Overview
This unit will introduce you to preliminary concepts in statistics. The material covered in this unit will allow you to do research as part of your undergraduate and/or professional career/s. The goal of this unit is to provide you with the skills to perform basic statistical analyses (e.g., t-tests, ANOVA, chi-square, linear regression, etc.), as they apply in the health, human, and social sciences. It is a recommendation of enrolment in the unit that you have competency at secondary-level mathematics. Students lacking competency at secondary level (including basic algebra) are encouraged to contact the Academic Learning Centre (ALC) to discuss their options before enrolling in this unit.
Details
Pre-requisites or Co-requisites
There are no requisites for this unit.
Important note: Students enrolled in a subsequent unit who failed their pre-requisite unit, should drop the subsequent unit before the census date or within 10 working days of Fail grade notification. Students who do not drop the unit in this timeframe cannot later drop the unit without academic and financial liability. See details in the Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework).
Offerings For Term 2 - 2021
Attendance Requirements
All on-campus students are expected to attend scheduled classes – in some units, these classes are identified as a mandatory (pass/fail) component and attendance is compulsory. International students, on a student visa, must maintain a full time study load and meet both attendance and academic progress requirements in each study period (satisfactory attendance for International students is defined as maintaining at least an 80% attendance record).
Recommended Student Time Commitment
Each 6-credit Undergraduate unit at CQUniversity requires an overall time commitment of an average of 12.5 hours of study per week, making a total of 150 hours for the unit.
Class Timetable
Assessment Overview
Assessment Grading
This is a graded unit: your overall grade will be calculated from the marks or grades for each assessment task, based on the relative weightings shown in the table above. You must obtain an overall mark for the unit of at least 50%, or an overall grade of ‘pass’ in order to pass the unit. If any ‘pass/fail’ tasks are shown in the table above they must also be completed successfully (‘pass’ grade). You must also meet any minimum mark requirements specified for a particular assessment task, as detailed in the ‘assessment task’ section (note that in some instances, the minimum mark for a task may be greater than 50%). Consult the University’s Grades and Results Policy for more details of interim results and final grades.
All University policies are available on the CQUniversity Policy site.
You may wish to view these policies:
- Grades and Results Policy
- Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework)
- Review of Grade Procedure
- Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure
- Monitoring Academic Progress (MAP) Policy and Procedure – Domestic Students
- Monitoring Academic Progress (MAP) Policy and Procedure – International Students
- Student Refund and Credit Balance Policy and Procedure
- Student Feedback – Compliments and Complaints Policy and Procedure
- Information and Communications Technology Acceptable Use Policy and Procedure
This list is not an exhaustive list of all University policies. The full list of University policies are available on the CQUniversity Policy site.
Feedback, Recommendations and Responses
Every unit is reviewed for enhancement each year. At the most recent review, the following staff and student feedback items were identified and recommendations were made.
Feedback from Student Evaluation
Several students, who reported undertaking this second-year unit before the first-year introductory psychology unit, Foundations of Psychological Research (PSYC11012), reported difficulty understanding some research methods and design concepts, which underpin the statistical analyses covered in this unit.
The prerequisites for enrolment in this unit will be reviewed, as part of a larger review of the undergraduate psychology course. Extra reading material will also be provided via the Moodle site, to better support students who need information on research methods and design principles.
Feedback from Student Evaluation & Email / Tutorial Communication
While the nature of the assessment tasks for the unit were well-received by students, some report challenges 'changing pace,' in terms of the processes and requirements for the final assessment task (because this requires them to complete a computer-based analysis, where previous assessments involve hand calculation analyses and theoretical quizzes).
The structure of tutorial activities will be revised to employ a more ‘hands-on’ approach, in order to better familiarise students with the computer program used for this assessment.
Feedback from Student Email / Tutorial Communication
Mixed feedback about the textbook was given. Some students reported liking the 'light' level of detail it goes into and for its ease of reading, but others reported that they either disliked the text or found that they did not use it often (because they found the lecture presentations easier to follow or more intuitive).
Alternative textbook options (e.g., another textbook, compiled reading list etc.) will be explored.
Feedback from Moodle / Email / Tutorial Communication with Students
Several students (especially Mac users) reported having issues downloading and installing the freeware (software, PSPP) needed to complete their final assessment task.
Options for more user-friendly freeware (e.g., Jamovi) will be explored for students to use and complete their final assessment task.
- Explain and evaluate different statistical methods and procedures
- Apply statistical procedures, methods and calculations
- Translate statistical output into a summary, formatted in APA style.
