Programming in R
Syllabus
Instructor:
Office:
Phone:
Email:
Website:
Office Hours:
Dr. Daniel Yanosky
520A Science
678-797-2490
dyanosky@kennesaw.edu
http://science.kennesaw.edu/~dyanosky/index.shtml
TBA
Classroom:
Meeting Time:
Course Website:
TBA
TBA
https://kennesaw.view.usg.edu/
Course Description and Objective
Programming in R is a graduate level course in statistical computing using the R/S-Plus
programming environment for data management, basic statistical analysis, and
simulation. The overall objective of this course is to prepare students to use the R
package in both practical statistical/quantitative applications as well as Monte Carlo
simulation research. Topics covered include object-oriented programming, porting data,
general data management, basic statistical analyses, and writing customized user-defined
functions and programs.
Prerequisite: STAT 7020.
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Required Text
Muenchen, R. A. (2009). R for SAS and SPSS Users. Springer Science + Business Media, LLC 2009.
ISBN 978-0-387-09417-5.
Secondary Texts*
• Tufte, E.R. (1997). Visual and statistical thinking: Displays of evidence for making decisions. In
A. Visual Explanations: Images and Quantities, Evidence and Narrative} (pp. 5-31). Cheshire,
CT: Graphics Press. ISBN 0961392126.
• Yanosky II, D. J. The KSU R Reference Manual: A Gentle Overview of R for Undergraduate &
Graduate Students. Unpublished manuscript, Kennesaw State University, Kennesaw, GA.
• Spector, P. (2008). Data Manipulation with R. Springer Science + Business Media, LLC 2008.
• Fan, X., Felsovalyi, A., Sivo, S.A., & Keenan, S.C. (2001). SAS for Monte Carlo Studies: A
Guide for Quantitative Researchers. Cary, NC: SAS Institute Inc.
Learning Outcomes
Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to:
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Install and update R and associated add-on packages.
Perform basic object-oriented computing using vectors, factors, matrices, data frames, and
arrays.
Import and export data into and from R using various data file protocols.
Perform basic data management tasks including recoding variables, converting data types,
merging data, etc.
Perform intermediate computing tasks such as using conditional processing statements, loops,
and writing one's own functions.
Perform basic and advanced graphing of data.
Use statistical distribution functions in R
Perform basic statistical modeling of data.
Generate pseudo-random data.
Write customized simulation programs.
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Grading Policy
Each student's final course grade will be determined based on their performance using the following
grading criteria:
Class Component
Percentage of Final
Class Grade
Weekly Notes
Homework
R Day Poster Presentation
Final Exam
Letter Grade
30%
20%
30%
20%
A
B
C
D
F
Percentile Grade
90-100%
80-89%
70-79%
60-69%
Below 60%
Required Readings & Weekly Note Assignments
Weekly reading assignments are an integral component of this course. In order to encourage and assess
the student’s interaction with the course text(s), weekly note assignments associated with each reading
are assigned (see the course schedule at the end of this document). Therefore, 14-16 course notes
assignments are scheduled for the semester. See the course document entitled “Weekly Course Notes
Assignment Instructions” for detailed instructions and expectations.
It is imperative that all note assignments are presented in YOUR OWN WORDS. Submitting material
for course credit copied from any source is a violation of the Kennesaw State University Student Code
of Conduct and may result in severe academic penalty up to and including expulsion. Finally, be mindful
that your submitted coursework will be evaluated by automated and/or manual plagiarism detection.
Also, be mindful that the instructor’s course notes will automatically be made available to students
immediately after the deadline for the student’s weekly note assignment. The instructor’s course notes
can be thought of as the solutions (or at the very least, a model) for these assignments. Therefore, due to
the timing of these releases, late submissions of the weekly note assignment CANNOT be accepted.
Homework Assignments
Two (2) homework assignments are scheduled for the semester. Timely completion of these assignments
is required. Homeworks must be submitted via the Turnitin system by 9:00AM on the due date specified
in the course schedule (see the last section of the syllabus). Late homework assignments will be either
penalized to an appropriate extent at the sole discretion of the instructor or simply not accepted for
course credit.
