Page 348 - Statistics for Dummies

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Part VI: The Part of Tens
Know What You Don’t Know, and
then Do Something about It
Figuring out what you know and what you don’t know can be hard when you
are taking a statistics class. You read the book and can understand all the
examples in your notes, but you can’t do your homework problems. You can
answer all your roommate’s statistics questions, but you can’t answer your
own. You walk out of an exam thinking you did well, but when you see your
grade, you are shocked.
What’s happening here? The bottom line is, you have to be aware of what you
know and what you don’t know if you want to be successful. This is a very
tough skill to develop, but it’s well worth it. Students often find out what they
don’t know the hard way — by losing points on exam questions. Mistakes are
okay, we all make them — what matters is when you make them. If you make
a mistake before the exam while you still have time to figure out what you’re
doing wrong, it doesn’t cost you anything. If you make that same mistake on
an exam, it’ll cost you points.
Here’s a strategy for figuring out what you know and what you don’t know.
Go through your lecture notes and place stars by any items from the notes
that you don’t understand. You can also “test” yourself, as I describe later in
“Yeah-yeah trap #2,” and make a list of problems that stumped you. Take your
notes and list to your professor and ask him to go through the problem areas
with you. Your questions will be specific enough that your professor can zoom
in when he’s talking with you, give you specific information and examples, and
then check to make sure you understand each idea before moving on to the
next item. Meeting with your professor won’t take long; sometimes getting one
question answered has a ripple effect and clears up other questions farther
down on your list.
Leave no stone unturned when it comes to making sure you understand all the
concepts, examples, formulas, notation, and homework problems before you
walk into the exam. I always tell my students that 30 minutes with me has a
potential of raising your grade by 10%, because I’m awfully good at explaining
things and answering questions — and I’m probably better at it than any room-
mate, brother-in-law, or friend who took the class four years ago with another
professor. A quick office visit with your professor is well worth your time —
especially if you bring a detailed list of questions with you. If for some reason
your professor is not available, see if you have access to a tutor for help.

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