STAT 374 Syllabus

STAT 374: Statistical Quality Control

Spring 2017
MWF 2:30-3:20
VH 1204

Office Hours: MWF 9:30-10:20, 1:00-2:20; TTh 10:00-11:20 or by appointment
VH2236, x7236 (no voice mail), clthatch@truman.edu

  • Course Description: From the 2016-2017 Course Catalog: “An introduction to statistical quality control including control charts, process performance, and total quality management.”
  • Course Objectives:
    • Recognize the overall importance of quality, the existence of variation in all processes, and the role of statistics in understanding and improving process quality
    • Understand philosophies and contributions of Deming, Juran, and other quality pioneers in a historical context
    • Use basic tools of problem solving and process improvement, including: flowcharts, Pareto diagrams, cause-and-effect diagrams, and basic graphs
    • Understand the statistical foundations of variable data and attribute data, including the normal, binomial, and Poisson distributions
    • Use control charts for various data types, including: selection of appropriate chart, construction, and interpretation
    • Determine basic process capability, evaluate measurement error, and evaluate simple acceptance sampling plans
  • Recommended Texts: “STAT 374 Course Notes”, Fall 2015, available on Blackboard.
    If you want an additional textbook for reference, I recommend Gupta and Walker’s Statistical Quality Control for the Six Sigma Green Belt, 2007 (ASQ Quality Press), or the guide by Boeing —Advanced Quality System Tools, D1-9000-1, 1998 (The Boeing Company), available at http://www.boeingsuppliers.com/supplier/d1-9000-1.pdf. Both of these texts are good references and used by actual practitioners. Other appropriate texts available in Pickler Library are Statistical Quality Control by Grant and Leavenworth, Introduction to Statistical Quality Control by Montgomery, Fundamentals of Quality Control and Improvement by Mitra, and Quality by Summers (all under call letters TS156).
  • Web Materials: I will post the syllabus, homework assignments, handouts, and other important information on Blackboard. A copy of this syllabus and the course schedule is also available on the Web at https://clthatch.sites.truman.edu/ .
  • Calculators and Software: You will need a calculator capable of square roots and exponents. A “statistical” calculator is not required for this course, but you may find it useful. The mathematics department maintains a collection of graphing calculators that may be checked out for the semester on a first-come, first-served basis. While you may use a calculator application on your phone for classwork, cell phones will not be allowed during exams and you will need an actual calculator for exams.
    You may use MINITAB, SPSS, Excel, or OpenOffice (all available on university computers or through view.truman.edu) for any homework assignment. We will primarily discuss the use of MINITAB in class. A student version of MINITAB can be rented ($30) for the semester for use on a home computer from www.onthehub.com/minitab/. Additionally, OpenOffice can be freely downloaded from www.openoffice.org for use on any computer. If you wish to use another software package, check with me first.
  • Attendance: Regular attendance in this course is expected; however, attendance is not strictly required. That is, I will not penalize your grade simply for missing class, but you should be aware that frequent absences are associated with less understanding of the material. I strongly encourage you to come to every class period.
    Please stay home if you have had a fever, vomiting or diarrhea in the last 24 hours; you do not need to provide me with medical documentation.
  • Preparation for Class: Of course, simply attending class is not sufficient to master the material. Completing the reading and problem assignments on time is very crucial. If you do not understand a topic being studied, get help as soon as possible. Before each class you should review the previous class’s material and be prepared with any questions. You should bring a calculator to class for active participation. You do not need to bring your textbook to every class; however, there will be occasions where tables from the text will be useful in class.
  • Academic Integrity: You will be expected to follow all university policies on academic integrity1. In particular, you should only use authorized (and acknowledged) sources on graded work. Serious violations will be reported to the Chair of the Department of Statistics and the Dean of the School of Science and Mathematics. You will, however, find that my list of authorized sources is fairly generous; refer to the sections on Homework and Tests below.
