Download Group Projects in Business Statistics

Using Group Projects in a Business
Statistics Course:
Experiences from the Past and
Possibilities for a Future Course
Joan Donohue
University of South Carolina
1
Topics Currently Covered in our
Introductory Business Statistics Course
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
Descriptive Statistics
Probability
Discrete Probability Distributions
Continuous Probability Distributions
Sampling Distributions
Confidence Intervals for Means and Proportions
One-sample Hypothesis Tests for Means and Proportions
Two-sample Hypothesis Tests for Means and Variances
(a group project is done at the end of the semester)
 Starting Fall 2017, the above course will be taught by the
Statistics Department (except the project in #8).
 A new required Business Statistics course will be taught in
the Business School, covering more advanced topics and
including ~3 projects.
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Potential Topics for the New
Required Business Statistics Course
1.
One and Two Sample Hypothesis Tests - brief review
- 1st group project – likely the same one used in old course
2.
ANOVA – one and two factor
3.
Simple Linear Regression
4.
Multiple Linear Regression - 2nd project
5.
Time Series and Forecasting
6.
Chi-Square Tests
7.
Non-parametric Tests
8.
Quality Control
3rd project topic?
Questions:
 Use 2-person groups for all projects?
 Let students work in the same group for all 3 projects?
 Topic for 3rd project?
 Should we require students to purchase Mega-Stat or other
statistical software instead of using only Excel?
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Excel Data Analysis Tools
Anova: Single Factor
Anova: Two-Factor with Replication
Anova: Two-Factor Without Replication
Correlation
Covariance
Descriptive Statistics
Exponential Smoothing
F-test Two-Sample for Variances - Project 1
Fourier Analysis
Histogram
Moving Average
Random Number Generation
Rank and Percentile
Regression - Project 2
Sampling
t-test: Paired Two Sample For Means
t-test: Two-Sample Assuming Equal Variances - Project 1
t-test: Two-Sample Assuming Unequal Variances - Project 1
z-test: Two Sample For Means
Chi-square, Non-parametric tests, and Quality Control are not included.
For Time Series, Exponential Smoothing and Moving Averages could be used.
Mega-Stat and other software packages cover all of these topics.
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4
Current Project Involving
Two-sample Hypothesis Tests
Students work in groups of 2 and can chose their partner.
Otherwise I assign them a partner (usually someone they sit nearby to).
Typically the partner situation works out very well – almost no complaints!
5% Proposal
Develop a hypothesis that compares two groups of
USC students in terms of some characteristic that can
be addressed with a 4-item Likert-scaled survey.
20% In-class Presentation
Give a 5-6 minute PowerPoint presentation in class.
75% Written Report
Write a paper that explains all aspects of the study
(appendices include your survey and Excel worksheets).
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Examples of Hypotheses
Submitted by Students
 Students who are the first-born child in their family are more
ambitious than non-first-borns.
 Greek-affiliated students are more politically conservative
than other students.
 Students with tattoos tend to be more ambitious than other
students.
 Students who frequently hunt or fish are more patient than
other students.
 Male students are more likely to make risky financial
decisions than female students.
 Students who work a job while in school are more
responsible than other students.
6
6
Google Forms Survey
7
7
Collecting Survey Responses
Students have two choices for data collection:
• In-person: Collect data in person at a variety of
locations on campus by asking students to fill out
their survey on their phone/tablet/computer.
• Email: Send their survey link in an email to a
random sample of students obtained using the
on-line university directory. Response rates are
typically 10%.
The minimum sample size allowed is 30 but
collecting more data is encouraged.
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8
Google Forms
Excel File with 3 Downloaded Responses.
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9
Correlation Analysis Using Excel
10
10
F-test on Variances
t-test on Means
11
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My Experience with the
Project Over the Past 5 Years
• Students seem to enjoy doing the project.
• Very detailed step-by-step instructions are
provided.
• ALL students do very good in-class
presentations.
• Written reports vary in quality, depending upon
their understanding of the concepts and their
procrastination habits.
• I have to spend time re-writing their surveys (at
the project proposal stage) and also grading
written reports. However, I find it interesting and
enjoy getting to know the students better.
• Typically I have 2 classes of 56 students, so 56
groups in total.
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How to Handle ~3 Projects for
the New, Advanced Course
• Should I start by doing 1 additional project
(multiple linear regression) and then add the
3rd project in a later semester ?
• Does anyone have suggestions for resources
concerning identifying a good MLR project ?
• Should the instructor guidance be reduced in
the 2nd and 3rd projects ?
The reason I hesitate is that grading is easier
and quality much better if I provide detailed
instructions.
• Audience suggestions and comments ? ? ?
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