AP Statistics Syllabus

Teacher: Mr.
Schievenin Room:
419
E-mail: brandon@laschina.org Please email me through gradelink if
possible. Our email system will reject emails if our inbox is full,
however, the administration will receive copies of any emails sent
through gradelink.
Websites: lasmath.com
Homework answers: calcchat.com . If you cannot see the website,
download the calcchat iphone app.
Office Hours: Monday-Friday 8:00-8:30, 3:45-4:15
I. Course Overview:
In this course students will learn how to identify and describe
patterns and anomalies in a data set, carry out a study, evaluate
chance using probability and modeling, evaluate a hypothesis, and
approximate descriptive elements of a population. The expectation
is that students will have completed the coursework equivalent of a
college level statistics course by the end of this year, and be
prepared to test for this accreditation at the college or university of
their choice. To that end, students will be required to take the
College Board AP exam in May. (Prerequisite: Algebra II)
II. Textbook:
Textbook pending.
III. Core Values in the Classroom
Compassion
Students are expected to value their fellow students and assist one another
in developing n understanding of the material, while also ensuring that they
are tested on their own abilities so that every student knows how much they
know and receives the support from each other that they need. Our course is
not a race, and I will not release individual rankings within the class. The goal
is for our entire class to excel, as proven in our AP exam, when compared to
the rest of the world.
Communication

Students are expected to ask questions if

they need help, and take responsibility for
their understanding of the material.
Statistics, perhaps more than any other
math course, emphasizes the need to
communicate ones findings and
processes. Students are expected to
present the steps they used to get to their
conclusions both orally and verbally, and
explain the work of other students.
Students will also be expected to interpret
and evaluate studies and distributions in
English. Students will be able to use
graphing calculators for experimentation,
support or confirmation of solutions
reached with pen and paper (such as
graphing functions and creating formulas
for Riemann sums that can but solved via
summation calculations possible on a
provided TI-83), and general calculation.
Creativity:
Students are expected to analyze a problem and select the right tools needed
to solve it. Students are expected to be able to explain how to solve problems
in their own words, and break down difficult concepts in a way that people
without experience in their field of expertise can understand. Students will
also be expected to present their ideas in an appropriate graphic model and
to frame their findings in the context of a more relatable scenario, such that
students or parents who have not taken statistics can understand their
findings.
Confidence:
Students will be called on a lot, and expected to speak often. Risks will be
encouraged, with the understanding that presenting a mistake is an
opportunity for correction and ultimately learning.
IV. General Policies: Attendance, Late Assignments, and Classroom
Disruptions
My general philosophy: I expect that my students will come to class on time
and begin working on their do now activity, so that no class time is wasted.
Attendance will be taken every class, and students that arrive late will be
marked tardy on gradelink. Any student that is marked tardy four times will
be marked absent. Assignments are expected on-time. If an assignment
needs to be turned in late this should be arranged with the teacher ahead of
time.
Disruptive behavior is any behavior that prevents other students from
learning or participating in the lesson. I will not tolerate disruptive behavior. I
will ask a student with disruptive behavior to stop once. If the student
continues to disturb the class, I will sent them out of the class and assign
them an absence for that day.

V. Required Materials
Note: All teachers at LAS are encouraging students to reuse materials from
one year to the next, due to the large amount of usable materials thrown out
last year. This year, our school will not provide classroom materials for
students to take home. Please save your notebooks from this year so that you
can use them next year.
Students are required to use a graphing calculator as part of this course. A
list of calculators approved for use on the AP Calculus examination is
available on our course website. If the student does not have a graphing
calculator, that student can purchase one through the school at a discounted
rate. LAS does not make money on graphing calculator sales to students.
Students will also need pencils, a notebook for note taking, notebook paper
and a folder or three ring-binder for homework.
VI. Recommended materials
Computer modeling applications for many topics discussed in this course may
be found at http://www.rossmanchance.com/applets/ .

A supplementary ebook may be found at http://www.onlinestatbook.com/ .

I also recommend reading Barons AP Statistics or Princetons AP Review
before taking the AP exam. These include examinations from previous years
as well as quick reviews of all AP topics.

