It is not uncommon to need help with a math or statistics class. It is not strange at all. Which in the end is an element of surprise to me, that schools don’t provide many well thought out strategies to help students. In reality, instructors offer office hours, but in reality no one attends (or only one or two students himself), and their purpose is defeated. It is true that students tend to be intimidated by going to the instructor’s office hours and declaring that they are lost. They have their pride, obviously. So, it turns out that students will probably feel more comfortable getting help from their teaching assistant. But not all schools have systematic structures to help TA students, beyond the TA sessions. And then, having exhausted all other options, they will naturally seek help with the statistics homework online, the same way they will buy your statistics textbook through Amazon.
Being desperate in a class is never too comfortable. But getting lost in a math class or a class that involves numbers is even less comfortable. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not a math snob, but it turns out that if a student studies enough for other non-math subjects, they will eventually manage to pass the exams by writing what the instructor wants. read. On the other hand, in mathematics courses (which include subjects such as Statistics and Econ), there is a fine line of need to understand the concepts, as well as to be able to make operational use of those concepts to be successful in a text. Mathematics and statistics are different animals and require different treatment than other subjects when it comes to remedying a potential gap.
Why do students need help with statistics?
This has been a question that I ask myself all the time. Finding an answer would be really helpful for students who are really struggling with subjects like Statistics and other Mathematics subjects in general. I reflect on the quality of the methods we use to teach, on the quality of the assistance materials (I have never been very fond of the style used by current statistics textbooks), on the quality of the effectiveness of statistical activities laboratory (or lack thereof).
Sometimes I think that the world no longer wants to know more about work and struggle. People just want to go home and watch soccer games. Instructors and students alike. When did we lose all interest in things that are difficult and require a great concerted effort to master, but at the same time can provide a total sense of satisfaction when mastered? I see a lot of statistics instructors who are totally uninterested about their classes. They act automatically, assigning statistics, providing online statistical solutions to questions, for students to verify their work. All mechanized.
How can we awaken the curiosity of our students?
We live in a world where everything must be quick and painless. That is inevitable, and that is reality and we must accept that reality. The way to try to arouse curiosity in students, beyond the point of only worrying about finding the answers to the questions in their statistical tasks, is to speak their language. Can I make learning statistics quick and painless? Well, I think that’s the challenge. Because I think it’s clear that traditional alternatives haven’t done a great job.
