We are equipping a laboratory to support a systematic approach to the teaching of statistics across a biology curriculum. Students often do not understand or appreciate what it means to be quantitative and yet most science requires the collection and analysis of data. While getting students involved in hands-on, project-oriented laboratory exercises is critical to the teaching of science, we also believe that students should then take the next step and understand how to manipulate, analyze and display their data correctly. We are teaching statistics across our curriculum by beginning with first principles in our introductory course and then expanding and reinforcing these principles and statistical procedures in our 200/300 level required courses. The two mobile labs (each with 8 Gateway notebook computers) can travel to any laboratory and be networked to a departmental server in a new computer room; thus the notebook computers function in much the same way as we now use microscopes which are on mobile carts and available to everyone. We are teaching all students how to use a common statistics software package, and they have a departmentally developed statistics manual that explains the underlying theory, methodology and practical application of all statistical procedures used in the course. Students are involved in collecting, manipulating, analyzing and displaying their own data in at least 6 different courses and in a multitude of different projects before becoming involved in any upper level research course; thus, they enter this phase of their academic careers with a better understanding of experimental design and statistical analysis. We believe our systematic approach will be successful because students will be doing statistics throughout their academic program in a repetitive, organized and consistent manner. Furthermore, if successful, this approach is transferable to any academic program where statistics is emphasized, regardless of discipline (i.e., many natural science or soci al science disciplines).
