UNIVERSITY OF SYDNEY BUSINESS SCHOOL
ECMT1020
Business and Economic Statistics B
Semester 2, 2011
Unit of Study Outline
Page
Teaching Staff
Classes
1. Unit of study information
1.1. School Handbook description
1.2. Pre-requisite units
1.3. Assumed knowledge and/or skills
1.4. Workload and minimum requirements
2. Textbook and other resources
3. Learning aims and outcomes,
3.1. Aims of this unit
3.2. Learning outcomes
3.3. Links between learning and teaching methods
3.4. Links between learning outcomes (2.2) and assessment
4. Assessment
4.1. Assessment details
4.2. Referencing style and style guide
4.3. Feedback
4.4. Academic honesty and plagiarism, legitimate cooperation and group work
5. University and Business School policies and support
5.1. Business School policies
5.2. University policies
5.3. Student services and resources
6. Continual improvement of the Unit
6.1. Past Feedback and improvements made include:
6.2. How feedback will be collected
7. Additional Information
7.1. How to get to Blackboard
7.2. PASS Program: Peer Assisted Study Sessions
8. Week-by-Week Topic Guide
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Teaching Staff
Coordinator: Mr J. Goodhew, Discipline of Operations Management & Econometrics
Lecturer:
Mr J. Goodhew
Phone: 02 9351 3051
Office: Room 479, Merewether Building (H04)
Consultation Time: Tuesday, Wednesday 2:15 – 3:00pm
Please do NOT send emails to the lecturer. Hundreds of emails are received every
day, so there is no guarantee that your emails will be answered.
Tutors:
The primary point of reference for students will be their tutor. The tutors will
announce their consultation hours early in the semester. These will be posted on
Blackboard. All consultation by tutors will be conducted in the Wolstenholme
Study Centre, Rooms 178, 179 and 180
Classes
Lectures:
Tuesday and Wednesday. Check your timetable as to the time and location of your
lecture stream.
Workshop Times:
There will be a 2-hour workshop each week (commencing in week 1). See your
timetable for your allocated time. You must attend at your allocated time; in
exceptional circumstances you may obtain your lecturer’s permission to attend
another workshop on a one-off basis. If you need to change your time permanently
you must make this change through the timetable system.
Workshops will be held on Tuesday and Wednesday, starting from Week 1.
1. Unit of study information
1.1.
School Handbook description
This unit broadens the knowledge gained in the unit, ECMT1010 Business and Economic Statistics
A by introducing further tools (and their applications) for use in economics, finance, marketing and
accounting. This unit features practical applications. Possible topics include: further aspects of
hypothesis testing including goodness-of-fit models; regression analysis including a brief
introduction to logit models, time series and its applications to economics and finance; quality
control and analysis of variance. The material is further complemented by mathematical topics
including matrices and partial differentiation. In addition, students are expected to use data
resources on the World Wide Web, retrieve data and analyse this data using Excel.
Other than in exceptional circumstances, it is strongly recommended that students do not undertake
Business and Economic Statistics B before attempting Business and Economic Statistics A.
NOTE: This unit of study outline is tentative and subject to change
2
1.2.
Pre-requisite units
The pre-requisite unit of study for this unit is ECMT1010 Business and Economic Statistics A
1.3.
Assumed knowledge and/or skills
You are assumed to have the knowledge and skills from the HSC Mathematics (2 units).
1.4.
Workload and minimum requirements
The Academic Board student workload for six credit point units equates to an average of 9-12 hours
of student effort per week per 13-week semester, including in class time. This is what is expected of
you.
2. Textbook and other resources
Textbook: Black K., Asafu-Adjaye, J., Khan, N., Perera N., Edwards, P. & Harris, M. (2010).
Australian Business Statistics, 2nd Edition. Wiley. (Available from the Co-operative Bookshop).
Workshop questions will be taken from this book. It is important that students have their own
copy. [Students can use the first edition if they have a copy.]
Bundled with the text is a WileyPlus Registration Card (it can also be purchased separately at
www.wileyplus.com/buy). WileyPlus is an online teaching and learning solution and will be used
extensively throughout the course. The registration instructions will be posted on the Blackboard
in a due course.
Computing Packages: EXCEL. (The Computing Laboratories have EXCEL or you may use your
own copy at home.)
