DCR Students – Assignment 3 is now posted on the Syllabus. This is a really important assignment and week in DCR – to do a good sample size calculation, you need to be really clear on your study design, and you may need to make compromises and simplifications to “fit” your study into a formulaic version that is required for doing the actual calculations. Do whatever it takes to get a calculation done, write up an English language interpretation (that may include how your REAL study would be different than the simplified version), and you’ll be prepared for class on Tuesday.
Week 3 can also be a little heartbreaking for people who were not expecting how BIG their study would need to be to really test their hypothesis with reasonable power. When that happens to you, don’t despair – there are many strategies you can use to try to increase power, and of course you can consider alternative study designs. This is a great topic for discussion in Small Groups.
Tuesday 9-10am will be a special “DCR Sample Size Stats Quiz”. I’ve got a real-time web-based quiz platform that will let you all participate through your phone or laptop in a simultaneous quiz session. Once I flash the question up and start reading it, you’ll have only 15 seconds total to record your answer, and you’ll get more points for answer more quickly. There will be a prize! The real goal, though, is not to win the contest, but to engage with the concepts. A little competitive spirit and adrenaline helps with focus and memory. I hope it will be fun!
See you on Tuesday.