Name
Institution
Reflection on the Statistics Course
At the beginning of the course, I expected to acquire a wide array of skills and knowledge in a number of areas. I expected to gain skills in using statistical methodology to critically analyze data sets. I also expected to use the lab work and technology experience. Lab work and technology experience help in the learning of the concepts like one-way ANOVA, chi square tests, t-tests (Smith, 2009). According to Howel (2013), these concepts are important for hypothesis testing. Finally, I hoped to use the skills acquired in the course to solve everyday problems. I achieved most of my goals, although not to my satisfaction.
My future career plan is to be an academician who is focused on data analysis. According to Triola (2006), a career in statistics involves a lot of research and data analysis. Skills in hypothesis testing will be of great value when I will be designing the research protocol for my studies. The use of nonparametric tests will be important in testing the relationship between different sets of data (Johnson, 1999). However, I still need to sharpen my skills in a number of areas. For instance, I still find it difficult to differentiate between one-way and two-way ANOVA. I also need more experience in determining the appropriate statistical skills I will employ in solving real life situations.
Thanks to the course, I can now apply and evaluate statistical knowledge in everyday life. Using nonparametric tests, I usually calculate the relationship between different sets of data that I obtain in my studies or lab work. Using the skills I acquired in generating graphical representations, all my PowerPoint presentations have been perfect so far. I have used the skills to develop graphs for my presentations as a way of backing up the data and making the presentations more appealing.
References
Howel. D. (2013). Fundamental Statistics for the Behavioral Sciences. Boston, Ma: Cengage Learning
Johnson, R., A., (1999). Applied multivariate statistical analysis. London: Pearson PLC
Smith, G., (2009). Learning statistics by doing statistics. Journal of statistics education; 34 (4)
Triola, M.,F (2006). Elementary statistics. New York: Oxford University Press.