Additional Resource: (Mathematics notes)
Goodhew, Ihnatko, Korkofingas, Mathematics for Economists, Part 2, available on Blackboard.
Additional Reading:
Howley, P. and Gerlach, R., (2006), Business Statistics in Australia: Methods and Applications.
(ISBN: 0-9775195-0-3)
3. Learning aims and outcomes
3.1.
Aims of this unit
ECMT1020 develops some simple mathematical and statistical tools that are used to analyse data.
This unit builds on the methods and techniques developed in ECMT1010 and provides additional
basic statistical techniques for the study of the relationships between variables, which is the focus of
ECMT1020. Together with ECMT1010, these courses are foundational for the study of Finance,
Marketing, Agricultural Economics, Economics and Econometrics.
3.2.
Learning outcomes
a. Be open to new ways of thinking and appreciate the importance of intellectual curiosity and
reflection as the foundation for continuous learning.
b. Identify, define and analyse problems and recommend creative solutions within real-world
constraints.
c. Conduct research using archives, libraries, the web and other sources of information.
NOTE: This unit of study outline is tentative and subject to change
3
d. Apply research principles and methods for gathering and analysing data/information
relevant to major fields of study.
e. Employ technologies effectively in gathering information from written, oral and electronic
sources.
f. Manage, analyse, evaluate and use information efficiently and effectively.
3.3.
Links between learning and teaching methods
Various teaching and learning activities are provided for the benefit of the students. Effective
learning, however, can only be gained by active participation. Students should make every effort to
engage in lectures and tutorials, read prescribed materials, seriously attempt assigned homework
and participate in tutorial classes. Students must take responsibility for their own learning.
Face-to-face activities
Lectures are designed to introduce the technical and theoretical aspects of the unit of study.
Lectures cannot cover all course content in depth but provide an overview of each topic and explain
the more difficult concepts using practical examples and demonstrations. Students are required to
attend two one -hour lectures each week – at the time and location allocated to each student in their
personal timetable or the link to the personalised student timetable provided on Blackboard.
Students must ensure they read the relevant prescribed readings prior to attending the scheduled
lecture on that topic. This background reading is essential to setting the scene for the lecture.
Workshops are essential for gaining feedback on your learning and helping you clarify any
misunderstanding in relation to the application of key accounting concepts to difficult problems.
Tutorials are designed to provide timely feedback on the material covered in the previous lecture.
The supportive learning environment encourages students to become more confident in expressing
themselves, both orally and in writing.
Students are required to prepare questions prior to attending the workshop. Tutors will check for
satisfactory completion of workshop questions each week. There will also be additional questions
for discussion during the scheduled workshop. Participation is required and students should arrive
well prepared and ready to make the most of this opportunity to examine their understanding of key
concepts.
You must attend your allocated workshop class. The tutor will take attendance even though it does
not affect your mark. All changes to workshops must be completed online via MyUni or at the
Business School Student Information Office by the end of the second week of semester. Please note
course staff will not change your workshop. If, after the workshop, students still have questions
relating to any aspect of lecture or workshop content, further assistance may be gained as follows:
•
Students may consult the lecturer or tutors during their scheduled consultation times. Please
see Blackboard for consultation time details.
In this unit, topics are presented usually in two 1-hour lectures. There is also a two-hour workshop
each week. Experience shows that in order to pass this subject, you will need to spend a minimum
of 9 to12 hours per week in study including attending all lectures and workshops.
NOTE: This unit of study outline is tentative and subject to change
4
3.4.
Links between learning outcomes (3.2) and assessment
Assessment items
Weekly homework
Quizzes
Group assignment
Final exam
Learning outcomes to be assessed
a, b, c, d
b, f
a, b, c, d, e
c, d
4. Assessment
Assessment
task
1. Homework
Weighting Learning outcomes
7%
a, b, c, d
2. Quizzes
1, 2 and 3
15%
in total
b, f
3. Assignment
18%
a, b, c, d, e
4. Final
Examination
60%
c, d
Academic
honesty module **
Total
0%
Submission date
Weekly; either on line as directed, or in
workshops (weeks 3 and 4)
To be held in workshops in Week 4, 8
and 12. Note, in Quizzes 2 and 3, you
may be given questions from the
previous quiz topics
Assignment is to be submitted in
workshops in Week 13
During final exam period (7–18 Nov.).
