Teaching Computing in a Statistics Graduate Program

• Activity Number: 68
• Type: Invited
• Date/Time: Monday, August 9, 2004 : 8:30 AM to 10:20 AM
• Sponsor: The American Statistician
• Author(s): James E. Gentle*+
• Companies: George Mason University
• Keywords: teaching ; statistical computing ; computational statistics

Abstract

Almost all statisticians spend a large portion of their working days using the computer in various ways. In addition to the standard things that almost everyone does, statisticians' use of computers includes data analysis with prepackaged software, development of algorithms and software to implement new statistical methods, Monte Carlo simulation to study the performance of statistical procedures, and mathematical analysis using symbolic processing software. The required levels of expertise in computing vary widely among statisticians. At whatever level, for many statisticians, the aspects of their jobs that involve computing are largely self-taught. This is sometimes the most efficient way to learn, but it often leaves serious gaps in one's knowledge. For those of us engaged in the education of statisticians, there are important questions of how and when to provide systematic training in computing, and what to include. The answers to these questions have changed over the years, and will continue to change in coming years. The answers also depend to large extent on the level and the orientation of the educational program. I will give some of my answers to these questions.