Introduction to Statistics

Reviewed by Terri Torres, professor, Oregon Institute of Technology on 8/17/23

Comprehensiveness rating: 5 see less

This author covers all the topics that would be covered in an introductory statistics course plus some. I could imagine using it for two courses at my university, which is on the quarter system. I would rather have the problem of too many topics rather than too few.

Content Accuracy rating: 5

Yes, Lane is both thorough and accurate.

Relevance/Longevity rating: 5

What is covered is what is usually covered in an introductory statistics book. The only topic I may, given sufficient time, cover is bootstrapping.

Clarity rating: 5

The book is clear and well-written. For the trickier topics, simulations are included to help with understanding.

Consistency rating: 5

All is organized in a way that is consistent with the previous topic.

Modularity rating: 5

The text is organized in a way that easily enables navigation.

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 5

The text is organized like most statistics texts.

Interface rating: 5

Easy navigation.

Grammatical Errors rating: 5

I didn't see any grammatical errors.

Cultural Relevance rating: 5

Nothing is included that is culturally insensitive.

Comments

The videos that accompany this text are short and easy to watch and understand. Videos should be short enough to teach, but not so long that they are tiresome. This text includes almost everything: videos, simulations, case studies---all nicely organized in one spot. In addition, Lane has promised to send an instructor's manual and slide deck.

Reviewed by Professor Sandberg, Professor, Framingham State University on 6/29/21

Comprehensiveness rating: 5 see less

This text covers all the usual topics in an Introduction to Statistics for college students. In addition, it has some additional topics that are useful.

Content Accuracy rating: 5

I did not find any errors.

Relevance/Longevity rating: 5

Some of the examples are dated. And the frequent use of male/female examples need updating in terms of current gender splits.

Clarity rating: 5

I found it was easy to read and understand and I expect that students would also find the writing clear and the explanations accessible.

Consistency rating: 5

Even with different authors of chapter, the writing is consistent.

Modularity rating: 5

The text is well organized into sections making it easy to assign individual topics and sections.

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 5

The topics are presented in the usual order. Regression comes later in the text but there is a difference of opinions about whether to present it early with descriptive statistics for bivariate data or later with inferential statistics.

Interface rating: 5

I had no problem navigating the text online.

Grammatical Errors rating: 5

The writing is grammatical correct.

Cultural Relevance rating: 5

I saw no issues that would be offensive.

Comments

I did like this text. It seems like it would be a good choice for most introductory statistics courses. I liked that the Monty Hall problem was included in the probability section. The author offers to provide an instructor's manual, PowerPoint slides and additional questions. These additional resources are very helpful and not always available with online OER texts.

Reviewed by Emilio Vazquez, Associate Professor, Trine University on 4/23/21

Comprehensiveness rating: 5 see less

This appears to be an excellent textbook for an Introductory Course in Statistics. It covers subjects in enough depth to fulfill the needs of a beginner in Statistics work yet is not so complex as to be overwhelming.

Content Accuracy rating: 5

I found no errors in their discussions. Did not work out all of the questions and answers but my sampling did not reveal any errors.

Relevance/Longevity rating: 5

Some of the examples may need updating depending on the times but the examples are still relevant at this time.

Clarity rating: 5

This is a Statistics text so a little dry. I found that the derivation of some of the formulas was not explained. However the background is there to allow the instructor to derive these in class if desired.

Consistency rating: 5

The text is consistent throughout using the same verbiage in various sections.

Modularity rating: 5

The text dose lend itself to reasonable reading assignments. For example the chapter (Chapter 3) on Summarizing Distributions covers Central Tendency and its associated components in an easy 20 pages with Measures of Variability making up most of the rest of the chapter and covering approximately another 20 pages. Exercises are available at the end of each chapter making it easy for the instructor to assign reading and exercises to be discussed in class.

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 5

The textbook flows easily from Descriptive to Inferential Statistics with chapters on Sampling and Estimation preceding chapters on hypothesis testing

Interface rating: 5

I had no problems with navigation

Grammatical Errors rating: 5

All textbooks have a few errors but certainly nothing glaring or making text difficult

Cultural Relevance rating: 5

I saw no issues and I am part of a cultural minority in the US

Comments

Overall I found this to be a excellent in-depth overview of Statistical Theory, Concepts and Analysis. The length of the textbook appears to be more than adequate for a one-semester course in Introduction to Statistics. As I no longer teach a full statistics course but simply a few lectures as part of our Research Curriculum, I am recommending this book to my students as a good reference. Especially as it is available on-line and in Open Access.