Further Test, if applicable: three
weeks after final exam.
Week 4. Closing Date 19 November
2011.
100%
** Students must complete the academic honesty module in Blackboard with a mark above 80% by the final day of
exams, or an Absent Fail (AF) grade will be given for the entire unit. Students can complete the module multiple
times until this grade is achieved. Students who completed the module with a score of 80% or above last semester
do not need to do it again.
The submission date is the date beyond which an assessment cannot be accepted for marking.
All assignments must be submitted electronically via Blackboard. Assignments submitted
electronically via Turnitin do not require cover sheets. Ensure that your student ID number (SID) is
in the top right hand corner of each page for individual assignments and the Group name or number
plus SID of all members is in the top right hand corner for group assignments. Full information
about how to prepare assignments for electronic submission can be found in the Turnitin Student
Guide:
http://blackboard.econ.usyd.edu.au/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_tab_group_id=_20_1
4.1.
Assessment details
Online home assignments will be assigned almost every week. These are to be submitted
using WileyPlus online teaching and learning solution. Unless otherwise stated, each
assignment will be due before 4:30 pm the Wednesday of the following week after assigned.
It is strongly recommended to start working early on these assignments. No late homework
will be accepted. You may cooperate with other students on home assignments; however,
the final solutions must be done individually.
The exception to this will be in weeks 3, 4 and 8. To obtain full marks, students must
NOTE: This unit of study outline is tentative and subject to change
5
(i)
(ii)
attend their Centrally Timetabled workshop class for the entire time of the workshop
in weeks 4, 5 and 9 (when the written homework from Weeks 3, 4 and 8 are
checked)
PLUS
have made a reasonable written attempt at completing the Homework questions
from the previous week’s workshop AND the preparatory questions at the start of
the current week’s workshop. This must be shown to the tutor at the appropriate
week’s
workshop.
Otherwise a 0 mark will be recorded. The questions will NOT be marked for
correctness. Either a mark of 0 or full marks will be recorded
The quizzes will be held in weeks 4, 8 and 12 workshops and will cover topics from weeks
1 – 3 (incl.), weeks 4–7 (incl.) and weeks 8 – 11 (incl.), with possibly some material from
earlier topics. A missed quiz will generally result in a zero mark.
The assignment is to be completed as a group assignment and to be submitted as a printed
copy in your centrally timetabled workshop in the workshops of Week 13 and also
electronically. Groups must be formed from your centrally timetabled workshop. You
should begin forming groups in week2 and groups must be finalised by week 7.
The Final Exam contributes 60% of the Unit of Study mark and will examine all course
content. It will test your understanding of theory and your ability to solve problems.
4.2.
Referencing style and style guide
The referencing and style guide that should be used in all assessments in this unit is of the
Harvard Style. A copy of these requirements is posted to Blackboard, or see:
http://www.wiley.com/bw/submit.asp?ref=0810-5391&site=1
4.3.
Feedback
After marking, the Quizzes will be handed back and discussed, in workshops. Where appropriate,
comments will also be made in lectures.
Final results will be available on the web according to university policy.
4.4.
Academic honesty and plagiarism, legitimate cooperation and
group work
Commencing students should complete the academic honesty module available via Blackboard
before their first assessment submission. Students should refer to Business School and University
policies on
academic dishonesty and plagiarism
sydney.edu.au/business/currentstudents/student_information/student_administration_manu
al
copyright
sydney.edu.au/senate/policies/Intellectual_Property_Rule.pdf and the
‘All your own work website’
sydney.edu.au/secretariat/students/plagiarism_index.shtml
NOTE: This unit of study outline is tentative and subject to change
6
for information about legitimate cooperation, group work, how to reference correctly and how to
avoid plagiarism.
Academic honesty is important to protect students' right to receive due credit for work submitted for
assessment. It is clearly unfair for students to submit work for assessment that dishonestly
represents the work of others as their own and gain marks and degrees, which are not based on their
own efforts and abilities. Deliberate breaches of academic honesty constitute academic misconduct.
