Psyx 222, Fall 2015
Psyx 222 – Psychological Statistics
Fall 2015
Instructor Information
Instructor: Shannon C. Houck, Ph.D.
Email: shannon.houck@umontana.edu (the best way to contact me)
Office: Skaggs 203
Office hours: TBD
Course Information
Lectures: M, W, F, 2:10 – 3:00pm
Location: Chem. 123
Labs/Tutorials: Thursday, 246 Skaggs Building
Times: Thursdays, 10:10 – 11:00, 11:10 – 12:00, 3:10 – 4:00, and 4:10 – 5:00
Teaching Assistant: Meredith A. Repke
Office: Skaggs 236
Email: meredith.repke@umontana.edu
Office Hours: Tuesday 8:00 – 11:00am
Required Text
Kirk, Roger E. (2007). Statistics: An Introduction. 5th ed. Thomson/Wadsworth.
Optional Supplementary Text
Study Guide: Denis, D. (2007). Study Guide for Kirk, R. E. (2008). Statistics: An Introduction. Wadsworth
(pdf)
Course Objective
The primary objective of this course is to provide the opportunity for the student to acquire a working
knowledge and understanding of statistical methods regularly used in psychological and social sciences.
Course Policies and Guidelines
Academic Misconduct
You are expected to adhere to the university’s student conduct code with regard to academic integrity.
Academic misconduct in this course will result in an academic penalty commensurate with the offense
as well as possible disciplinary action by the university. Please familiarize yourself with the Student
Conduct Code.
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Psyx 222, Fall 2015
Disability Modifications
The University of Montana assures equal access to instruction through collaboration between students
with disabilities, instructors, and Disability Services for Students. If you think you have a disability
adversely affecting your academic performance, and you have not already registered with Disability
Services, please contact Disability Services in Lommasson Center 154 or call 406.243.2243. I will work
with you and Disability Services to provide an appropriate modification.
Class Behavior
The expectations for this course are such that you remain respectfully silent while either the instructor is
speaking or a colleague in the class is asking or responding to a question. In accordance with policies set
by the University, disruptions in class will not be tolerated. If you are not enthralled, that's OK; if you
talk to your neighbor, make noise with your phone, or do anything else that is distracting to me or to
others, that is NOT OK. A failure to meet this expectation will result in you being dismissed
permanently from the class. This policy is extremely strict as to protect the rights of students who have
invested time, money and energy into this course and deserve nothing less than an optimal learning
environment. Please speak to the instructor privately if you are being disturbed in class.
Attendance/Announcements
Attending class lectures is not mandatory and role will not be taken. However, please note that course
notes are not posted online and I do not give my notes out for any reason – if you miss class or your
lab, you are responsible for the material covered. Further, students are responsible for any
announcements made in class. These may include changes in policy, due dates, assignment
requirements, etc.
Course Withdrawal
November 3rd is the last day to drop classes with an add/drop form. After that date, no petitions to
drop the course will be signed and no Incompletes will be given except in documentable emergency
situations.
Incompletes
Departmental and university policies regarding incompletes do not allow changing “incomplete” grades
after one year has passed since the “I” was granted.
Course Grades
Exams
You will have 4 required exams (including the cumulative final); 3 of these exams will be counted toward
your final grade – the final exam plus your two highest other exam scores. (In other words, you get to
drop your lowest exam, but you cannot drop the final.) Exams will contain a combination of multiplechoice and short-answer questions that will test your knowledge of topics covered in lecture as well as
in the text. If you miss an exam, that exam counts as your dropped grade. Because of this, there are
absolutely NO makeup exams. The only exception I make to this rule is for absences due to universitysponsored events (i.e., choir, band, sports, etc.); you must have an official release form in order to reschedule, and you must re-schedule the exam well in advance. (If you fail to schedule the exam well in
advance of exam day, I will not allow a makeup). THERE ARE NO OTHER EXCEPTIONS TO THIS RULE!
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Psyx 222, Fall 2015
Exam Grading
All exams are graded using the same grading scheme. Unless there is an obvious and clear arithmetical
error in the grading of your test or exam, grades will not be adjusted. Please be aware that tests are
usually graded high. If you feel strongly that you would like your test re-graded, you must be prepared
to subject it to a fair re-evaluation, which means your grade could increase or decrease from the original
evaluation. In the event that you receive a lower grade than your original grade, you will not be allowed
to keep your original grade.
Lab Assignments
A variety of lab assignments and applied exercises will be provided to you in your lab sections. These
assignments are designed to increase students’ ability to apply statistical concepts learned in class.
While attendance will not be taken during labs, you are highly encouraged to attend. Lab assignments
will not be announced ahead of time. The number of lab assignment opportunities that will be made
available to you will total to 35 points. However, you can only earn a maximum of 30 points for lab
assignments (each assignment is worth between 3-5 points). This means that if you miss a lab
assignment, you will have additional opportunities to earn the maximum number of lab assignment
points. Because of this, there are NO make-ups for lab assignments.
