STA1501/102/0/2024

Tutorial Letter 102/0/2024

Descriptive Statistics and Probability

STA1501

Year module

Department of Statistics

Frequently Asked Questions

 STA1501/102/0

Dear Student

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

1. Do I need a calculator for this module? What kind of calculator?
In this module, you will certainly need a scientific calculator The type of calculator that comes with
statistical functions within it. You will be allowed to use a non-programmable scientific calculator
in your examination. We strongly recommend that you get a scientific calculator which allows you
to enter data on two variables at the same time in a statistical mode. Some examples of such
calculators: Sharp El – 531 or Sharp El – 535; Casio fx- 991. (These calculators seem to be widely
available in South Africa) but there are many others!

You will make use of your calculator in all the subsequent modules as well, so it is a good
investment. More importantly: You must learn how to use your calculator efficiently! In exams you
should be able to do yourself calculations efficiently and confidently really saves a lot of time.

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2. Do I need to use Excel or other software in this module!

No, you can do all the calculations and graphs by hand, using a calculator, and indeed when
answering questions in assignments you need to show all the workings - you will lose marks if
you just plug the numbers into Excel and give the final answer! And of course, you will not have
time to use the excel or other software in your computer in the final exam. However, you can of
course double-check your work in Excel, and you are welcomed to use Excel to assist in drawing
some of the graphs.

3. Which textbook should I get?

The textbook mentioned in the tutorial letter 101 is

G. Keller, N. Gaciu: Statistics for Management and Economics. 2nd EMEA edition, 2020,
Cengage, ISBN: 9781473768260.

All references will be to this edition. However, previously we used an earlier version of this
textbook by the name:

Keller, Gerald. Statistics for Management and Economics, 11th edition, 2018, Cengage,
ISBN: 9781337093453. If you have previously bought this edition (which however is no longer in
the bookstores), you can still use it since it covers the same content very much.

The above prescribed textbook is used for both module STA1501 (from chapter 1 to chapter 12)
and module STA1502 (from chapter 13 to chapter 20).

4. What are the options for submitting assignment in Moodle?

There are 6 assessments in this module:

• Assessment 1 and 2: These are the written assessments, and the type of submission is
the file submission in Moodle. Only PDF documents will be accepted.
• Assessment 3 to 6: These are quizzes (MCQ) assessments. The type of the submission is
quiz (MCQ) in Moodle.

Assignment Opening Date Due date

General Number

01 Assignment (File) 20 March 2024 4 April 2024

02 Assignment (File) 22 April 2024 8 May 2024

03 Assignment (Quiz) 24 May 2024 7 June 2024

04 Assignment (Quiz) 20 June 2024 1 July 2024

05 Assignment (Quiz) 22 July 2024 1 August 2024

06 Assignment (Quiz) 20 August 2024 3 September 2024

No e-mail submission will be accepted because all the assignments will be marked using the
Moodle tools. The examination will be a quiz in Moodle in this module.

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5. What is the exam admission criteria?

No auto admission will be allowed. Only students who meet admission requirement will be allowed
to partake in the examination. There are many criteria, for instance, you should submit at least
one assignment before the admission cut-off date as per the academic planner schedule.
Remember each assignment counts for the year mark that contributes to the final mark.

6. How should I round off my calculations?

You should do all the intermediate calculations with full accuracy (keeping all decimals) but round
the final answer to 4 decimal places. In this module, we use 4 decimal places throughout all
calculations. Some examples on how to round the final answer:

• 3.27638323 can be rounded to 3.2764.

• 3.27633833 can be rounded to 3.2763.
• 3.27685333 can be rounded to 3.2769.

Note that if you round off too early, your answer could be off by several digits which could lead to
trouble in multiple choice questions (MCQ) as you might not be able to identify the correct answer.

7. I can’t find the assignment questions in the tutorial letter 101? Or on the website?

As explained in Tutorial letter 101 denoted (TL101), the assignment questions will be made
available on the module web site closer to the assignment due dates, rather than released all at
the beginning of the year. For instance, for the assessment 1, the opening date is on the 20th of
March 2024 and the due date for assessment 1 is on the 4th of April 2024.

8. Can I submit handwritten assignments?

Yes, you can write your assignment by hand and then scan them to PDF documents. You can
also choose the type assignments for example in programs such as Latex or Math type or by
using the equation editor in Ms Words. However, do note that you do then still need to adhere to
correct notations for instance for square roots, integrals, and function.

More importantly, please check that you include all pages in your scanned document. We mark
what we get from you, if you left pages out, we cannot necessarily assist you afterwards.

Enjoy your Descriptive Statistics and Probability!

Dr B J Kanyama