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Students are encouraged to work together in groups and discuss problems and their answers for
homework assignments openly. Nonetheless, all work (e.g., notes, homeworks, projects, examinations,
etc.) submitted to the instructor must be an authentic product of each individual student. In other words,
if you collaborate with someone else on an assignment, it is best to work together at first, but then
separate and write up your final product on your own. More specifically, any material submitted for
course credit must be your own work. DO NOT copy material from texts, class notes, websites, other
students, or any other source. You MUST put all material submitted in this class into YOUR OWN
WORDS. Submitting material for course credit copied from any source is a violation of the Kennesaw
State University Student Code of Conduct and may result in severe academic penalty up to and
including expulsion. Finally, be mindful that your submitted coursework will be evaluated by automated
and/or manual plagiarism detection. Evidence of plagiarism will be thoroughly investigated and may
lead to informal and/or formal academic honesty charges and penalties. Please ask questions if this
expectation is not clear.
If evidence arises that a student has submitted someone else's work as their own, cheated on an
assignment, or has committed some other academic violation of the University Code of Conduct, the
instructor reserves the right to apply any academic penalty up to and including a failing grade (i.e., “F”')
for the class. Furthermore, the instructor reserves the right to refer any incidence to the University
Judiciary Program for formal documentation and/or charges.
R Day Poster Presentation
Every student is required either individually or as a team to present a presentation-quality poster at the
2013 KSU R Day event scheduled for the morning of Friday, November 8, 2013 from 7:45AM to
12:00PM in the KSU Student Center University Rooms A-E. Students are encouraged to work in groups
of 2 or 3. Detailed instructions concerning this assignment are forthcoming.
Examinations
A final exam will be administered at the end of the semester. While students are encouraged to
collaborate and work in groups for the homework assignments, students are NOT allowed to collaborate
on the final examination.
The end of course final exam will be a take-home, project-style assessment. The final exam is due to
Turnitin on Monday, December 9, 2013 by 8:00pm.
Withdrawal
Students who find that they cannot continue in college for the entire semester after being enrolled, because of
illness or any other reason, need to complete an online form. To completely or partially withdraw from
classes at KSU, a student must withdraw online at www.kennesaw.edu, under Owl Express, Student
Services.
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The date the withdrawal is submitted online will be considered the official KSU withdrawal date which will
be used in the calculation of any tuition refund or refund to Federal student aid and/or HOPE scholarship
programs. It is advisable to print the final page of the withdrawal for your records. Withdrawals submitted
online prior to midnight on the last day to withdraw without academic penalty will receive a “W” grade.
Withdrawals after midnight will receive a “WF”. Failure to complete the online withdrawal process will
produce no withdrawal from classes. Call the Registrar’s Office at 770-423-6200 during business hours if
assistance is needed.
Students may, by means of the same online withdrawal and with the approval of the university Dean,
withdraw from individual courses while retaining other courses on their schedules. This option may be
exercised up until October 11, 2013.
This is the date to withdraw without academic penalty for Fall Term, 2013 classes. Failure to withdraw by
the date above will mean that the student has elected to receive the final grade(s) earned in the course(s). The
only exception to those withdrawal regulations will be for those instances that involve unusual and fully
documented circumstances.
Academic Integrity
Every KSU student is responsible for upholding the provisions of the Statement of Student Rights and
Responsibilities, as published in the Undergraduate and Graduate Catalogs. Section II of the Statement
of Student Rights and Responsibilities addresses the University's policy on academic honesty, including
provisions regarding plagiarism and cheating, unauthorized access to University materials,
misrepresentation/falsification of University records or academic work, malicious removal, retention, or
destruction of library materials, malicious/intentional misuse of computer facilities and/or services, and
misuse of student identification cards. Incidents of alleged academic misconduct will be handled
through the established procedures of the Department of Student Conduct and Academic Integrity
(SCAI), which includes either an “informal” resolution by a faculty member, resulting in a grade
adjustment, or a formal hearing procedure, which may subject a student to the Code of Conduct's
minimal one semester suspension requirement.
Final Notes
This syllabus is subject to change at the sole discretion of the instructor. Any changes will be announced
class-wide in a timely manner.
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