Instructions for home assignments - Biostats Course VHM 801 at AVC
Follow this link to instruction for the quizzes
Some frequently asked questions:
- Where can I find the home assignment and the data?
Both the home assignment and any data for it are found via links at the homepage.
- How much of the course mark does the home assignment account for?
This is listed on the homepage and directly on the assignment.
- When is the home assignment due?
Usually, home assignments are due within one week; the specific due date
can be found on the homepage. Unless noted otherwise, there is no
specific due time on the due date.
- What are the requirements with regard to format?
You should preferably hand in a paper version, with your name
and your student id. The text may be printed or handwritten as you prefer.
See below for handing in an electronic version (if handing
in a paper version is inconvenient or impossible).
- Where should I hand in the home assignment?
A paper version of the home assignment should be handed directly to the course instructor, or be put in the
mailbox (at AVC 3 North) or under the office door if the instructor is not available.
Electronic submission of the home assignment should use your Moodle account for VHM 801.
- Is collaboration allowed?
Collaboration is not allowed. Discussion is allowed, but every student must
carry out all calculations on her/his own, and must hand in a personal version
with the relevant explanations and interpretations (and those versions should not be virtually identical for
two or more students).
- Is it allowed to get assistance from another person (in or outside the course)?
It is not allowed to let another person design or check your analysis, or "correct" your assignment before
you hand it in. Any assistance from others is limited to discussion, as explained above.
- Can I use any resource of information (e.g. found on the
Internet) to assist me in answering the questions?
Yes, but be aware of the requirement (as part of the principles of Academic Honesty) to
properly reference your sources. Sources of information implicit in the course
(e.g. the course material, the textbooks or the PSLS website) do not need to be referenced. Any sources
of information that are specific to the problem/assignment at hand should be referenced.
Also, larger segments of text included in your solution that originate
from an external source should be given as a quote, with a proper reference.
- Is it serious to violate the rules for collaboration, assistance and referencing of source material?
?
That depends on the circumstances of the violation. Severe violations will be
dealt with according to the Graduate Program Regulations on Academic
Dishonesty, as described in theAcademic Calendar.
Some hints about the format and contents:
- Make sure that you demonstrate clearly how you arrived at your results.
This applies both to calculations done by hand and by computer
(for the latter, you may show Minitab listings from the session window or Stata do-files).
- Don't forget the conclusions - they are the most important part of
any analysis.
- Usually, computer program listings are put in an appendix, but you
may put selected output (tables and graphs) in the main text. Note that
the report should never be a mere collection of annotated
computer listings.
- Organize the text properly, by consecutive page numbering and by
numbering of items in an appendix.
- The expected length of reports vary (of course), but they would hardly
ever be expected to exceed 5 pages of text (not counting computer listings).
Help resources:
- Questions to clarify the assignment's meaning
or of general type (e.g. how to do something in Minitab/Stata or
explanation of methods) may be addressed to the course instructor, preferably using
the Discussion Forum at the course Moodle account.
- The solutions to lab exercises and previous years' home
assignments.
- The textbook, and any other reference material you want to use (but
give reference(s) if you rely on specific other sources).
The quizzes are managed through the Moodle system, and will be accessible in your Moodle account.
- Quizzes will be available (only!) on each Wednesday (PEI time) for sessions 2-12. The quiz may
be started anytime, but the maximal time allowed to complete it will be
one hour.
- Feedback on your quiz answers will be provided once the quiz is
closed (by the end of Wednesday).
- An aggregate mark will be compiled for all quizzes through the
course, to account for 20% of the attainable course mark. The scores
provided as feedback for each quiz are not necessarily the final marks for the quiz.
- Similar rules as above apply to quizzes with respect to assistance
and collaboration, but there is no requirement to specify the source of
information behind your answer.
- Note that your answers are not final before you have clicked the
Submit button at the bottom of the page (and confirmed that you want to
submit). Unfinished and/or unsubmitted attempts will be automatically
submitted at the end of the time limit.
Henrik Stryhn
(hstryhn@upei.ca) 2020-09-14