JSM 2004 - Toronto

Abstract #301212

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Activity Number: 359
Type: Luncheons
Date/Time: Wednesday, August 11, 2004 : 12:30 PM to 1:50 PM
Sponsor: Section on Statistical Education
Abstract - #301212
Title: Fallacies and Myths in Elementary Statistics - SOLD OUT
Author(s): Bernard Harris*+
Companies: University of Nebraska
Address: 917 Oldfather Hall, Lincoln, NE, 68588-0323,
Keywords: teaching statistics ; fallacies ; myths
Abstract:

The purpose of this roundtable discussion is to highlight several myths and fallacies encountered in elementary statistics texts. These include the role of the number 30 in justifying the use of normal approximations, the treatment of outliers, and the use of squared error loss in estimation. Many textbooks provide incorrect methods for the calculation of quantiles--in particular, the calculation of quartiles. The role of the mean and median as descriptive measures is often incorrectly stated. Also, the use of pooled variance estimates in two sample t-tests and the pooling of the variance estimate in regression are sometimes given in a contradictory manner. Some exercises and textbook examples on probability contradict the role of probabilistic methods in statistical inference. This discussion is intended to be controversial and will provide opportunity for feedback and debate.

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Revised March 2004