Reviewed by Audrey Hickert, Assistant Professor, Southern Illinois University Carbondale on 3/29/21

Comprehensiveness rating: 5 see less

All of the major topics of an introductory level statistics course for social science are covered. Background areas include levels of measurement and research design basics. Descriptive statistics include all major measures of central tendency and dispersion/variation. Building blocks for inferential statistics include sampling distributions, the standard normal curve (z scores), and hypothesis testing sections. Inferential statistics include how to calculate confidence intervals, as well as conduct tests of one-sample tests of the population mean (Z- and t-tests), two-sample tests of the difference in population means (Z- and t-tests), chi square test of independence, correlation, and regression. Doesn’t include full probability distribution tables (e.g., t or Z), but those can be easily found online in many places.

Content Accuracy rating: 5

I did not find any errors or issues of inaccuracy. When a particular method or practice is debated in the field, the authors acknowledge it (and provide citations in some circumstances).

Relevance/Longevity rating: 4

Basic statistics are standard, so the core information will remain relevant in perpetuity. Some of the examples are dated (e.g., salaries from 1999), but not problematic.

Clarity rating: 4

All of the key terms, formulas, and logic for statistical tests are clearly explained. The book sometimes uses different notation than other entry-level books. For example, the variance formula uses "M" for mean, rather than x-bar.

Consistency rating: 5

The explanations are consistent and build from and relate to corresponding sections that are listed in each unit.

Modularity rating: 5

Modularity is a strength of this text in both the PDF and interactive online format. Students can easily navigate to the necessary sections and each starts with a “Prerequisites” list of other sections in the book for those who need the additional background material. Instructors could easily compile concise sub-sections of the book for readings.

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 5

The presentation of topics differs somewhat from the standard introductory social science statistics textbooks I have used before. However, the modularity allows the instructor and student to work through the discrete sections in the desired order.

Interface rating: 4

For the most part the display of all images/charts is good and navigation is straightforward. One concern is that the organization of the Table of Contents does not exactly match the organizational outline at the start of each chapter in the PDF version. For example, sometimes there are more detailed sub-headings at the start of chapter and occasionally slightly different section headings/titles. There are also inconsistencies in section listings at start of chapters vs. start of sub-sections.

Grammatical Errors rating: 5

The text is easy to read and free from any obvious grammatical errors.

Cultural Relevance rating: 5

Although some of the examples are outdated, I did not review any that were offensive. One example of an outdated reference is using descriptive data on “Men per 100 Women” in U.S. cities as “useful if we are looking for an opposite-sex partner”.

Comments

This is a good introduction level statistics text book if you have a course with students who may be intimated by longer texts with more detailed information. Just the core basics are provided here and it is easy to select the sections you need. It is a good text if you plan to supplement with an array of your own materials (lectures, practice, etc.) that are specifically tailored to your discipline (e.g., criminal justice and criminology). Be advised that some formulas use different notation than other standard texts, so you will need to point that out to students if they differ from your lectures or assessment materials.

Reviewed by Shahar Boneh, Professor, Metropolitan State University of Denver on 3/26/21, updated 4/22/21

Comprehensiveness rating: 5 see less

The textbook is indeed quite comprehensive. It can accommodate any style of introductory statistics course.

Content Accuracy rating: 5

The text seems to be statistically accurate.

Relevance/Longevity rating: 4

It is a little too extensive, which requires instructors to cover it selectively, and has a potential to confuse the students.

Clarity rating: 5

It is written clearly.

Consistency rating: 4

The terminology is fairly consistent. There is room for some improvement.

Modularity rating: 5

By the nature of the subject, the topics have to be presented in a sequential and coherent order. However, the book breaks things down quite effectively.

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 3

Some of the topics are interleaved and not presented in the order I would like to cover them.

Interface rating: 5

Good interface.

Grammatical Errors rating: 5

The grammar is ok.