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Learning Outcomes
| Assessment Tasks | Learning Outcomes | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| 1 - Online Quiz(zes) - 40% | |||
| 2 - Portfolio - 50% | |||
| 3 - Written Assessment - 10% | |||
Alignment of Graduate Attributes to Learning Outcomes
| Graduate Attributes | Learning Outcomes | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| 1 - Communication | |||
| 2 - Problem Solving | |||
| 3 - Critical Thinking | |||
| 4 - Information Literacy | |||
| 5 - Team Work | |||
| 6 - Information Technology Competence | |||
| 7 - Cross Cultural Competence | |||
| 8 - Ethical practice | |||
| 9 - Social Innovation | |||
| 10 - Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Cultures | |||
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Graduate Attributes
| Assessment Tasks | Graduate Attributes | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | |
| 1 - Online Quiz(zes) - 40% | ||||||||||
| 2 - Portfolio - 50% | ||||||||||
| 3 - Written Assessment - 10% | ||||||||||
Textbooks
There are no required textbooks.
Additional Textbook Information
Students will need to download a freeware statistics program (e.g., Jamovi) for use in their final assessment task and lab exercises.
A compiled reading list (rather than a textbook) will be made available as the prescribed readings for this unit.
IT Resources
- CQUniversity Student Email
- Internet
- Unit Website (Moodle)
- Jamovi (free statistics analysis program)
All submissions for this unit must use the referencing style: American Psychological Association 7th Edition (APA 7th edition)
For further information, see the Assessment Tasks.
l.lole@cqu.edu.au
Module/Topic
Introduction to Data Analysis
Chapter
An Introduction to Psychological Statistics (University of Missouri-St. Louis)
Chapter 1: Introduction
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Describing our Variables
Chapter
An Introduction to Psychological Statistics (University of Missouri-St. Louis)
Chapter 2: Describing Data using Distributions and Graphs
Chapter 3: Measures of Central Tendency and Spread
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Z-scores, Percentiles, & Probability
Chapter
An Introduction to Psychological Statistics (University of Missouri-St. Louis)
Chapter 4: z-score and the Standard Normal Distribution
Chapter 5: Probability
Chapter 6: Sampling Distributions
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Data Relationships &
Reporting Our Results
Chapter
Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (7th Edition, 2020)
Chapter 2: Paper Elements and Format, pp. 47-55; 60.
Chapter 3: Journal Article Reporting Standards, pp. 71-73; 78-81; 86-89.
Chapter 6: Mechanics of Style, pp. 159; 178-188.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Hypothesis testing
Chapter
An Introduction to Psychological Statistics (University of Missouri-St. Louis)
Chapter 7: Introduction to Hypothesis Testing
Events and Submissions/Topic
Online Quiz (#2) DUE: Week 5 Friday (13 Aug. 2021) 9:00 am AEST
Module/Topic
-
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
-
Module/Topic
Correlation
Chapter
An Introduction to Psychological Statistics (University of Missouri-St. Louis)
Chapter 12: Correlations
Events and Submissions/Topic
Online Quiz (#3) DUE: Week 6 Friday (27 Aug. 2021) 9:00 am AEST
Module/Topic
Simple regression &
Partial correlation
Chapter
An Introduction to Psychological Statistics (University of Missouri-St. Louis)
Chapter 13: Linear Regression
Events and Submissions/Topic
Calculation Portfolio Task (#2) DUE: Week 7 Friday (3 Sept. 2021) 9:00 am AEST
Module/Topic
Related samples t-test
Chapter
An Introduction to Psychological Statistics (University of Missouri-St. Louis)
Chapter 8: Introduction to t-tests
Chapter 9: Repeated Measures
Events and Submissions/Topic
Online Quiz (#4) DUE: Week 8 Friday (10 Sept. 2021) 9:00 am AEST
Module/Topic
Unrelated samples t-test
Chapter
An Introduction to Psychological Statistics (University of Missouri-St. Louis)
Chapter 10: Independent Samples
Events and Submissions/Topic
Calculation Portfolio (#3) DUE: Week 9 Friday (17 Sept. 2021) 9:00 am AEST
Module/Topic
Chi-square
Chapter
An Introduction to Psychological Statistics (University of Missouri-St. Louis)
Chapter 14: Chi-square
Events and Submissions/Topic
Calculation Portfolio Task (#4) DUE: Week 10 Friday (24 Sept. 2021) 9:00 am AEST
Module/Topic
Independent groups ANOVA
Chapter
An Introduction to Psychological Statistics (University of Missouri-St. Louis)
Chapter 11: Analysis of Variance
Events and Submissions/Topic
Calculation Portfolio Task (#5) DUE: Week 11 Friday (1 Oct. 2021) 9:00 am AEST
Module/Topic
Answering Questions with Data
Chapter
Answering Questions with Data: Introductory Statistics for Psychology Students (Crump Lab)
Chapter 12: Thinking About Answering Questions with Data
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
-
Chapter
-
Events and Submissions/Topic
-
Module/Topic
-
Chapter
-
Events and Submissions/Topic
-
Students will be provided with an eReading List - they will not be required to purchase a textbook.
