Statistics 309H

FAQ: Miscellaneous

What if I need to see a TA but I can't make it to their office hours?

AJ and McKenzie will try to accommodate you at other times as well if you have a schedule conflict with their hours. They will also have extra office hours before each exam.

Can I attend a different section of my class?

No. The classes do not always start and end at the same place and you will certainly miss something if you don't stay in your class. Furthermore, each class develops its own culture and people who go in and out of each class disrupt that. 

Will you provide statistics help for projects outside of this class?

No.

Is there anything else should I know before coming to you for help?

I'm always happy to help people who are trying hard. I'll give you as much time as you need. But I'm not happy to help those who skip class. If you skip a class, do not expect me to tell you about what was covered later on. The worst question any student can ask a professor is "Did I miss anything important in class today?" Please don't ask this or anything like it.

Likewise, please don't ask me the same questions that I answered in class, in e-mails to the class, in e-mail responses to you, in the Course Details, or in these FAQ pages. This means that you should always check the website and your e-mail before coming to see me, particularly if your question concerns something that you've asked me about in an e-mail. 

What should I do if I miss a class?

I strongly suggest that you come to class. If you do miss a class, you should (a) do the reading, (b) get copies of someone's notes, and (c) talk to your classmates about what was covered.  If, after doing all of these things, you have a specific question, then please get in touch with me.  But please do not ask me (a) if we covered anything important in class, or (b) if I would be willing to go over the most important parts of class with you.  The answer to the first question is yes; the answer to the second question is no. 

Can I have someone tape your lecture?

No.  It's distracting to me, changes the nature of our conversations, and discourages attendance.

Can I contact you by e-mail?

Of course. Send e-mail to me at: koehler@mail.utexas.edu.  Be sure to insert "309" in your subject headers.

Example:

To: koehler@mail.utexas.edu
From: Sarah Smith
Subject: 309H -- Question about Today's Lecture

(Note: Please do not use my McCombs e-mail address.  I rarely check that e-mail address.)

Will you post (or give us copies of) everything that you show in class?

No, and here's why.  First, I think that there is value in having you write down some things that I present in class.  Framed another way, I don't think it's a good idea to give you so much material that there is little for you to write down during class.  Thinking and writing go hand in hand in this class. 

Second, I will pass out materials, including copies of some transparencies, during most weeks.  These pages are the ones that I think are most important for you to have.  The pages that I present in class but don't give you are often less important for you to have.  For example, I might think that it's worth class time to show you a derivation so that you can see where a formula came from and trust the answers it gives.  And yet I might not think that you should have these pages, or even have the option of getting these pages later.  Instead, I'd rather that you focused on the smaller subset of notes that I hand out.  Don't worry: you'll have plenty of pages to review by the end.  These will include a few hundred the pages that I hand out in class, at least one hundred textbook pages in the reading packet, another few hundred pages in the reading packet, maybe a hundred pages of your own written notes, dozens of pages from the statistics links on our web page (be sure to use these!), homework assignments, and occasional practice tests.  In short, I'll make sure that you have everything you need to do well in this class.

I already learned a lot of this in my high school math classes -- what gives?

Some topics in Elementary Business Statistics may have appeared in your pre-college math classes (e.g., combinations).  Other topics might be familiar to those of you who took statistics courses in high school (e.g., hypothesis testing, correlation).  However, parts of this class will certainly be new to all of you (e.g., Bayesian reasoning). 

If we cover a topic that you have already learned, bear in mind that Elementary Business Statistics is a first course in statistics.  This means that we will start at the beginning and cover a number of the standard topics, albeit in a somewhat different way than you may have seen elsewhere.  We will also cover some advanced topics.  The next quantitative course that you take, MSC 371H, will cover even more advanced topics.  

When you already know something about a topic that we're on, use the class sessions and readings as opportunities to fill gaps in your knowledge and to sharpen your understanding of the concepts.  Just because you've seen a concept before doesn't mean that you won't benefit from seeing it again in a different environment and context.       

Why do you have so many detailed FAQs?

The reason is that I teach about 135 bright, inquisitive STA 309H students each year who ask questions similar to those that appear in my FAQs.  Rather than provide private answers or spend precious class time and office hour time repeating the answers, I use FAQs to answer as many questions about course matters as possible.  By putting my answers in writing and posting them in a public venue, I reduce ambiguity about things that matter to you, and give you access to the information 24 hours a day.