These breaches include: plagiarism, fabrication of data, recycling previously submitted material,
engaging someone else to complete an assessment on one’s behalf and misconduct during
supervised assessments.
The penalties for academic misconduct may include: a mark of zero on the assessment; a fail grade
in the unit of study, additional assessment (including an unseen exam), and reference of the matter
to the University Registrar.
All assessments will be checked for plagiarism. Where plagiarism is suspected, the assessment will
be fully checked and monitored using manual process, Google checks and also electronic
plagiarism detectors. In order to do this, the Business School may reproduce the assessment,
provide a copy to another member of the Business School, and/or communicate a copy of this
assignment to a plagiarism checking service (which may then retain a copy of the assignment on its
database for the purpose of future plagiarism checking).
Academic dishonesty involves more than just copying material. Cooperation and helping other
students may at times trigger academic dishonesty proceedings if it appears you have worked too
closely with another student. In this unit, there will be one group assignment.
Group assignments should be prepared within the group. Students should contribute fully to the
group and take part in all group activities, contributing ideas, analysis and writing to the final
product. While students within the group should assist each other freely, students should not carry
this level of cooperation outside the group. One group may cooperate and help another group about
ideas and possible research sources but the analysis and writing of the assignment must be done by
the group alone.
5. University and Business School policies and support
All students must comply with and follow all Faculty and University policies and procedures.
5.1.
Business School policies
Business School policies are contained in the Administration Manual for Students at
sydney.edu.au/business/currentstudents/student_information/student_administration_manual.
It is crucial that you take the time to consult this manual early in your studies in order to
familiarise yourself with policies and procedures relating to critical issues such as the Faculty’s
policy on special consideration (including requirements and timelines. e.g. lodging applications
five working days after a missed assessment), appeals (lodge within 15 working days of the
decision) and other policies such as enrolment, credit etc. Assistance is available from the
Faculty’s Student Information Office at
sydney.edu.au/business/student_information_office
NOTE: This unit of study outline is tentative and subject to change
7
5.2.
University policies
University policies at sydney.edu.au/policy
Assistance is available from the University’s Student Centre
sydney.edu.au/current_students/student_administration
The code of conduct is an important policy which outlines the University’s expectations about
treating all staff employees and students with respect, dignity, impartiality, courtesy and sensitivity
and refrain from acts of discrimination, harassment or bullying.
sydney.edu.au/ab/policies/Student_code_conduct.pdf
5.3.
Student services and resources
Links to other student services and resources are included on Blackboard and on the Faculty’s
Learning and Teaching website sydney.edu.au/business/learning
All students must comply with and follow all Faculty and University policies and procedures.
6. Continual improvement of the Unit
6.1.
Past Feedback and improvements made include:
Workload: Some students feel that the workload required by ECMT 1020 is excessive,
however it is true to say that most do not. We attempt to pace assessment tasks so that if you
make time to study regularly (do the readings and problems from the lecture outline on a
daily or near daily basis) and, if necessary, use the consultation time provided by tutors it
should not be overwhelming. One important piece of advice on how to study effectively is:
“keep up week-by-week.”
Student Noise and Behaviour: Large first year classes can be very difficult to manage,
especially with respect to maintaining a level of silence for students to concentrate. In the
past students have complained to teaching staff about the noise levels and behaviour of
those classmates who talk loudly during lectures. Therefore, students who are identified by
the lecturers as causing a disturbance may be asked to leave during the lecture. To avoid
embarrassment to everyone, we request that you show courtesy to others by not talking
during lectures and workshops.
6.2.
How feedback will be collected
Student feedback on this unit of study will be obtained via a Unit of Study Evaluation survey
administered near the end of the semester.
As lecturers we attempt to be responsive to student feedback, in particular from information
gathered from Unit of Study Evaluations (USE). Therefore, we strongly encourage you to complete
the USE survey and be aware that we consider any thoughtful comments made on these surveys.
7. Additional Information
7.1.
How to get to Blackboard
Faculty IT will send you an email containing instructions for activating your Faculty Blackboard
account. Please check your university email, and follow the instructions given. Once you have
activated your account, access Blackboard in the following manner.
NOTE: This unit of study outline is tentative and subject to change
8
1.
2.
3.
Go to http://blackboard.econ.usyd.edu.au
Click on the Login button
Login using your Unikey account name (e.g. etan4358) and your Unikey password.
