Feel the fear and do it anyway: Perceived gains from the Passion-Driven Statistics project-based introductory statistics course

Abstract

Background. The Passion-Driven Statistics curriculum teaches students to apply introductory statistics concepts to complete an independent project using real datasets using R, SAS, Stata, SPSS, or Python. Past research has found that project-based statistics has been successful at enrolling students from populations underrepresented in quantitative fields or who might not otherwise take statistics courses, such as students with lower SAT scores, and students expressed more interest in statistics after a project-based statistics course than after a traditional statistics course. Methods. Undergraduate and graduate students in community colleges, flagship and regional universities, and small liberal arts colleges have used this curriculum, and past research has found success with students who might not otherwise enroll in quantitative courses. In this study, we evaluated whether students’ pre-course attitudes were associated with perceived gains among 801 students attending 28 private and public universities, fall 2018 - January 2020. We used multilevel mixed-effects linear regression within multiple imputed data. Findings. Each increment of future intentions to use statistics (range 0-6) was associated with 0.09-0.17 standard deviations of greater gains on all subscales of the Undergraduate Research Student Self-Assessment: perceived future preparation, skill gains, thinking like a scientist, scientific engagement, and personal gains. Binary measures of low math confidence and statistics anxiety were not associated with perceived gains. Implications. Project-based courses can be effective with students who enter the course with intentions of using statistics, despite statistics anxiety. Encouraging students’ interest in using statistics in the future prior to enrollment may improve the course’s effectiveness. Project-based courses may also be effective with mid-career students who have career-specific motivations to learn statistics.