Cultural Relevance rating: 5

The book seems to be culturally neutral, and not offensive in any way.

Comments

I really liked the simulations that go with the book.
Parts of the book are a little too advanced for students who are learning statistics for the first time.

Reviewed by Julie Gray, Adjunct Assistant Professor, University of Texas at Arlington on 2/26/21

Comprehensiveness rating: 5 see less

The textbook is for beginner-level students. The concept development is appropriate--there is always room to grow to high higher level, but for an introduction, the basics are what is needed. This is a well-thought-through OER textbook project by Dr. Lane and colleagues. It is obvious that several iterations have only made it better.

Content Accuracy rating: 5

I found all the material accurate.

Relevance/Longevity rating: 5

Essentially, statistical concepts at the introductory level are accepted as universal. This suggests that the relevance of this textbook will continue for a long time.

Clarity rating: 5

The book is well written for introducing beginners to statistical concepts. The figures, tables, and animated examples reinforce the clarity of the written text.

Consistency rating: 5

Yes, the information is consistent; when it is introduced in early chapters it ties in well in later chapters that build on and add more understanding for the topic.

Modularity rating: 4

The book is well-written with attention to modularity where possible. Due to the nature of statistics, that is not always possible. The content is presented in the order that I usually teach these concepts.

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 5

The organization of the book is good, I particularly like the sample lecture slide presentations and the problem set with solutions for use in quizzes and exams. These are available by writing to the author. It is wonderful to have access to these helpful resources for instructors to use in preparation.

Interface rating: 5

I did not find any interface issues.

Grammatical Errors rating: 5

The book is well written. In my reading I did not notice grammatical errors.

Cultural Relevance rating: 5

For this subject and in the examples given, I did not notice any cultural issues.

Comments

For the field of social work where qualitative data is as common as quantitative, the importance of giving students the rationale or the motivation to learn the quantitative side is understated. To use this text as an introductory statistics OER textbook in a social work curriculum, the instructor will want to bring in field-relevant examples to engage and motivate students. The field needs data-driven decision making and evidence-based practices to become more ubiquitous than not. Preparing future social workers by teaching introductory statistics is essential to meet that goal.

Reviewed by Mamata Marme, Assistant Professor, Augustana College on 6/25/19

Comprehensiveness rating: 4 see less

This textbook offers a fairly comprehensive summary of what should be discussed in an introductory course in Statistics. The statistical literacy exercises are particularly interesting. It would be helpful to have the statistical tables attached in the same package, even though they are available online.

Content Accuracy rating: 5

The terminology and notation used in the textbook is pretty standard. The content is accurate.

Relevance/Longevity rating: 4

The statistical literacy example are up to date but will need to be updated fairly regularly to keep the textbook fresh. The applications within the chapter are accessible and can be used fairly easily over a couple of editions.

Clarity rating: 4

The textbook does not necessarily explain the derivation of some of the formulae and this will need to be augmented by the instructor in class discussion. What is beneficial is that there are multiple ways that a topic is discussed using graphs, calculations and explanations of the results. Statistics textbooks have to cover a wide variety of topics with a fair amount of depth. To do this concisely is difficult. There is a fine line between being concise and clear, which this textbook does well, and being somewhat dry. It may be up to the instructor to bring case studies into the readings we are going through the topics rather than wait until the end of the chapter.

Consistency rating: 5

The textbook uses standard notation and terminology. The heading section of each chapter is closely tied to topics that are covered. The end of chapter problems and the statistical literacy applications are closely tied to the material covered.

Modularity rating: 4

The authors have done a good job treating each chapter as if they stand alone. The lack of connection to a past reference may create a sense of disconnect between the topics discussed

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 3

The text's "modularity" does make the flow of the material a little disconnected. If would be better if there was accountability of what a student should already have learnt in a different section. The earlier material is easy to find but not consistently referred to in the text.

Interface rating: 5

I had no problem with the interface. The online version is more visually interesting than the pdf version.

Grammatical Errors rating: 5

I did not see any grammatical errors.

Cultural Relevance rating: 4

I am not sure how to evaluate this. The examples are mostly based on the American experience and the data alluded to mostly domestic. However, I am not sure if that creates a problem in understanding the methodology.

Comments

Overall, this textbook will cover most of the topics in a survey of statistics course.