A freeware statistical analysis program will be used for the final assessment (the Unit Coordinator will demonstrate the use of Jamovi throughout the term).
1 Online Quiz(zes)
You will be required to complete four Online Quizzes.
These are comprised of 20 multiple-choice questions and you will have 25 minutes to answer these.
You have one attempt at each quiz.
- Quiz 1 (due in Week 3) will cover material from Weeks 1 and 2
- Quiz 2 (due in Week 5) will cover material from Weeks 3 and 4
- Quiz 3 (due in Week 6) will cover material from Week 5
- Quiz 4 (due in Week 8) will cover material from Weeks 6 and 7
4
Other
Week 3 Friday (30 July 2021) 9:00 am AEST
Quiz #1 is due 9 am (AEST) on 30/07/2021; Quiz #2 is due 9 am (AEST) on 13/08/2021; Quiz #3 is due 9 am (AEST) on 27/08/2021; Quiz #4 is due 9 am (AEST) on 10/09/2021
Grades and feedback will be made available in Moodle immediately after each quiz closes (see DUE dates above).
Each correct answer will be awarded half (0.5) a mark.
- Explain and evaluate different statistical methods and procedures
- Translate statistical output into a summary, formatted in APA style.
- Problem Solving
- Information Literacy
2 Portfolio
You will be required to complete five Calculation Portfolio tasks.
You have one attempt for each Calculation Portfolio task, for which you will have 2 hours to complete it.
You have one attempt at each task.
- Portfolio 1 (due Week 4) will cover material from Weeks 1, 2, and 3
- Portfolio 2 (due Week 7) will cover material from Weeks 6
- Portfolio 3 (due Week 9) will cover material from Week 8
- Portfolio 4 (due Week 10) will cover material from Week 9
- Portfolio 5 (due Week 11) will cover material from Week 10
Week 4 Friday (6 Aug 2021) 9:00 am AEST
Calculation task #1 is due 9 am (AEST) on 06/08/2021; Calculation task #2 is due 9 am (AEST) on 03/09/2021; Calculation task #3 is due 9 am (AEST) on 17/09/2021; Calculation task #4 is due 9 am (AEST) on 24/09/2021; Calculation task #5 is due 9 am (AEST) on 01/10/2021
Grades will be made available in Moodle immediately after completion of each task. Feedback will be given when each assessment closes (see DUE dates above).
Each correct answer will be awarded one (1) mark.
- Apply statistical procedures, methods and calculations
- Problem Solving
- Information Technology Competence
3 Written Assessment
You will be required to choose and run an appropriate statistical analysis using computer-based software, as well as interpret and report these results in American Psychological Association (APA) format.
Week 12 Friday (8 Oct 2021) 11:55 am AEST
Feedback on assessments will be given approximately two weeks from the due date.
This assessment will be graded out of 10. Marks will be allocated, according to the following criteria:
- Selection of an appropriate statistical analysis for the given data (2 marks)
- Justification for the choice of statistical test (2 marks)
- Results reported and interpreted correctly (4 marks)
- Results written according to American Psychological Association (APA) standards (2 marks)
- Explain and evaluate different statistical methods and procedures
- Apply statistical procedures, methods and calculations
- Translate statistical output into a summary, formatted in APA style.
- Communication
- Critical Thinking
- Information Literacy
- Information Technology Competence
As a CQUniversity student you are expected to act honestly in all aspects of your academic work.
Any assessable work undertaken or submitted for review or assessment must be your own work. Assessable work is any type of work you do to meet the assessment requirements in the unit, including draft work submitted for review and feedback and final work to be assessed.
When you use the ideas, words or data of others in your assessment, you must thoroughly and clearly acknowledge the source of this information by using the correct referencing style for your unit. Using others’ work without proper acknowledgement may be considered a form of intellectual dishonesty.
Participating honestly, respectfully, responsibly, and fairly in your university study ensures the CQUniversity qualification you earn will be valued as a true indication of your individual academic achievement and will continue to receive the respect and recognition it deserves.
As a student, you are responsible for reading and following CQUniversity’s policies, including the Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure. This policy sets out CQUniversity’s expectations of you to act with integrity, examples of academic integrity breaches to avoid, the processes used to address alleged breaches of academic integrity, and potential penalties.
What is a breach of academic integrity?
A breach of academic integrity includes but is not limited to plagiarism, self-plagiarism, collusion, cheating, contract cheating, and academic misconduct. The Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure defines what these terms mean and gives examples.
Why is academic integrity important?
A breach of academic integrity may result in one or more penalties, including suspension or even expulsion from the University. It can also have negative implications for student visas and future enrolment at CQUniversity or elsewhere. Students who engage in contract cheating also risk being blackmailed by contract cheating services.
Where can I get assistance?
For academic advice and guidance, the Academic Learning Centre (ALC) can support you in becoming confident in completing assessments with integrity and of high standard.
What can you do to act with integrity?
