Abstract:

The present study focused on students' statistical reasoning related to Null Hypothesis Statistical Testing (NHST) and p-values. Its objective was to test the hypothesis that neither the place (class-room, at a distance, online) nor the medium that actually supports the learning (ICT, books) has an effect on understanding of statistical concepts. In addition it was expected that students' attitudes towards statistics would not predict understanding of statistical concepts.

The sample consisted of 385 undergraduate and postgraduate students from six state and private universities (five in Greece and one in Cyprus) .
Students were administered two questionnaires: a) the Greek version of the Survey of Attitudes Toward Statistics (SATS; Schau, Stevens, Dauphinee & Del Vecchio, 1995), and b) a short instument based on Oakes' (1986) and Haller & Kraus' (2002) research approach which measures students' understanding of statistical significance and p-values. Results suggest that attitudes towards statistics do not predict students' understanding of statistical concepts, whereas the place and the medium did not have an effect. Implications of the findings on statistical education are discussed.

References:
[1] Haller, H., & Krauss, S. (2002). Misinterpretations of significance: A problem students share with their teachers? Methods of Psychological Research, 7 (1), 1-20.
[2] Oakes, M. (1986). Statistical inference: A commentary for the social and behavioral sciences. New York: Wiley.
[3] Schau, C., Stevens, J., Dauphinee, T. L., & Del Vecchio, A. (1995). The development and validation of the Survey of Attitudes Toward Statistics. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 55 (5), 868-875.

Keywords:

Statistical reasoning, blended learning, e-learning, on-campus learning, attitudes towards statistics.