Reviewed by Alexandra Verkhovtseva, Professor, Anoka-Ramsey Community College on 6/3/19

Comprehensiveness rating: 4 see less

This is a comprehensive enough text, considering that it is not easy to create a comprehensive statistics textbook. It is suitable for an introductory statistics course for non-math majors. It contains twenty-one chapters, covering the wide range of intro stats topics (and some more), plus the case studies and the glossary.

Content Accuracy rating: 5

The content is pretty accurate, I did not find any biases or errors.

Relevance/Longevity rating: 4

The book contains fairly recent data presented in the form of exercises, examples and applications. The topics are up-to-date, and appropriate technology is used for examples, applications, and case studies.

Clarity rating: 4

The language is simple and clear, which is a good thing, since students are usually scared of this class, and instructors are looking for something to put them at ease. I would, however, try to make it a little more interesting, exciting, or may be even funny.

Consistency rating: 5

Consistency is good, the book has a great structure. I like how each chapter has prerequisites and learner outcomes, this gives students a good idea of what to expect. Material in this book is covered in good detail.

Modularity rating: 4

The text can be easily divided into sub-sections, some of which can be omitted if needed. The chapter on regression is covered towards the end (chapter 14), but part of it can be covered sooner in the course.

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 5

The book contains well organized chapters that makes reading through easy and understandable. The order of chapters and sections is clear and logical.

Interface rating: 5

The online version has many functions and is easy to navigate. This book also comes with a PDF version. There is no distortion of images or charts. The text is clean and clear, the examples provided contain appropriate format of data presentation.

Grammatical Errors rating: 5

No grammatical errors found.

Cultural Relevance rating: 4

The text uses simple and clear language, which is helpful for non-native speakers. I would include more culturally-relevant examples and case studies. Overall, good text.

Comments

In all, this book is a good learning experience. It contains tools and techniques that free and easy to use and also easy to modify for both, students and instructors. I very much appreciate this opportunity to use this textbook at no cost for our students.

Reviewed by Dabrina Dutcher, Assistant Professor, Bucknell University on 3/4/19

Comprehensiveness rating: 4 see less

This is a reasonably thorough first-semester statistics book for most classes. It would have worked well for the general statistics courses I have taught in the past but is not as suitable for specialized introductory statistics courses for engineers or business applications. That is OK, they have separate texts for that! The only sections that feel somewhat light in terms of content are the confidence intervals and ANOVA sections. Given that these topics are often sort of crammed in at the end of many introductory classes, that might not be problematic for many instructors. It should also be pointed out that while there are a couple of chapters on probability, this book spends presents most formulas as "black boxes" rather than worry about the derivation or origin of the formulas. The probability sections do not include any significant combinatorics work, which is sometimes included at this level.

Content Accuracy rating: 5

I did not find any errors in the formulas presented but I did not work many end-of-chapter problems to gauge the accuracy of their answers.

Relevance/Longevity rating: 4

There isn't much changing in the introductory stats world, so I have no concerns about the book becoming outdated rapidly. The examples and problems still feel relevant and reasonably modern. My only concern is that the statistical tool most often referenced in the book are TI-83/84 type calculators. As students increasingly buy TI-89s or Inspires, these sections of the book may lose relevance faster than other parts.

Clarity rating: 4

Solid. The book gives a list of key terms and their definitions at the end of each chapter which is a nice feature. It also has a formula review at the end of each chapter. I can imagine that these are heavily used by students when studying! Formulas are easy to find and read and are well defined. There are a few areas that I might have found frustrating as a student. For example, the explanation for the difference in formulas for a population vs sample standard deviation is quite weak. Again, this is a book that focuses on sort of a "black-box" approach but you may have to supplement such sections for some students.

Consistency rating: 5

I did not detect any problems with inconsistent symbol use or switches in terminology.

Modularity rating: 3

This low rating should not be taken as an indicator of an issue with this book but would be true of virtually any statistics book. Different books still use different variable symbols even for basic calculated statistics. So trying to use a chapter of this book without some sort of symbol/variable cheat-sheet would likely be frustrating to the students.

However, I think it would be possible to skip some chapters or use the chapters in a different order without any loss of functionality.

