Students’ Understanding of Statistical Analysis in Analytical Chemistry

This study focuses on the students’ understanding in statistics and the use of Microsoft Excel for data analysis. A total of 93 students from School of Chemical Sciences and Food Technology registered for Practical Chemistry I were selected as the respondents. Two tools were applied in this study were workshop organized for students’ exposure and through experiments for training process. The respondents were given the pre-assessment questionnaires in statistics and Microsoft Excel aspects before these two tools were carried out. Most of the students have good understanding in basic of statistics and realized that Microsoft Excel aided in data analysis and data presentation. It was also found that the lowest mean value for Q-test sub-element and low percentages of agreed students in how to conduct data analysis by using Microsoft Excel were obtained. Insufficient learning and training for analyzing data using calculator or Microsoft Excel were expected to be the main factor. These findings were also consistent with the Mathematic syllabus content at the secondary schools in Malaysia.