AP Statistics Information 2013-2014 Charles Rooney Office: 460D (hours are posted there and in the classroom) charles_rooney@newton.k12.ma.

us AP Statistics is equivalent to a one-semester introductory college level statistics course. Students who successfully complete the course will be prepared to take the AP Statistics exam offered on Friday, May 9, 2014. The syllabus is divided into four major themes: exploratory analysis, planning a study, probability, and statistical inference. Major topics include: descriptive statistics, correlation and regression, causation, experimental design, statistical inference, basic concepts of probability, sampling distributions, confidence intervals, tests of significance, and hypothesis testing. After the AP exam students will work on a project or on a set of statistics topics not typically covered in the course. How grades are determined: Each test and quiz is assigned number of points, with tests generally worth three times as much as quizzes. Depending on the length and complexity of a unit, there will be anywhere from 0 to 2 quizzes for each chapter. Homework will be assigned on a nightly basis, more or less, and will count as part of your term grade. On occasion, I will assign a writing piece, lab, or special problem set in addition to the homework from the textbook. Text: The Practice of Statistics (third edition) By Yates, Moore, and Starnes Published by W.H. Freeman and Company, New York Technology: Fathom Dynamic Statistics Software we will use this in the computer lab on a regular basis TI-83 or TI-84 series graphic/statistical calculator. These calculators are required on the AP exam and are excellent tools for learning and doing statistics. The new TI-Nspire calculator is also a good choice for AP Statistics, but students will be responsible for learning that calculator on their own since I will always default to the TI83 and TI84. Geogebra is open-source mathematics software that I will use in class and for certain homework assignments. Classroom activities The AP Statistics course includes a number of activities that use food, especially M&Ms, Skittles and other candy, for data collection and for demonstrations. I would like to request that each member of the class contribute $5 towards the food fund. Any money that is left at the end of the course will be used to buy refreshments for you to eat during the break between the multiple choice and the free response sections of the AP exam. Please let me know if you are allergic to any foods or beverages so that I can try to find edible manipulatives that will not harm you.

About Homework It is very important for you to do the assigned reading each night. You may find it helpful to take notes on the reading as you go along. Each night I will assign a limited number of problems for you to do. The problems are not numerous, however they usually have many parts. Each is chosen because it establishes a point that is important for you to understand. Odd answers can be found in the back of the book and I expect that you will check your answers to assigned, odd numbered problems before coming to class. If your work is not correct, see if you can figure out what you did wrong. You will learn a lot more by finding and solving your own mistakes than you will by watching me do a problem for you. I will collect randomly selected homework assignments. Late assignments will be marked down by 50 percent if one day late and will be recorded as a zero if more than one day late. Make-up work Because you know when tests and quizzes are scheduled more than a week in advance, you should not be missing assessments for any reason other than unexpected absences. If you only miss the day of the test, you will be expected to take it the next day. If you are out for an extended illness, we will work out a reasonable schedule for you to make up your work. Make-up tests will be taken during your unscheduled ("free") blocks whenever possible, but may be given to you in-class. In general, X-blocks are not sufficiently long for making up fulllength tests because they only last 30-40 minutes. If you can stay late after X-block, that may be an option. Note that it is YOUR responsibility to make up missed work. This is generally not an issue with tests, but sometimes people forget about quizzes and are surprised to see a 0% on their term report. Note: If you have an unexcused absence, you will not be allowed to earn credit for any work done in class on the day you missed.