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 5

This book uses a very standard order for the material. The chapter on regressions comes later than it does in some texts but it doesn't really matter since that chapter never seems to fit smoothly anywhere.

There are numerous end of chapter problems, some with answers, available in this book. I'm vacillating on whether these problems would be more useful if they were distributed after each relevant section or are better clumped at the end of the whole chapter. That might be a matter of individual preference.

Interface rating: 5

I did not detect any problems.

Grammatical Errors rating: 5

I found no errors. However, there were several sections where the punctuation seemed non-ideal. This did not affect the over-all useability of the book though

Cultural Relevance rating: 4

I'm not sure how well this book would work internationally as many of the examples contain domestic (American) references. However, I did not see anything offensive or biased in the book.

Reviewed by Ilgin Sager, Assistant Professor, University of Missouri - St. Louis on 1/14/19

Comprehensiveness rating: 4 see less

As the title implies, this is a brief introduction textbook. It covers the fundamental of the introductory statistics, however not a comprehensive text on the subject. A teacher can use this book as the sole text of an introductory statistics. The prose format of definitions and theorems make theoretical concepts accessible to non-math major students. The textbook covers all chapters required in this level course.

Content Accuracy rating: 5

It is accurate; the subject matter in the examples to be up to date, is timeless and wouldn't need to be revised in future editions; there is no error except a few typographical errors. There are no logic errors or incorrect explanations.

Relevance/Longevity rating: 5

This text will remain up to date for a long time since it has timeless examples and exercises, it wouldn't be outdated. The information is presented clearly with a simple way and the exercises are beneficial to follow the information.

Clarity rating: 5

The material is presented in a clear, concise manner. The text is easy readable for the first time statistics student.

Consistency rating: 4

The structure of the text is very consistent. Topics are presented with examples, followed by exercises. Problem sets are appropriate for the level of learner.

Modularity rating: 4

When the earlier matters need to be referenced, it is easy to find; no trouble reading the book and finding results, it has a consistent scheme. This book is set very well in sections.

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 5

The text presents the information in a logical order.

Interface rating: 5

The learner can easily follow up the material; there is no interface problem.

Grammatical Errors rating: 5

There is no logic errors and incorrect explanations, a few typographical errors is just to be ignored.

Cultural Relevance rating: 5

Not applicable for this textbook.

Reviewed by Suhwon Lee, Associate Teaching Professor, University of Missouri on 6/19/18

Comprehensiveness rating: 5 see less

This book is pretty comprehensive for being a brief introductory book. This book covers all necessary content areas for an introduction to Statistics course for non-math majors. The text book provides an effective index, plenty of exercises, review questions, and practice tests. It provides references and case studies. The glossary and index section is very helpful for students and can be used as a great resource.

Content Accuracy rating: 5

Content appears to be accurate throughout. Being an introductory book, the book is unbiased and straight to the point. The terminology is standard.

Relevance/Longevity rating: 5

The content in textbook is up to date. It will be very easy to update it or make changes at any point in time because of the well-structured contents in the textbook.

Clarity rating: 5

The author does a great job of explaining nearly every new term or concept. The book is easy to follow, clear and concise. The graphics are good to follow. The language in the book is easily understandable. I found most instructions in the book to be very detailed and clear for students to follow.

Consistency rating: 5

Overall consistency is good. It is consistent in terms of terminology and framework. The writing is straightforward and standardized throughout the text and it makes reading easier.

Modularity rating: 5

The authors do a great job of partitioning the text and labeling sections with appropriate headings. The table of contents is well organized and easily divisible into reading sections and it can be assigned at different points within the course.

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 4

Overall, the topics are arranged in an order that follows natural progression in a statistics course with some exception. They are addressed logically and given adequate coverage.

Interface rating: 5

The text is free of any issues. There are no navigation problems nor any display issues.

Grammatical Errors rating: 5

The text contains no grammatical errors.

Cultural Relevance rating: 4

The text is not culturally insensitive or offensive in any way most of time. Some examples might need to consider citing the sources or use differently to reflect current inclusive teaching strategies.

Comments

Overall, it's well-written and good recourse to be an introduction to statistical methods. Some materials may not need to be covered in an one-semester course. Various examples and quizzes can be a great recourse for instructor.

