What's New in Version 5.0

CourseKata has just released Version 5.0 of its statistics and data science textbooks. We have been working hard, listening hard, and studying students’ data nonstop in order to make this the best release yet!

There are hundreds of minor improvements in this release. But there also are some major changes. These include:

• The addition of a sixth book to our collection: Accelerated Statistics and Data Science for College (XCDCOLLEGE). This book goes all the way through multivariate analyses, but shortens the initial introduction to R and the building of single-predictor models. You should consider using it if your students have more background before entering the course. (Click to see an updated description of all the books.)

• A complete re-write of Chapters 7 and 8. Students didn’t much like Chapter 7; it was long and had some major issues. We’ve re-written Chapter 7, and broken it into two chapters: the new Chapters 7 and 8. And we’ve re-written the old Chapter 8 and made it Chapter 9, allowing for a smooth transition. What used to appear as Chapter 9 (and beyond) you’ll now see as Chapter 10 (and beyond). Let us know how you and your students like this new sequence.

• Two new chapters in our multivariate section. In the previous version we dealt only with additive models. We’ve now added two new chapters on interaction models. If you are teaching a more advanced class, give these a try. We look forward to your feedback!

Here’s a table that summarizes the changes.

As usual, we appreciate your continued feedback. Part of our mission is continuous improvement, so keep that feedback coming!