View All Case Studies

University at Albany

Course Implementation

Course Design

Courses may run either three days per week for 55 minutes each day or two days per week for 80 minutes each day. Smaller classes meet in traditional classrooms; larger classes meet in the university’s Lecture Center.

MyStatLab was introduced in spring 2007. At that point, it was used solely for homework. In spring 2008, the school starting using the program to create and complete quizzes.

Assessments

Use of MyStatLab

Students are introduced to MyStatLab on the first day of class. How to use the program for homework assignments, quizzes, and study plans is explained to them. After the first day, questions about the program may be addressed with the instructor after class or during office hours.

MyStatLab homework assignments and quizzes are mandatory. In addition, students are assigned required Study Plan questions and chapter exercises prior to exams.

Exam grades and grades from some homework assignments are imported into MyStatLab.

As of fall 2009, use of MyStatLab contributes 37.5 percent of the final course grade.

Results and Data

Table 1 compares a variety of student achievement metrics before and after implementation of MyStatLab and shows how those figures are impacted by the percentage contribution of MyStatLab use.

Homework scores dramatically increased from an average of 79.2 before the use of MyStatLab to an average of 89.9 with MyStatLab.

Although not noted in table 1, James Lamatina, lecturer for the course, reported that those students who used the Study Plan received higher examination grades than those who did not.

Of particular interest to Lamatina is how the program promotes students’ taking responsibility for their learning. MyStatLab’s Gradebook feature enables both Lamatina and his students to see how students’ work habits influence their acheivement, and features like the Study Plan and Ask My Instructor make obtaining help convenient and easy. To further assist those students who desire it, Lamatina offers office hours, plus in 2009 added an optional day for review before tests. Given the opportunities available to students, when asked what might contribute to the decreased success reflected in table 1, Lamatina replied that while efforts are designed to reach all at-risk students, he finds that only those willing to take responsibility for themselves step up.

In this way, MyStatLab can help students identify earlier whether they have been appropriately placed. Lamatina suggests that this explains the increased drop rates: students, particularly freshman nonmajors, learn right away whether or not this is the course for them, and they can therefore drop the course before they fail it.

Table 1. Comparison of MyStatLab Usage and Student Achievement Data, Spring 2006–Fall 2009 Semester Averages across All Class sections(n=1,980)

The Student Experience

Lamatina has received the following comments from students using MyStatLab in Elementary Statistics.

• “Even though the professor doesn’t assign all the questions, the Study Plan allows us to see other problems that can be worked on. These problems help me on future quizzes and tests.”
• “I’ve used other Web sites to work on assignments for the course. Of all of them, MyStatLab is the best.”
• “The Help Me Solve This feature is a very useful application. Its step-by-step process helps me get a detailed understanding of the problem.”
• “I like that when I input a wrong answer, the program doesn’t just reply that the answer is incorrect. It gives me feedback on how to correctly do the problem.”