Course grading
Your final course grade will be based upon a total of 330 possible points that will be distributed as
follows:
3 Exams (100 points each; final exam + your 2 other highest exam scores): 300 points
Lab assignments (provided to you only during your scheduled lab section): 30 points
Course grading will be based on the following point scale:
A:
90% or higher
B+:
86-89%
B:
83-85%
B-:
80-82%
C+:
76-79%
C:
73-75%
C-:
70-72%
D+:
66-69%
D:
63-65%
D-:
60-62%
F:
59% and below
Be warned now: I will round decimal places equal to or greater than ".5" up (so a total of 89.5% will be
an "A"); however, beyond this, the grade you receive will be whatever the numbers say, NO
EXCEPTIONS (so an 89.4% will be a "B+"). I am aware that this can create some unfortunate
circumstances for those students who are on the “bubble”. However, the problem with changing the
criterion for a given student is that, once I change that criterion, inevitably another student is "right on
the bubble," so ultimately someone just barely misses it. I don’t want to be overly subjective in my
judgment of who should get to surpass the objective criteria; thus, no one will. NOTE: If you are a
psychology major, you must get a C, not a C- for the grade to count.
The instructor reserves the right to change the syllabus if necessary.
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Psyx 222, Fall 2015
COURSE SCHEDULE
DATE
ASSIGNED
READINGS/EXAMS
TOPICS
31st Aug. Mon.
2nd Sep. Wed.
4th Sep. Fri.
Course Syllabus, Course Policies
Introduction to Statistics
7th Sep. Mon.
NO CLASS – Labor Day
9th Sep. Wed.
11th Sep. Fri.
14th Sep. Mon.
16th Sep. Wed.
18th Sep. Fri.
21st Sep. Mon.
23rd Sep. Wed.
25th Sep. Fri
Chapter 1
9/3, Lab
Orientation
Frequency Distributions and Graphs
Chapter 2
9/10, Lab 1
Measures of Central Tendency
Chapter 3
9/17, Lab 2
Measures of Dispersion, Skewness, and
Kurtosis
Chapter 4
9/24, Exam
Review during lab
28th Sep. Mon.
30st Sep. Wed.
2nd Oct. Fri
5th Oct. Mon.
7th Oct. Wed.
9th Oct. Fri
12th Oct. Mon.
14th Oct. Wed.
16th Oct. Fri
19th Oct. Mon.
21st Oct. Wed.
23rd Oct. Fri
26th Oct. Mon.
28th Oct. Wed.
30th Oct. Fri
2nd Nov. Mon.
4th Nov. Wed.
6th Nov. Fri
9th Nov. Mon.
11th Nov. Wed.
13th Nov. Fri.
NO CLASS – Veterans Day
Statistical Inference: Two Samples
Chapter 13
16th Nov. Mon.
18th Nov. Wed.
20th Nov. Fri
Statistical Inference: Two Samples
Chapter 13
23rd Nov. Mon.
25th Nov. Wed.
27th Nov. Fri.
LABS
EXAM 1
Chapters 1-4
Correlation
Chapter 5
10/1, Lab 3
Correlation
Regression
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
10/8, Lab 4
Regression
Probability
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
10/15, Lab 5
Random Variables and Probability
Distributions
EXAM 2
Normal Distribution and Sampling
Distributions
Chapter 8
10/22, Exam
Review during lab
Chapter 9
10/29, Lab 6
Statistical Inference: One Sample
Chapter 10
11/5, Lab 7
Statistical Inference: Two Samples
Chapter 13
EXAM 3
Chapters 5-8
11/12, Lab 8
Chapters 9, 10, 13
NO CLASS – Thanksgiving Break
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11/19, Exam
Review during lab
Psyx 222, Fall 2015
DATE
30th Nov. Mon.
2nd Dec. Wed.
4th Dec. Fri.
7th. Dec. Mon.
9th Dec. Wed.
11th. Dec. Fri.
ASSIGNED
READINGS/EXAMS
TOPICS
LABS
Introduction to the Analysis of Variance
Chapter 15
12/3, Lab 9
Introduction to the Analysis of Variance
Final Exam Review Session
Chapter 15
12/8, Final Exam
Review in lab
Final Exam
Cumulative
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Psyx 222, Fall 2015
PLEASE REMOVE THIS PAGE FROM YOUR SYLLABUS
I, ___________________________________ (print your name) hereby acknowledge that I have received
a copy of the Psychological Statistics syllabus for Fall 2015. I have read the syllabus and understand all
the course policies and requirements. I recognize that it is my responsibility to seek clarification
regarding any aspect of the syllabus, the course requirements, or the grading policies if they are unclear
to me.
Signature_______________________________Date_____________
******************************************************************************
I do not post grades with student ID #’s. You will need to provide me with a “code name” if you would
like your grades posted following tests. Please be certain to choose a code name that is familiar to you,
so that you remember it when you look up your grades. WORD OF CAUTION: I will NOT accept
codenames that are inappropriate (racist, sexist, general bad taste).
CODE NAME: ______________________________
******************************************************************************
Please provide the following information below:
1. Name:
2. UM e-mail address:
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