Using Spreadsheets to Enhance Learning in the Affective Domain for Undergraduate Statistics Students

Howard R. Clayton - claythr@auburn.edu
Department of Management, Auburn University, Auburn, Alabama 36849

Chetan S. Sankar - sankacs@auburn.edu
Department of Management, Auburn University, Auburn, Alabama 36849

Abstract

The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) requires that undergraduate and graduate students exhibit proficiency in ``statistical data analysis and management science as they support decision-making processes throughout an organization'' [AACSB. 2008. Accreditation standards. Accessed October 20, 2008, http://www.aacsb.edu/accreditation/standards.asp]. However, motivating business students to enjoy learning statistics has been a major challenge for decades in many American colleges and universities. This paper reports on the use of spreadsheets to teach an introductory statistics course with an emphasis on business applications. The results suggest that using spreadsheets as a teaching tool can effectively produce learning in the affective domain, which refers to the attitudes, beliefs, feelings, and motivations a student brings to a particular subject. This finding not only encourages business statistics instructors to continue to use spreadsheets in their classes, it also encourages other instructors to consider doing so in the future.

Key words
business statistics; spreadsheets; affective domain

History
Received: November 2006; accepted: December 2008.

Download the PDF
10.1287/ited.10.1.10

Citation Information
Clayton, H. R., C. S. Sankar. 2009. Using spreadsheets to enhance learning in the affective domain for undergraduate statistics students. INFORMS Trans. Ed. 10(1) 10-17. Available online at http://ite.pubs.informs.org/.

DOI: 10.1287/ited.1090.0030