Making statistics significant in a short course for graduates with widely-varying non-statistical backgrounds

[摘要] Abstract. With reference to a short compulsory module for MBA students, this paper discusses how, despite a range of pressures and an extraordinary range of student backgrounds, fears and motivations, it is possible to quickly facilitate understanding and confidence in handling data and basic statistics for graduates in business and associated workplaces. Links and contrasts with a variety of undergraduate teaching scenarios help to enrich teaching and learning strategies, and the strategies and materials developed through interaction with the range of MBA students are transferable to other postgraduate coursework situations. In particular, the need for understanding and confidence in handling data and its presentation, in considering categorical and simple continuous data, and in understanding correlation and association, are common across many different workplaces and applications.

[学科分类] 自然科学（综合）