Introduction to Statistics

Statistics I – OCR GCSE (J560): Higher Tier

In this course, Dr Craig Anderson (University of Glasgow) explores statistics, covering Topics 12.01a, 12.02a, and 12.02b in the OCR GCSE (9-1) in Mathematics (J560) Specification for Higher Tier. In the first mini-lecture, we introduce statistics, motivate why it is useful, and discuss statistics and data used in real-world scenarios. In the second mini-lecture, we learn about populations and sampling (Topic 12.01a). In the third mini-lecture, we discuss ways of presenting data visually, specifically using frequency tables and graphs, as well as bar charts (Topic 12.02a). In the fourth mini-lecture, we discuss more ways of presenting data visually, specifically pictograms, pie charts, and line charts (Topic 12.02a). In the fifth mini-lecture, we learn about cumulative frequency diagrams and in the sixth mini-lecture, we discuss histograms (Topic 12.02b).

Introduction to Statistics

In this mini-lecture, we provide an introduction to statistics. As we move through this mini-lecture, we think about: (i) what statistics is and how it is used; (ii) statistics and data in real-world scenarios, such as healthcare, air quality, and flooding; (iii) one of the first examples of statistics used for the greater good: the diagram made by epidemiologist, John Snow, that shows the distribution of deaths during the 1854 Broad Street cholera outbreak; (iv) primary data and secondary data; (v) quantitative data and qualitative data; and (vi) two types of quantitative data: discrete data and continuous data.