Viewing Online On Ground Online sections — 7 topics, discussion questions, one cumulative final In-person sections — 3 units, Exams 1–3, then the final
Course format
Topic 05 · Statistics
Unit 3 · Topic 05 · Statistics

Statistics

Descriptive statistics, the normal distribution, and reading the graphs you run into in the news — plus a first pass at margin of error.

Start Lesson 1 Play all 20 videos First time? Tour the week →
ORBITAL · TOPIC 05STATISTICS20 VIDEOS · 1H 15M0

Lessons

6 lessons · each with a video, a worked example and practice
  1. 3:20 Lesson 1: What statistics is, really.Two kinds of statistics. Descriptive describes the data we have; inferential makes claims about a population from a sample. Naming the difference is the move that makes the rest of the chapter make sense.
  2. 3:59 Lesson 2: Mean, median, mode.Three classic measures of center. Each one is a different answer to "where does this data sit?" Plus a powerful visual intuition: the mean is the value that balances the bars.
  3. 4:01 Lesson 3: Range and standard deviation.Center tells us where the data sit. Spread tells us how tightly. Range is the quick read; standard deviation is the precise one. Both set up the bell curve in Lesson 5.
  4. 3:49 Lesson 4: Reading data displays.Each chart type is built for a different question. The real skill is matching the chart to the question — and spotting the misleading ones — not memorizing each shape.
  5. 3:49 Lesson 5: The normal distribution and the empirical rule.A surprising amount of real-world data clusters into the same bell shape. The 68-95-99.7 rule names exactly how the data spreads around the mean — and powers ALEKS review Q5.
  6. 3:41 Lesson 6: Surveys and the margin of error.Every poll headline ("45%, ±3%") is one descriptive number, one inferential leap, and one confidence claim. The ± tells us how big the leap is.

Then

the rest of the week
Discussion DQ 1: Discussion Walkthrough, posting rhythm, and what the DQ is really asking. Discussion DQ 2: Discussion Walkthrough, posting rhythm, and what the DQ is really asking. 6 questions Review Six worked questions to practice before ALEKS. Self-check Mastery Check 4 quick questions - 2 multiple choice, 2 calculations. Perfect score earns one substantive participation post.
Unit 3 This topic is assessed on Exam 3, together with Topic 6. See what is on it

What you'll learn

80 pts 160 pts in Unit 3 7 objectives

What you'll learn

  1. Differentiate between types of statistics.
  2. Apply statistics to solve problems.
  3. Use descriptive statistics and graphs to solve application problems.
  4. Decide if the normal distribution is an appropriate model for a given data set.
  5. Solve problems using the properties of the normal distribution.
  6. Interpret data from different types of graphs.
  7. Explain how standard deviation and margin of error relate to statistical surveys.

Interactive tools

Playground Normal Distribution Explorer Drag the mean, the standard deviation, and a cutoff value. The bell curve shifts and resizes; the empirical-rule bands recolor; the shaded P(X < x) region updates in real time. Watch what "two standard deviations from the mean" actually means. Playground Center & Spread Visualizer Paste a list of numbers, get the mean / median / mode / range / sample SD, and see them plotted on a dot plot. Flip on the outlier toggle to watch the mean lurch while the median holds — the central insight of why we use the median for skewed data.

Tools & Resources

Library Topic 5 resource library Curated extras across all 6 lessons. 2 items available so far. Study aid Glossary Every vocab term across the 6 lessons in one study sheet. 30 terms so far. Study aid Cheat sheet Key formulas, common mistakes, and quick-reference factors. Printable for the test.
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