Khanacademy.org also has several math-help videos that students may find
useful for review.
VII. Grading Policy
Grades will be given as a percentage out of 100. The following criteria will be
used to determine each Quarters Grade:
Tests
40%
Projects
20%
Quizzes
20%
Homework
10%
Classwork and Participation
10%
Homework:
This is a college-level course, and students are expected to take more
responsibility for their learning process: students are expected to check their
answers and make corrections to their homework prior to class. Questions
that cannot be reconciled by the students can be raised at the next class.
Homework grades will be assigned based on completion of the assignments.
All homework should be completed in pencil or black ink. Students are
encouraged to not erase mistakes, but rather place a single line through the
mistake and make a note of why the mistake was made. This is part of the
learning process.
Retest Policy:
If a student scores less than 65% on a test or quiz, they may elect to retake
the quiz. If they do so, their new grade will be capped at either the lowest
score of the student that passed OR the average of their original score and
retest grade (whichever is lower). This ensures that it is always beneficial for
a student that failed to retest, while also ensuring that a retest never
disadvantages students that do not qualify for retesting. Students that score
below 65% on a section of a quiz may request a retest on that section only,
which will be open to all students on a case-by-case basis.
VIII. Plagiarism and Cheating:
The goal of education is for each student to demonstrate mastery of the
content. Cheating deludes the teachers understanding of a students
abilities. While students are encouraged to help each other understand how
to do the homework and classwork, copying answers directly without working
on the problem OR providing any help on tests or quizzes is unacceptable.
Any student caught cheating will receive a score of ZERO on the assignment
in question. A meeting with administration and parents will be scheduled, and
the students other assignment grades will not be entered until the
assignment that the student was cheating on is resubmitted. No credit will be
awarded for the resubmission.
Whenever possible, I will create multiple forms of each test to ensure that
students demonstrate their own mastery of the content.

IX. Dictionaries
Most of our students do not speak English as their first language. For this
reason, electronic dictionaries will be permitted in the classroom for use as
dictionaries. If any student is caught using their device for anything other
than a dictionary without express permission from the teacher, their device
will be confiscated and sent to the vice principal. As a new school-wide policy
this year, cellular devices may not be visible for any purpose within the
classrooms. All cell phones will be confiscated and sent to the Vice Principal
for pickup. This includes iphones, so if necessary please bring a paper
dictionary to class.
Students will be charged 25-100 RMB by the Vice Principal for the return of
any confiscated device, depending on how many times the students device
has been confiscated.
If any student has their device confiscated twice, they will not be allowed to
use their device in class.
X. Progress reports:
You will receive a progress report after 4 1/2 weeks in each quarter. Additional
progress reports may be sent if the teacher feels it is necessary for behavior
problems or significant changes in performance.
The fourth quarter progress report will be sent shortly before the AP
examination, based on fourth quarter diagnostic tests. This will assess
student performance in several categories evaluated on the AP examination,
to assist students in focusing their study efforts leading up to the exam.
Students are encouraged to bring questions to class, but if they still feel they
dont understand, then they can meet with Mr. Brandon after school for
additional support. Statistics is not difficult if you stay on top of the materials.
XI. Parents as partners: Dont hesitate to contact me at
brandon@laschina.org
Parents are encouraged to contact the teacher whenever they have questions
or concerns. Please do not wait the progress reports or parent teacher
conferences if you need to talk to the teacher. Contact Mr. Brandon to
arrange a time to meet. AP Statistics is an academically rigorous course. You
can help: If you think your child is struggling, please, contact me so we can
arrange for extra support. See the website for additional information.

YEAR IN PREVIEW
Teacher: Schievenin

Room:

419

Subject: AP Statistics

Grade:

11 - 12

Exact number of blocks may be subject to change. Whenever possible, we will accelerate.

First Quarter (19 blocks)

Exploring Data (10 blocksone quiz, one test)
What is statistics?
Why is statistics important?
Center, spread, cluster, gapes
Outliers
Shape
Measuring center: mean/median
Measuring spread: range/interquartile range, standard deviation
Normal distribution and its properties
Measuring position: quartiles, percentiles, standardized scores (z-scores)
Boxplots
Sampling and experimentation: planning and conducting a study (9 blocks, test)
Methods of collecting data
Sampling bias
Survey Bias
Sampling methods (random sampling/stratified random sampling/cluster sampling)
Survey Design: Treatments, control groups, experimental units, random assignment, etc.
Determining applicability of results

Second Quarter
Probability and patterns (continued 10 blocks, test)
Long run relative frequency and interpretation
Law of Large Numbers
Addition rule, multiplication rule, conditional probability and independence
Discrete random variables and their probability distribution, including binomial
Probability distributions (binomial/mutinomial/geometric)
Mean (expected value) and standard deviation of a random variable and linear transformation of a random
variable
Independence vs. dependence
Mean and standard deviation for sums and differences of independent random variables
Sampling Distributions and Interference for Proportions (9 blocks, quiz)
Sampling distribution of proportions
Sampling distribution of a mean
Central Limit Theorem
Sampling distribution of two independent proportions
Point estimation
Confidence intervals
Tests of significance

Third Quarter (19 blocks)

Inference for means (5 blocks, quiz)
Confidence Intervals
Tests for a mean (unpaired/paired)
T-distribution
Bivariate Data (9 blocks, quiz)
Patterns in scatterplots
Corellation and linearity
Regression lines
Transformations to linearity, log and power transformations
Inference for related variables (4 blocks, test)
Regression convidence intervals
Regression test for slope
Chi-Squared Distributions
Chi-Square test of fit, homogeneity, and independence

Fourth Quarter (13 blocks until AP Exam- May 12th, 7 blocks afterwards)
AP Diagnostic Tests
AP Full Practice Tests
Evaluating Case Studies, final project