University of Minnesota, Twin Cities School of Statistics Stat 3011 Rweb
Note: for those who want to know if lab attendance is required, it is. Part of each midterm and final exam will be given in the lab (see the section on exams below). The other labs could conceivably be missed if you are a computer whiz and have no trouble doing statistics on the computer. Otherwise you should plan to come to all the labs.
Ask questions in class. If something isn't clear to you, it probably isn't clear to others either. Most questions arise because the instructor hasn't made a connection clear or has inadvertently left out an important point. Your question gives the instructor a chance to explain more clearly.
If you have difficulty with problems, ask for help from the instructor or TA. Don't wait until just before the exam (or worse just after) to ask for help. By then it may be too late.
The material covered by the exams will stated in class and on the course home page.
You will permitted to bring one 8 1/2 by 11 sheet of paper with formulas or other notes on both sides to the in-class part of the exam and use it to look up formulas. You may use a calculator during the in-class part of the exams.
Part of the exams will be held in the computer lab. For those, of course, you will have the computer, the course web pages, all the on-line help for the R computer language. They will also be open book so you can use what the textbook tells you about the R statistical computing language.
University policy is that midterm and final exams can be made up for legitimate absences, such as verified illness, participation in other University-sponsored activities, jury duty, military service, religious observances. If you must miss an exam, make arrangements in advance. Talk to the instructor before or after class or during office hours to make arrangements. If you find you will miss an exam without having made arrangements, call the instructor (612-625-8511) or, if he is not in, call the department office (612-625-8046) and leave a message. Do this before the time of the exam.
University and department policy is that "I" grades are used only when there is a small amount of unfinished work that the student can complete on his or her own before the end of the following quarter, when there was a legitimate excuse why the work could not be done on time, and when arrangements have been made with the instructor as to when the work will be done. "I" grades are not given when there is a large amount of work undone and the student would need to attend the class in the next quarter to learn the material.
Homework assignments will be assigned in class and on the homework assignments web page. They are due in class on the day assigned. But they will be accepted without penalty until 3:00 pm on the day they are due or until the TA picks them up from the professor. After that they will be accepted up to two weeks late for 50% credit.
Working together in groups on homework is not only permitted, even encouraged, but each student must do his or her own write-up of the solutions and fully understand them. Talking about problems with other people does help in learning, but just getting solutions doesn't.
They are there for your benefit. If you are having difficulty, please come see the teaching assistants or instructor or both during office hours to get help. If you cannot come to the regularly scheduled office hours, make arrangements after the lecture or lab to see us some other time. Or you can just phone and see if we are available.
Grades are based on the total number of points earned in the course. Each of the midterms counts 25%, the final counts 30%, and all of the homework together counts 20%. Nothing is "dropped."
A word to the wise about homework. If you don't do any homework at all, you can't possibly get an A for the course and can't even get a B unless your exams are nearly perfect. No homework and a B average on the exams will give you a C for the course. If you expect to get a good grade despite not doing any homework, read this paragraph again. Similar though lesser problems arise if a large part of the homework is not done or handed in late.
In conjunction with University of Minnesota Disability Services we will ensure equal learning opportunities for disabled students. Talk to the instructor and Disability Services to make arrangements.