The Statistical Concepts Inventory (SCI): A Cognitive Achievment Tool in Engineering Statistics

本项目的重点是开发一种新的评估工具，适用于多个本科工程专业，以衡量学生对统计学及其应用的理解。根据这项研究开发的统计理解测量工具，被称为统计概念清单(SCI)，提供了具体描述学生设计和进行实验以及分析和解释数据的能力的分数概况。这个项目是及时的，因为越来越多的中学后工程课程认可依赖于统计思维和解决问题技能的“结果要求”。在工程学内部，这些要求正在促使一般的工程教育和具体的工程统计教育发生重大变化。工科课程在许多方面的目标都是由AETE EC2000标准推动的。与提议的项目特别相关的是：-标准3，项目结果和评估，其中规定：“工程项目必须证明他们的毕业生具有：(A)应用数学、科学和工程知识的能力，以及(B)设计和进行实验，以及分析和解释数据的能力。”以及-标准8，项目标准，其中24个列出的项目中有16个直接表明需要证明学生已经掌握了统计能力。工业工程历来将统计学作为一门服务课程教授给其他工程专业，并继续将统计学作为其大部分课程的基础。最近批准的是认证计算程序的标准(计算认证委员会，2000年12月30日)，其中涵盖了计算机科学程序，并在其课程标准中规定“数学课程作业必须包括概率和统计学”。该项目还在探讨统计入门课程的认知和态度方面之间的联系。在第二阶段，这个项目正在结合现有的情感工具--统计态度调查(SATS)--收集学生的SCI档案分数。

This project focuses on the development of a new assessment instrument, applicable to multiple undergraduate engineering programs, to measure students' understanding of statistics and its applications. The statistical understanding measure developed under this research, called the Statistical Concepts Inventory (SCI), provides score profiles that specifically describe students' abilities to design and conduct experiments as well as to analyze and interpret data.This project is timely because an increasing number of post-secondary engineering programs are endorsing "outcome requirements" that depend on statistical thinking and problem-solving skills. Within engineering, these requirements are precipitating major changes in engineering education in general and engineering statistics education specifically. Engineering curricular objectives in many respects are being driven by the ABET EC 2000 criteria. Of special relevance to the proposed project are:- Criterion 3, Programs Outcomes and Assessment, which states that "Engineering programs must demonstrate that their graduates have: (a) an ability to apply knowledge of mathematics, science, and engineering, and (b) an ability to design and conduct experiments, as well as to analyze and interpret data."and- Criterion 8, Program Criteria, in which 16 of the 24 listed programs directly indicate the need to demonstrate that students have acquired facility with statistics. Industrial Engineering has historically taught statistics as a service course to other engineering programs and continues to use statistics as a foundation for much of its own curriculum. Recently approved are the Criteria for Accrediting Computing Programs (Computing Accreditation Commission, December 30, 2000), which covers Computer Science programs and states in its curriculum standards that "Course work in mathematics must include probability and statistics." This project is also exploring the links between cognitive and attitudinal aspects of introductory statistics courses. In its second phase, this project is gathering SCI profile scores from students in combination with an existing affective instrument, the Survey of Attitudes Toward Statistics (SATS).