Welcome to AP Statistics.
I’m looking forward to getting to know everyone in the fall! While you’ve likely been exposed to some statistics before in your life (shout out to mean, median, and mode), statistics is its own entire branch of mathematics that demands a different style of thinking from what you’d typically associate with “high school math”. At its core, statistics is all about data, and the ways that we collect, organize, analyze, and interpret those data.
First of all, please go into:
khanacademy.org/join and use the class code: KRACHRVD
[Or click this link >] https://www.khanacademy.org/join/KRACHRVD
to sign up into my AP Stats class and complete the summer assignments that are due on August 29.
You will receive 3 grades, two grades from quizzes (50 points each) and third grade from complete the rest of the assignments (50 points)
Also, below are three things I’ll ask of you over the summer to get your brain thinking about data before September:
#1: Look out for the statistics and data you’re exposed to each day. Here are a few examples.
● Weather forecasts will often give you a daily high temperature, often compared to an “average” high. How would you decide if a day is unusually hot or cool? How many degrees above the average make a day exceptionally unusual? What information could be given to help you make this decision?
● Medical studies are often in the news. Do certain foods or drinks really extend (or shorten!) human life? How much does smoking really harm you? Does eating a multi-vitamin every day actually do anything? Every one of these studies has some fancy statistical analysis behind it, some better than others.
● Elections are coming in 2022. Every good poll reports a margin of error, often with a specified confidence level. What is that truly measuring, what does it mean, and how is it calculated?
● From the NBA (see: Daryl Morey, GM of the Houston Rockets) to Jeopardy (see: James Holzhauer) and everything in between, “analytics” is the new normal in sports. How important are analytics and how much weight should we put into them? What are they capable of – and what are their limitations?
● Statistics are used to discuss social issues all the time! Listen to how people use statistics when they talk about coronavirus.
#2: Below are a few books that deal with important statistical ideas without getting too technical. Pick one and read it! These books are available at the library.
The Drunkard's Walk: How Randomness Rules Our Lives by Leonard Mlodinow 2008.
Outliers, by Malcolm Gladwell. Little, Brown, & Co 2008
Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything, by Levitt & Dubner, 2005.
Meatonomics: How the Rigged Economics of Meat and Dairy Make You Consume Too Much-and How to Eat Better, Live Longer, and Spend Smarter by David Robinson Simon, Conari Press, 2013.
Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game, by M. Lewis. Norton, 2003 (tells how our own Oakland A’s revamped their baseball team using basic stats)
Damned Lies and Statistics: Untangling Numbers from the Media, Politicians, and Activists, J Best, University Press, 2001.
How to Lie With Statistics, D. Huff, W.W. Norton, 1952.
Bringing Down the House: How Six Students Took Vegas for Millions, by Ben Mezrich (Breaking Vegas & “21” movies are based on this book). Free Press
The Ghost Map: The Story of London’s Most Terrifying Epidemic—and How It Changed Science, Cities, and the Modern World, by S. Johnson
The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference, by M. Gladwell, Little, Brown & Co., 2002
Naked Statistics, by Charles Wheelan, Norton, 2013
Factfullness: Ten Reasons We’re Wrong About the World—and Why Things Are Better Than You Think by Hans Rosling, Flatiron Books 2018.
#3: Watch both these TED talks:
● “The Best Stats You’ve Ever Seen” by Hans Rosling (http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/en/hans_rosling_shows_the_best_stats_you_ve_ever_seen.html )
● Art Benjamin’s talk about why statistics may be the most important math class you’ll take (http://www.ted.com/talks/arthur_benjamin_s_formula_for_changing_math_education.html).
Hopefully you have read this far and are still excited about the course. I’m really excited about having you in class. Statistics is my favorite course to teach & we eat a lot of snacks--we have to collect data somehow, so why not use Skittles and cookies?
Please do not hesitate to email me with any questions or concerns. Again, welcome to statistics!
Mrs. Osadnik
Teresa.Osadnik@lodi.k12.nj.us