By Kristin Flaming, Kristel M. Gallagher
Information
As researchers, we understand the critical need for our students to understand statistics. However, we acknowledge that for many of our students, it is unclear to them why they need to know statistics. PassionDrivenStatistics.com is a project-based, multidisciplinary introductory statistics curriculum. This NSF-funded curriculum engages students in data-driven research with large, real world data sets that provide context and meaning to their understanding of statistics. Students work with descriptive and inferential statistics as well as basic statistical programming concepts and skills in the pursuit of managing and analyzing data. This experience provides significant student outcomes (e.g., an empirical presentation) with minor faculty investment (e.g., time, technology, our OER). Students enrolled in the course had more positive course experiences than those enrolled in a traditional course, including a better understanding of the information presented through one-on-one support, engaging in greater preparation for class, finding the course more useful and gauging its reward and feelings of accomplishment more highly (Dierker, Flaming et al., 2018). Recent findings suggest the course may contribute to the decision for students to enroll in future courses in statistics and data analysis, when compared to the psychology and mathematics department courses (Nazzaro et al., 2020).