Required In-Class Midterm Exam Saturday
November 1 at 9 a.m. in Law 204.
We will not have new readings this week. Instead, we will review
the readings for the past seven weeks in preparation for the second
midterm which will be in-class on November 1. I am not going to
post the readings on this page, you can find them on the pages
for the previous weeks and also in SAKAI Resources.
The test
will be similar to the last in-class test, mostly multiple choice
questions and a page of statistical questions. The multiple
choice questions will focus mostly on material covered in weeks five,
six and seven, but there will be a few items from the first three
weeks. The statistics part will include some percentage questions
as well as the descriptive statistics. You should bring a
calculator. The test is
closed book and closed notes. No computers can be used.
Here are some suggestions for review:
Perhaps the best place to begin is with the online
presentations that summarize all the main points. You can find
these in
powerpoint format in Sakai/resources for each week, including a version
with a voice narration. There is also one for the reading on
Capital Punishment and Homicide Rates. I definitely recommend the
narrated versions, the audio has a lot of explanation that is missing
if you just look at the slides.
The Descriptive
Statistics web page has a detailed example of the computation
of the standard deviation which many students find difficult. It
also demonstrates computing means and doing frequency distributions.
The "Main Points" and "Key Terms" sections at the ends of
Chapters
Fourteen and Six of Babbie are useful. For Chapter Two, we did
not do the part on
paradigms but the remaining Main Points on logical systems, theory and
research are useful. There will also be a crossword puzzle in
Sakai/Resources/Week Eight which covers many of the same key
terms.
Learning the terms is very useful for multiple choice tests. You
can
also go over the terms with the flash cards mentioned in item 7 below.
A video is available of our last Saturday class covering
descriptive statistics. It may be useful
especially
for those of you who missed it. It was supposed to begin at 9:45,
so
the first 15 minutes may be students taking tests. But you
can scroll
ahead..
You may view this video directly by accessing the following URL: http://camlaw.rutgers.edu/av-request/2592/8337767edf
Going through the quizzes you have already taken is very
helpful. Some of these items may appear again on the
midterm. You can access these through SAKAI. I have
released the answers so you can see the correct answer for any you have
missed.
There are sample tests for review on the Companion
Site to the Babbie book. A sample midterm from
previous semesters is posted in
Sakai/Resources/Week Eight. This includes some items from
chapters we haven't covered. It is useful for seeing the kinds of
questions that may be asked. Some of these same questions may
appear on the midterm
There is a review Crossword
Puzzle in
Sakai/Resources/Week Eight.
The chat room will be open for
you to discuss among
yourselves and to raise questions. To be sure to get an answer to a
question, however, it is best to post it to the Discussion
List.
The Discussion List in SAKAI is
very useful if you are confused by something and need it
explained. You post your question there and Ron or I will answer
it as soon as we can. Your answer will be paired with your
question. You can also peruse the Discussion List and read
questions other students have posted. Please do not send
questions for review to me or Ron by email.
The problem with this is that we end up answering the same questions
over and over because other students do not see them. Post them
in the Discussion List so everyone can see the answers.
The Ayers workbook has good
summaries of the material, if you like his style (personally I prefer
it to Babbie, but students usually prefer Babbie).
The Companion
Site to the Babbie book has flash cards, a glossary and sample
tests, organized by chapter.
A study group is meeting in the basement of the library
during the free period on Monday, organized by Colleen Adriano. I
believe there is another study group meeting at a diner on
Wednesday. These are generally announced on the chat room or
discussion list, or I will forward an announcement by email.
These are student organized, and Ron Passarella may attend some of them.
Finally, Ron Passarella will be in the office from 3
to 6 on Tuesday and Thursday for in-person help. Email him if you want
to make sure you can meet him at a specific time. Ted Goertzel
will be in the office on Friday morning.