Probability in the Undergraduate Major Curriculum: What Should Students Learn, and When?

• Activity Number: 143
• Type: Contributed
• Date/Time: Monday, August 10, 2015 : 8:30 AM to 10:20 AM
• Sponsor: Section on Statistical Education
• Author(s): Matthew Carlton*
• Companies: California Polytechnic State University
• Keywords: probability ; curriculum guidelines ; education

Abstract

Traditional undergraduate statistics programs have long included a healthy dose of probability and mathematical statistics. But many departments have shifted away from a "math-heavy" approach to our discipline, toward an increased emphasis on modern computing, applications, and communication. Where does probability fit into this new regime? More specifically, how much probability do undergraduate statistics majors need to know, and how can that material be integrated into a 21st-century degree program to best support its more modern goals?

We will review the recently-revised ASA Curriculum Guidelines for Undergraduate Programs in Statistical Science (2014) and make specific recommendations for what our undergraduate majors should learn, and when.