  • Homework: The purpose of homework is to allow you frequent and prompt feedback on your progress. Homework assignments will be given every few class periods. Point values for individual problems will be identified when the assignment is posted. You may work in small groups, say 2 or 3 people, on your homework, and you may turn in one assignment for the whole group; however, all contributors to a homework assignment should be identified. If you contributed to more than one homework paper, you should clearly identify which grade should be counted. You should always show your work on homework problems; failure to do so can result in a loss of half of the points for that problem—even if the answer is correct. Papers that are too messy to read, are not stapled or paperclipped together, or do not have the problems in the right order may lose 10% of the assignment’s possible points.
    Homework assignments are due by 4pm in my office or my mailbox. You may resubmit up to one (1) homework assignment to replace a missing or unsatisfactory score. Any assignment submitted after the due date will be treated as a resubmitted assignment and will count for the 1 resubmission limit; no other late homework will be accepted. You may appeal to me directly if you feel you have extenuating circumstances (death in the family, etc.). Resubmissions have implicitly waived the right to prompt feedback and will have the lowest priority in being graded.
    Your homework percentage — (points earned)/(points possible) — will count for 25% of the course grade.
  • Labs: There will be about five laboratories throughout the semester. While the majority of the work will be done in-class, you may additionally need time outside of class to finish and/or write your results. Many labs will require group work, and as for homework all contributors should be identified. Again, if you contributed to more than one lab paper, you should clearly identify which grade should be counted. Your lab percentage — (points earned)/(points possible) — will count for 5% of the course grade.
  • Project: There will be a (group) project with a written report. I will assign 3 or 4 students to each project group. More information about the project will be provided later. Your project percentage will count for 15% of the course grade.
  • In-class Tests: There will be three (3) in-class tests. In the nature of mathematics, these tests will be partly comprehensive. These tests are closed-book, closed-notes; however, you may bring in one standard (8.5 x 11) sheet of formulas, definitions, etc. Make-up tests will be given only with prior notice and only when merited. Your test percentage — (points earned)/(points possible) — will count for 35% of the course grade. The dates and tentative topics for these tests are:
    Test 1: Friday, Feb. 10 – Ch. 1-5 Foundations of SQC
    Test 2: Monday, Mar. 20 – Ch. 6-9 SPC: Variables Control Charts
    Test 3: Wednesday, Apr. 19 – Ch. 9-11 SPC: Attribute Control Charts and Capability
  • Final Exam: The final exam will be Thursday, May 11 at 1:30-3:20. The final exam will be part material since Test 3 and part comprehensive. Your final exam percentage will count for 20% of the course grade.
    The complete final exam schedule for the university may be found at Final Exam Schedule
  • Grading: The final course grade will be calculated as 0.25*(homework percentage) + 0.05*(lab percentage) + 0.15*(project percentage) + 0.35*(test percentage) + 0.2*(final exam percentage). Letter grades will be assigned on a standard 10-point scale (e.g. 90% and above is an A). Borderline grades may be determined by class attendance, participation, and effort.
  • How to Learn Statistics 2
    • Make it personal: Learning is easiest when you are interested in the material. You have to connect what you are learning to what is important to you. If you are taking statistics only as a required course, think about why your field would want you to know statistics. Although statistics uses a lot of mathematical notation, as a field it primarily arose from social scientists and natural scientists who needed to use it. If you are in those fields, you’ll probably need to use it too.
    • Learn the language: Statistics may seem like a foreign language with its own terminology and notation. Most of it is pretty logical, however, and you have probably used many of the terms yourself already. This can be a good thing or a bad thing. For example, many lay people use the term correlation and you probably have some notion what it means; however, the statistical definition is rather precise and does not apply to many situations where people use the term. So, make sure that you know the statistical definition of terminology that we use.
    • Practice, practice, practice: To learn statistics (or any other material), you generally need to be exposed to the content three or four times. Hence, just hearing the material once in class may not be sufficient. You should read the book, do the homework, review your class notes between classes, and review your notes and rework problems before an exam. Another thought, although it is often said that “practice makes perfect,” keep in mind that practicing something in the wrong way will only make it worse. Check your answers, and review what you have missed on homeworks or exams.
