1. Why do Statistics? U1 = n1 n2 + ½ n1 (n1 + 1) – R1
This is an introductory slide show, aiming briefly to motivate the use of statistics. Details on terminology, interpretation, pitfalls, actual tests etc are in later shows.
© Curriculum Press 2003

2. What do we gain from statistics?
Make work more precise
Help draw conclusions
May throw new light on results
Improve experimental design
The headings here are hyperlinks. “And” gives general advantages of becoming comfortable with statistics, rather than geography-specific ones.
And…

3. Make work more precise Allow you to make definite statements
“The mean grass length is higher in Area A” not “The grass is generally longer in Area A”
“The standard deviation is larger in Area A” not “There is more variation in Area A”
Make results less dependent on your interpretation
No need to try to judge just from diagrams – calculations do some of the work for you

4. Help draw conclusions
Help you decide whether your results have shown anything
Is there really a difference?
Is there enough correlation to be worth bothering with?
Give you a definite result to comment on
This could be elaborated with examples on work the class is doing.

5. May throw new light on results
Statistics may show up relationships that couldn’t be spotted from a diagram
Is there a correlation here?
Is there a difference in these populations?
The point here is that statistics may show up a “non-obvious” relationship – for example, at the 10% significance level, there is a significant negative correlation in the left-hand graph – but would they spot it?

6. Improve experimental design
If you think about statistics when planning your investigation, you will have to
Be precise about your objectives
Specify your hypotheses clearly
Decide the type of data you are collecting
Decide how much data you need to collect
All these things help make it a better investigation anyway!
Of course students should do all these things anyway…but pointing out that they probably won’t be able to do any stats (and gain the corresponding marks) unless they do can be an added incentive. This could link in with the presentation on planning and preparation.

7. And…
In many further/higher education courses, you will have to use statistics. It helps if you’re familiar with them already.
Using statistics helps develop your general skills in numerical work & data interpretation.
And of course… correct statistics will help you gain good marks in projects!
The “home” button will return to the main menu of presentations