WEB SITE AND CONCEPT MAPS TO TEACH STATISTICS Gloria Icaza, Carlos Bravo, Sergio Guiñez, Julio Muñoz Universidad de Talca, Chile Grant founded by Chilean Education Ministry TAL0103

Outline "Diversification of strategies for teaching and learning in basic sciences" Project –Statistics syllabus in University of Talca diagnosis –Project philosophy –Syllabus changes –Information Technology use –Web site description Web site tour

Statistics classes before the project 12 classes per semester (Biology, Economics, Engineer) Up to 65 students per class Limited access to computers and statistical software (25 PCs student lab) Student financial limitations to buy textbooks

Statistics classes before the project Syllabus consist of “math of statistics” (Ito, 2001). Contents: descriptive statistics, probability, inference, and methods

Project philosophy Emphasis on conceptual and data analysis oriented classes (Cobb, 1992) Statistics as a tool of scientific method (“Interactive Statistics” Aliaga, Gunderson, Prentice Hall, 2003) Information Technology (IT)

Syllabus change Decisions with statistics Data production Type of studies Descriptive statistics Basis for inference Inference Methods

IT use Web courseware: WebCT Web site Statistical software

WebCT General class information: syllabus, time schedule, news, grades, homeworks, databases…

Statistics website Organized around scientific method Based on objects learning Concept maps are imbeded

Object learning model Concept map Lecture notes Proposed exercises Solved exercises Online questions Suggested bibliography Explicative hypertexts Simulations applets

asynchronically 95 SPSS network licenses SPSS tutorials in website Tutorial room

Software Dreamweave: web site construction CmapTools: concept maps Flash and Descartes: simulation applets HotPotatotes: online questions

STATISTICS website tour

Challenges Student appropiate use Website update Thesis students tools