    • Keep up: Like many subjects, statistics will build on concepts throughout the semesters. If you start to fall behind, get help early. If you really understand why you are doing what you are doing, you will find that most of the material follows logically from a few major concepts and techniques. On the other hand, even if you don’t know why you are doing it, keep doing it; sometimes understanding follows. If you don’t know how to do a problem, think about possible partial answers. For example, if I ask you to perform a two-sample t-test to compare the means of two groups, even if you have no idea what a t-test is, you can probably calculate the means of each group and make a guess of whether they are the same or different.
    • Do well: You will enjoy the subject more if you actually succeed in it. This may mean putting in extra effort (see practice, practice, practice). If you find the material difficult, how much prouder will you be when you have mastered it?
      If you have ever watched a baby learn to walk, you know that (s)he will fall down several times and get up and try again and again and again. If you put that much effort into learning statistics, you will learn it. Remember, we have all learned to walk; so you can learn statistics.
    • Don’t stop now: One semester of statistics does not make you a statistician. There is plenty of material that we do not cover. While I encourage you to take upper-level statistics courses, you don’t have to take a class to learn more about statistics. The library has many texts that you may find interesting; try browsing the QA section of the general collection.
  • Additional Sources of Assistance: I encourage you to come to Office Hours if you have any questions. Additionally, the Center for Academic Excellence (112 Kirk Bldg) and MAC (Adair Bldg) offer tutoring, but subject to the availability of tutors with STAT 374 experience.
  • Disability Services: The university is committed to making every possible effort to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). If you have a disability for which you are or may be requesting an accommodation, you are encouraged to contact both me and the Disability Services office (x4478) as soon as possible. For more info, see http://disabilityservices.truman.edu/
  • Title IX: As an instructor, one of my responsibilities is to help create a safe learning environment on our campus. Additionally, faculty members are mandatory reporters; we are required to share information regarding sexual misconduct or information about a crime that may have occurred on Truman’s campus with the University. Students may speak to someone confidentially by contacting University Counseling Services at 660-785-4014 (660-665-5621 for after-hours crisis counseling). For more information regarding Truman’s policies and procedures relating to any form of gender discrimination, please see http://eoaa.truman.edu/university-non-discrimination-policy/ and http://eoaa.truman.edu/complaint-reporting-resolution-procedure/.
  • Emergency Procedures: In each classroom on campus, there is a poster of emergency procedures explaining best practices in the event of an active shooter/hostile intruder, fire, severe weather, bomb threat, power outage, and medical emergency. This poster is also available as a PDF at this link: http://police.truman.edu/files/2015/12/Emergency-Procedures.pdf . Students should be aware of the classroom environment and note the exits for the room and building. For more detailed information about emergency procedures, please consult the Emergency Guide for Academic Buildings: http://police.truman.edu/emergency-procedures/academic-buildings/
    This six-minute video provides some basic information on how to react in the event there is an active shooter in your location: http://police.truman.edu/emergency-procedures/active-shooter/active-shooter-preparedness-video/
    Truman students, faculty, and staff can sign up for the TruAlert emergency text messaging service via TruView. TruAlert sends a text message to all enrolled cell phones in the event of an emergency at the University. To register, sign in to TruView and click on the “Truman” tab. Click on the registration link in the lower right of the page under the “Update and View My Personal Information” channel on the “Emergency Text Messaging” or “Update Emergency Text Messaging Information” link. During a campus emergency, information will also be posted on the TruAlert website http://trualert.truman.edu/.

1See for example: Truman State University General/Graduate Catalog. Truman State University: Kirksville, MO, 2014. http://catalog.truman.edu/content.php?catoid=10&navoid=451#Academic_Dishonesty
2Portions adapted from Hutchinson, Paul. 1997. (http://www.angelfire.com/biz/rumsby/ASTUDY.html)