Abstract
One method of judging the effectiveness of the teaching of statistical methods is to rate the quality of their use in the research journals of the agricultural sciences. A conclusion that improvement is possible is easily supported by such a review. Basic concepts such as the meaning of replication, the definition of an experimental unit and the nature of experimental error are misunderstood, and this leads to faulty analyses and incorrect conclusions. Changes in teaching that would improve the product are not specified easily because research on the topic is difficult. Perhaps more emphasis on the basic concepts of experimental science could lead to more complete understanding of the nature of statistical thinking and, consequently, more effective and correct use of the methods available.
Keywords
statistical methods, teaching statistics
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.
Recommended Citation
Cox, D. F.
(1989).
"TEACHING STATISTICAL METHODS TO GRADUATE STUDENTS IN COLLEGES OF AGRICULTURE,"
Conference on Applied Statistics in Agriculture.
https://doi.org/10.4148/2475-7772.1459
TEACHING STATISTICAL METHODS TO GRADUATE STUDENTS IN COLLEGES OF AGRICULTURE
One method of judging the effectiveness of the teaching of statistical methods is to rate the quality of their use in the research journals of the agricultural sciences. A conclusion that improvement is possible is easily supported by such a review. Basic concepts such as the meaning of replication, the definition of an experimental unit and the nature of experimental error are misunderstood, and this leads to faulty analyses and incorrect conclusions. Changes in teaching that would improve the product are not specified easily because research on the topic is difficult. Perhaps more emphasis on the basic concepts of experimental science could lead to more complete understanding of the nature of statistical thinking and, consequently, more effective and correct use of the methods available.