Reviewed by Jenna Kowalski, Mathematics Instructor, Anoka-Ramsey Community College on 3/27/18

Comprehensiveness rating: 5 see less

The text includes the introductory statistics topics covered in a college-level semester course. An effective index and glossary are included, with functional hyperlinks.

Content Accuracy rating: 3

The content of this text is accurate and error-free, based on a random sampling of various pages throughout the text. Several examples included information without formal citation, leading the reader to potential bias and discrimination. These examples should be corrected to reflect current values of inclusive teaching.

Relevance/Longevity rating: 4

The text contains relevant information that is current and will not become outdated in the near future. The statistical formulas and calculations have been used for centuries. The examples are direct applications of the formulas and accurately assess the conceptual knowledge of the reader.

Clarity rating: 5

The text is very clear and direct with the language used. The jargon does require a basic mathematical and/or statistical foundation to interpret, but this foundational requirement should be met with course prerequisites and placement testing. Graphs, tables, and visual displays are clearly labeled.

Consistency rating: 5

The terminology and framework of the text is consistent. The hyperlinks are working effectively, and the glossary is valuable. Each chapter contains modules that begin with prerequisite information and upcoming learning objectives for mastery.

Modularity rating: 5

The modules are clearly defined and can be used in conjunction with other modules, or individually to exemplify a choice topic. With the prerequisite information stated, the reader understands what prior mathematical understanding is required to successfully use the module.

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 4

The topics are presented well, but I recommend placing Sampling Distributions, Advanced Graphs, and Research Design ahead of Probability in the text. I think this rearranged version of the index would better align with current Introductory Statistics texts. The structure is very organized with the prerequisite information stated and upcoming learner outcomes highlighted. Each module is well-defined.

Interface rating: 4

Adding an option of returning to the previous page would be of great value to the reader. While progressing through the text systematically, this is not an issue, but when the reader chooses to skip modules and read select pages then returning to the previous state of information is not easily accessible.

Grammatical Errors rating: 5

No grammatical errors were found while reviewing select pages of this text at random.

Cultural Relevance rating: 3

Several examples contained data that were not formally cited. These examples need to be corrected to reflect current inclusive teaching strategies. For example, one question stated that “while men are XX times more likely to commit murder than women, …” This data should be cited, otherwise the information can be interpreted as biased and offensive.

Comments

An included solutions manual for the exercises would be valuable to educators who choose to use this text.

Reviewed by Zaki Kuruppalil, Associate Professor, Ohio University on 2/1/18

Comprehensiveness rating: 5 see less

This is a comprehensive book on statistical methods, its settings and most importantly the interpretation of the results. With the advent of computers and software’s, complex statistical analysis can be done very easily. But the challenge is the knowledge of how to set the case, setting parameters (for example confidence intervals) and knowing its implication on the interpretation of the results. If not done properly this could lead to deceptive inferences, inadvertently or purposely. This book does a great job in explaining the above using many examples and real world case studies. If you are looking for a book to learn and apply statistical methods, this is a great one. I think the author could consider revising the title of the book to reflect the above, as it is more than just an introduction to statistics, may be include the word such as practical guide.

Content Accuracy rating: 5

The contents of the book seems accurate. Some plots and calculations were randomly selected and checked for accuracy.

Relevance/Longevity rating: 5

The book topics are up to date and in my opinion, will not be obsolete in the near future. I think the smartest thing the author has done is, not tied the book with any particular software such as minitab or spss . No matter what the software is, standard deviation is calculated the same way as it is always. The only noticeable exception in this case was using the Java Applet for calculating Z values in page 261 and in page 416 an excerpt of SPSS analysis is provided for ANOVA calculations.

Clarity rating: 5

The contents and examples cited are clear and explained in simple language. Data analysis and presentation of the results including mathematical calculations, graphical explanation using charts, tables, figures etc are presented with clarity.

Consistency rating: 5

Terminology is consistant. Framework for each chapter seems consistent with each chapter beginning with a set of defined topics, and each of the topic divided into modules with each module having a set of learning objectives and prerequisite chapters.

Modularity rating: 5

The text book is divided into chapters with each chapter further divided into modules. Each of the modules have detailed learning objectives and prerequisite required. So you can extract a portion of the book and use it as a standalone to teach certain topics or as a learning guide to apply a relevant topic.

