We fight to keep SPSS because upwards of 90% of our graduates continue on with a grad program, and even if it's not a PhD program, they are almost always required to do an empirical thesis of some sort, they are all required to take a grad stats class, and SPSS is nearly universal (at least from the reports I get back from graduates). They thank me for being a "Nazi" with their writing and design, and they thank me because they know more about stats and methods than their peers. I almost always get the "I'm bored" notes from students in their first-semester stats/design classes in grad school. (I've even had notes sent to me WHILE the students are in class, for which I chastise them.)
But it's increasingly a battle in our cash-strapped little U. SPSS is expensive, especially when I have to buy separate packages for advanced regression and advanced stats (repeated-measures analyses, etc.). And it's increasingly aimed at business data analysis (and now that IBM has bought it, I expect that trend to accelerate). I'm on the edge of using something else because SPSS is rapidly pricing itself out of the small-college market, but I hate to make the students learn some software that they won't see again. Our program is small and has become a major that is virtually a grad-school prep program -- so that's the main reason that we have them learn to use SPSS. m -- Marc Carter, PhD Associate Professor and Chair Department of Psychology College of Arts & Sciences Baker University -- > -----Original Message----- > From: Dr. Bob Wildblood [mailto:drb...@rcn.com] > Sent: Wednesday, April 14, 2010 8:38 PM > To: Teaching in the Psychological Sciences (TIPS) > Subject: Re: [tips] Best Methods, Stats, and Stats Lab > Instructive Material > > A couple of folks have commented on using SPSS in their > statistics courses, and that causes me to ask "what is the > rationale for using SPSS in undergraduate statistics when the > vast majority of our students will never again use SPSS > unless they are employed in a research situation at a > university or an agency that does a great deal of number > crunching as part of their research?" > The information contained in this e-mail and any attachments thereto ("e-mail") is sent by Baker University ("BU") and is intended to be confidential and for the use of only the individual or entity named above. The information may be protected by federal and state privacy and disclosures acts or other legal rules. If the reader of this message is not the intended recipient, you are notified that retention, dissemination, distribution or copying of this e-mail is strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in error please immediately notify Baker University by email reply and immediately and permanently delete this e-mail message and any attachments thereto. Thank you. --- You are currently subscribed to tips as: arch...@jab.org. To unsubscribe click here: http://fsulist.frostburg.edu/u?id=13090.68da6e6e5325aa33287ff385b70df5d5&n=T&l=tips&o=2001 or send a blank email to leave-2001-13090.68da6e6e5325aa33287ff385b70df...@fsulist.frostburg.edu
