SCI1020: Introduction to Statistical Reasoning

I didn't exactly enjoy the content of this unit as I found it rather dry and it was quite boring to get through however for someone who got below a 25 study score in Methods, I still found this unit to be rather easy so this is a good unit to do for those who aren't too great at maths. The lecturers provide all the necessary information and as long as you attend the applied classes, you should be able to get close to or full marks on the Quizzes and worksheets as your TA usually goes through a decent chunk of the worksheet in class.

I found that the textbook was kinda useful but they provided PDF files of each week's questions that are relevant so it isn't awfully necessary to purchase the textbook. The exam itself was a little bit difficult however it is similar in difficulty to the mock exams so if you do them a couple of times, you should be fine to do well. [/list]

Soojin Roh and my TA - Tam

Yes, 2 practice papers available

3 out of 5

Yes, uploaded onto Moodle

The Basic Practices of Statistics

3x1 Hr Lectures per week and a weekly 2 Hr applied session

2021, Semester 2

84 HD

10% Weekly quizzes
10% Weekly workshop sheets
20% Assessments (1: 7.5%, 2: 5%, 3: 7.5%)
60% Examination

Overall comments: I found this unit easy but dry. The high rating is due to it being highly structured and the topics being clearly set out with the corresponding lectures (as they’re being uploaded) and worksheets from the very start of the semester. The drawbacks of this unit include not receiving the ideal answers to the worksheets (as they are reused every year), not receiving the ideal answers to the assessments until the revision period and once again, how hard it was to watch the lectures and stay motivated. I only picked this unit as this was to be my mandatory maths unit in my science degree and secondly, as I’m self-diagnosed as being bad at maths (compared to my siblings) and due to reading many reviews, SCI1020 is supposedly the comparatively easiest maths unit (to which, now I agree). I recommend this unit, if you don’t like numbers, like me or if you’re comfortable with statistics/ further and are looking for a WAM booster.

Weekly quizzes (10%): Multiple choice, 10qs, 1 hour, 1 attempt
These were medium in difficulty but definitely possible to full mark especially given the excessive time limit. Most of the questions were directly copied from other American stat exams and since these quizzes were open book, I utilised my research skills well, albeit, I would make sure I understood the topic well, just to make sure I wasn’t too misled by a good mark and terrible understanding. Make sure, you read the stems well and sometimes, for some spice, they change the numbers up compared to the qs available online, so be a bit careful with the calculations.

Weekly worksheet (10%): Short answer mini weekly tests, due approx. two days from the applied class
I got really lucky with my selection of the time slot for the applied class (thank you allocate), getting the Friday applied class meant that as the weekend wasn’t included, my two days was extended to four days, to complete the worksheet. Even this didn’t prevent my ever-anxious brain from procrastinating though, although my tutor was super nice and gave one day extensions. I highly recommend, attending the weekly applied classes as sometimes you can practically finish the entire worksheet just from the tutor explaining each qs and they usually drop heavy hints about the qs they want you to attempt. Overall, the applied classes are a massive tool as although they are sometimes considerably hard to stay awake in, during the second hour, where you are left to your own devices to complete the worksheet, you can ask all your qs to the tutor. Furthermore, if you feel as if you are quite behind, you can email you tutor and/or ask if you can meet before or after the class to understand a concept or why certain answers were marked wrong.

Assessments (20%): Short/long answer, due approx. two weeks after released
These test approx. 4 weeks at once, as there’s usually one stem with several questions following it, corresponding to each week. This is when the lectures come in handy, as sometimes they do the exact same qs from future assignments along with a clear step by step working out, so make sure not to miss out on these lucky eggs. Its relatively easy to do well in these, if you have been consistent with your lectures and worksheets but if you haven’t, there are plenty of online resources such as the supplementary videos and online basic stats courses, that give you a step by step for common qs.

Exam (60%): Multiple choice, 60qs, 3 hrs, closed book and invigilated (eek)
This MCQ exam was unnecessarily given 3 hours but I’m not complaining as I believe, usually its short answer. It’s quite easy to be ready for the exam but only if you had done adequate preparation. A key tip is to make sure; you have completed the mocks as they are relatively representative of the difficulty of the real thing. Ngl, the fact that this was an invigilated exam made me more nervous than the actual exam content itself, as despite not cheating, I was scared they were tracking my eye movements and if somehow, I perhaps looked suspicious. But regardless, my tips would be to keep up with the weekly content and attend the applied class, watch the lectures live if possible and if not, making sure to watch the recordings. I suggest creating a one note page of a timeline of sort and compiling all the assessment and quiz dates and highlighting whenever a major assessment is due. Emailing my tutor regularly about my work and worksheets as well as consistently contributing in a mostly mute class, helped me create a good relationship with her (s/o to Vladka) and it can definitely be very helpful in tough times with regards to extra help or extensions.
Overall, this unit is neatly presented and despite sometimes being boring, you can perhaps seek motivation from the fact that you can do really well with little effort.
Goodluck!

Dr Soojin Roh (unit coordinator)
Dr Daniel McInnes
And a plethora of TAs

No, 2 mock exams provided

4/5

All lectures were live streamed as well as recorded, the applied classes were streamed via zoom but

The Basic Practice of Statistics, Moore 8^th Edition (personally, didn’t really use this)

3 x 1hr lectures weekly
1 x 2hr applied class weekly

2020, semester 1.

87 HD