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 4

Presentation of the topics are well thought and are presented in a logical fashion as if it would be introduced to someone who is learning the contents. However, there are some issues with table of contents and page numbers, for example chapter 17 starts in page 597 not 598. Also some tables and figures does not have a number, for instance the graph shown in page 114 does not have a number. Also it would have been better if the chapter number was included in table and figure identification, for example Figure 4-5 . Also in some cases, for instance page 109, the figures and titles are in two different pages.

Interface rating: 4

No major issues. Only suggestion would be, since each chapter has several modules, any means such as a header to trace back where you are currently, would certainly help.

Grammatical Errors rating: 4

Easy to read and phrased correctly in most cases. Minor grammatical errors such as missing prepositions etc. In some cases the author seems to have the habbit of using a period after the decimal. For instance page 464, 467 etc.
For X = 1,
Y' = (0.425)(1) + 0.785 = 1.21.
For X = 2,
Y' = (0.425)(2) + 0.785 = 1.64.

Cultural Relevance rating: 4

However it contains some statements (even though given as examples) that could be perceived as subjective, which the author could consider citing the sources. For example from page 11: Statistics include numerical facts and figures. For instance: • The largest earthquake measured 9.2 on the Richter scale. • Men are at least 10 times more likely than women to commit murder. • One in every 8 South Africans is HIV positive. • By the year 2020, there will be 15 people aged 65 and over for every new baby born.

Comments

Solutions for the exercises would be a great teaching resource to have

Reviewed by Randy Vander Wal, Professor, The Pennsylvania State University on 2/1/18

Comprehensiveness rating: 5 see less

As a text for an introductory course, standard topics are covered. It was nice to see some topics such as power, sampling, research design and distribution free methods covered, as these are often omitted in abbreviated texts. Each module introduces the topic, has appropriate graphics, illustration or worked example(s) as appropriate and concluding with many exercises. An instructor’s manual is available by contacting the author. A comprehensive glossary provides definitions for all the major terms and concepts. The case studies give examples of practical applications of statistical analyses. Many of the case studies contain the actual raw data. To note is that the on-line e-book provides several calculators for the essential distributions and tests. These are provided in lieu of printed tables which are not included in the pdf. (Such tables are readily available on the web.)

Content Accuracy rating: 5

The content is accurate and error free. Notation is standard and terminology is used accurately, as are the videos and verbal explanations therein. Online links work properly as do all the calculators. The text appears neutral and unbiased in subject and content.

Relevance/Longevity rating: 5

The text achieves contemporary relevance by ending each section with a Statistical Literacy example, drawn from contemporary headlines and issues. Of course, the core topics are time proven. There is no obvious material that may become “dated”.

Clarity rating: 4

The text is very readable. While the pdf text may appear “sparse” by absence varied colored and inset boxes, pictures etc., the essential illustrations and descriptions are provided. Meanwhile for this same content the on-line version appears streamlined, uncluttered, enhancing the value of the active links. Moreover, the videos provide nice short segments of “active” instruction that are clear and concise. Despite being a mathematical text, the text is not overly burdened by formulas and numbers but rather has “readable feel”.

Consistency rating: 5

This terminology and symbol use are consistent throughout the text and with common use in the field. The pdf text and online version are also consistent by content, but with the online e-book offering much greater functionality.

Modularity rating: 5

The chapters and topics may be used in a selective manner. Certain chapters have no pre-requisite chapter and in all cases, those required are listed at the beginning of each module. It would be straightforward to select portions of the text and reorganize as needed. The online version is highly modular offering students both ease of navigation and selection of topics.

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 5

Chapter topics are arranged appropriately. In an introductory statistics course, there is a logical flow given the buildup to the normal distribution, concept of sampling distributions, confidence intervals, hypothesis testing, regression and additional parametric and non-parametric tests. The normal distribution is central to an introductory course. Necessary precursor topics are covered in this text, while its use in significance and hypothesis testing follow, and thereafter more advanced topics, including multi-factor ANOVA.