NB: You must have activated your password once per semester for this to work.
After login you will see the page which states all the courses that you are enrolled in (according to
the Student Information Office) and are activated by your lecturers. Your units can take up to 48
hours to appear in Blackboard after you’ve enrolled. If you login after this time and it still doesn’t
appear, please contact the Student Information Office.
Further information:
For information regarding enrolments, please contact the Student Information Office.
For information regarding the subject content, please contact your lecturer.
For technical problems (Blackboard, login questions, etc.), please contact the Business School IT
Department in Room 118 of the Economics and Business Building H69 (at the rear of the ground
floor). Tel: 9351-5409
7.2.
PASS Program: Peer Assisted Study Sessions
The School of Business funds an additional program for students called PASS in this unit. PASS
stands for Peer Assisted Study Sessions. Research from the UK, USA and Australia has consistently
demonstrated that students who regularly attend PASS are likely to improve their academic
performance and are less likely to fail or drop out. In 2008, 97% of respondents to end of semester,
anonymous surveys reported they learnt during PASS and 97% reported that they enjoyed the
program. One student commented “I loved everything about PASS – it was GREAT for clarifying
ideas from class [and] helped my studies. I also had the opportunity to make many friends though
PASS”.
For more information, click on the PASS button on the left hand side of the ECMT1020
Blackboard site
8. Week-by-Week Topic Guide
Week
1
25Jul
2
1 Aug
3
Topic
Topic Details
Read these
sections in:
Hypothesis
Testing (1)
Binomial Distribution
Normal Approximation to the Binomial
Distribution
Hypothesis Test for a Population Proportion
Chi Square Distribution
Test for ‘goodness of fit’
Test for independence
Test of homogeneity
Matrix Operations – Addition, Subtraction and
Multiplication
Determinants and Inverse
Review of Maxima and Minima, Partial
Derivatives
Hessian Matrix, Maxima and Minima
Constrained Optimization
Black, 5.3
Black, 6.3
Black, 9.4
Hypothesis
Testing (2)
Chi Square Test
Matrices
8 Aug
4
15 Aug
Partial
Differentiation
Black, 12.1
Black, 12.2
Lecture notes
Goodhew, Ch.4
Goodhew, Ch. 5
Quiz 1
NOTE: This unit of study outline is tentative and subject to change
9
Week
5
22 Aug
6
29 Aug
7
5 Sep
8
12 Sep
9
19 Sep
AVCC
10
Topic
Multiple
Regression (1)
Multiple
Regression (2)
Multiple
Regression (3)
Statistics for
Finance
Survey and
Sampling
Methods
ANOVA
4 Oct
11
10 Oct
12
Non-parametric
Statistics
Time Series
17 Oct
13
24 Oct
14
15
Quality Control:
Control Charts
Topic Details
Read these
sections in:
OLS
Use of Excel and Interpretation of Output
Choice of Explanatory Variables
Omitted Variable Bias
Hypothesis Testing of β using t Distribution
Hypothesis Testing of β using F Distribution
Partial F
Multicollinearity
Interaction terms
Dummy variables
Joint Random Variables –
Covariance, Correlation Coefficient,
V(aX + bY)
Portfolio Analysis
Review of SRS for a Finite Population
Estimation of Means, Totals and Proportions
Stratified Sampling
Mid Semester Break
The idea of ANOVA and Quality Control
ANOVA Test for means
ANOVA using EXCEL
Black, 14.1
Black, 14.3
Lecture Notes
Mann-Whitney U test for two independent
populations
Wilcoxon Matched pairs test for two dependent
populations
Kruskal Wallis test for > two independent
populations
Time Series Forecasting – Smoothing –
Exponential Smoothing – MA
Seasonal Indices Using Moving Averages
Black, 17.1-17.7
p-chart
Mean and Range Charts
Black, 14.2
Lecture notes
Black, 15.4
Black, 15.2
Black, 15.1
Lecture Notes
Quiz 2
Black, 7.1
Lecture notes
Black, 11.3–11.3
Black, 16.1-16.4
Quiz 3
Black, 18.1–18.3
Study Vacation
Exam Period Begins
NOTE: This unit of study outline is tentative and subject to change
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