Each chapter is structured with several modules, each beginning with pre-requisite chapter(s), learning objectives and concluding with Statistical Literacy sections providing a self-check question addressing the core concept, along with answer, followed by an extensive problem set. The clear and concise learning objectives will be of benefit to students and the course instructor. No solutions or answer key is provided to students. An instructor’s manual is available by request.

Interface rating: 5

The on-line interface works well. In fact, I was pleasantly surprised by its options and functionality. The pdf appears somewhat sparse by comparison to publisher texts, lacking pictures, colored boxes, etc. But the on-line version has many active links providing definitions and graphic illustrations for key terms and topics. This can really facilitate learning as making such “refreshers” integral to the new material. Most sections also have short videos that are professionally done, with narration and smooth graphics. In this way, the text is interactive and flexible, offering varied tools for students. To note is that the interactive e-book works for both IOS and OS X.

Grammatical Errors rating: 5

The text in pdf form appeared to free of grammatical errors, as did the on-line version, text, graphics and videos.

Cultural Relevance rating: 3

This text contains no culturally insensitive or offensive content. The focus of the text is on concepts and explanation.

Comments

The text would be a great resource for students. The full content would be ambitious for a 1-semester course, such use would be unlikely. The text is clearly geared towards students with no statistics background nor calculus. The text could be used in two styles of course. For 1st year students early chapters on graphs and distributions would be the starting point, omitting later chapters on Chi-square, transformations, distribution-free and size effect chapters. Alternatively, for upper level students the introductory chapters could be bypassed with the latter chapters then covered to completion.

This text adopts a descriptive style of presentation with topics well and fully explained, much like the “Dummy series”. For this, it may seem a bit “wordy”, but this can well serve students and notably it complements powerpoint slides that are generally sparse on written content. This text could be used as the primary text, for regular lectures, or as reference for a “flipped” class. The e-book videos are an enabling tool if this approach is adopted.

Reviewed by David jabon, Associate Professor, DePaul University on 8/15/17

Comprehensiveness rating: 5 see less

This text covers all the standard topics in a semester long introductory course in statistics. It is particularly well indexed and very easy to navigate. There is comprehensive hyperlinked glossary.

Content Accuracy rating: 5

The material is completely accurate. There are no errors. The terminology is standard with one exception: the book calls what most people call the interquartile range, the H-spread in a number of places. Ideally, the term "interquartile range" would be used in place of every reference to "H-spread." "Interquartile range" is simply a better, more descriptive term of the concept that it describes. It is also more commonly used nowadays.

Relevance/Longevity rating: 5

This book came out a number of years ago, but the material is still up to date. Some more recent case studies have been added.

Clarity rating: 5

The writing is very clear. There are also videos for almost every section. The section on boxplots uses a lot of technical terms that I don't find are very helpful for my students (hinge, H-spread, upper adjacent value).

Consistency rating: 5

The text is internally consistent with one exception that I noted (the use of the synonymous words "H-spread" and "interquartile range").

Modularity rating: 5

The text book is brokenly into very short sections, almost to a fault. Each section is at most two pages long. However at the end of each of these sections there are a few multiple choice questions to test yourself. These questions are a very appealing feature of the text.

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 4

The organization, in particular the ordering of the topics, is rather standard with a few exceptions. Boxplots are introduced in Chapter II before the discussion of measures of center and dispersion. Most books introduce them as part of discussion of summaries of data using measure of center and dispersion. Some statistics instructors may not like the way the text lumps all of the sampling distributions in a single chapter (sampling distribution of mean, sampling distribution for the difference of means, sampling distribution of a proportion, sampling distribution of r). I have tried this approach, and I now like this approach. But it is a very challenging chapter for students.

Interface rating: 5

The book's interface has no features that distracted me. Overall the text is very clean and spare, with no additional distracting visual elements.

Grammatical Errors rating: 5

The book contains no grammatical errors.

Cultural Relevance rating: 5

The book's cultural relevance comes out in the case studies. As of this writing there are 33 such case studies, and they cover a wide range of issues from health to racial, ethnic, and gender disparity.

Comments

Each chapter as a nice set of exercises with selected answers. The thirty three case studies are excellent and can be supplement with some other online case studies. An instructor's manual and PowerPoint slides can be obtained by emailing the author. There are direct links to online simulations within the text. This text is very high quality textbook in every way.