arXiv subjects

Federica Zoe Ricci

Publications and source records attributed to Federica Zoe Ricci.

4 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

See You at the Posterior Line: Learning Bayesian Modeling Through a Car Racing Game

We present an interactive classroom activity designed to address a central challenge in teaching introductory Bayesian statistics: how to formalize subjective knowledge and available information into prior distributions and then update them with empirical data. Role-playing as data analysts for a racing team, students evaluate candidate tires by converting qualitative engineering reports into prior distributions, collecting primary data via a virtual racing game, and using a Beta-Binomial model to inform team strategy. This discovery-based exercise allows small groups to observe directly how different prior choices and sample data jointly shape posterior inference. Student feedback ($n=32$) highlights high enjoyment, engagement and improved conceptual clarity. Open-access materials to implement the activity are provided, alongside recommendations for adapting it to other teaching contexts.

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arXiv2025

A Systematic Literature Review of Undergraduate Data Science Education Research

The presence of data science has been profound in the scientific community in almost every discipline. An important part of the data science education expansion has been at the undergraduate level. We conducted a systematic literature review to (1) portray current evidence and knowledge gaps in self-proclaimed undergraduate data science education research and (2) inform policymakers and the data science education community about what educators may encounter when searching for literature using the general keyword 'data science education.' While open-access publications that target a broader audience of data science educators and include multiple examples of data science programs and courses are a strength, significant knowledge gaps remain. The undergraduate data science literature that we identified often lacks empirical data, research questions and reproducibility. Certain disciplines are less visible. We recommend that we should (1) cherish data science as an interdisciplinary field; (2) adopt a consistent set of keywords/terminology to ensure data science education literature is easily identifiable; (3) prioritize investments in empirical studies.

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arXiv2024

Bayesian temporal biclustering with applications to multi-subject neuroscience studies

We consider the problem of analyzing multivariate time series collected on multiple subjects, with the goal of identifying groups of subjects exhibiting similar trends in their recorded measurements over time as well as time-varying groups of associated measurements. To this end, we propose a Bayesian model for temporal biclustering featuring nested partitions, where a time-invariant partition of subjects induces a time-varying partition of measurements. Our approach allows for data-driven determination of the number of subject and measurement clusters as well as estimation of the number and location of changepoints in measurement partitions. To efficiently perform model fitting and posterior estimation with Markov Chain Monte Carlo, we derive a blocked update of measurements' cluster-assignment sequences. We illustrate the performance of our model in two applications to functional magnetic resonance imaging data and to an electroencephalogram dataset. The results indicate that the proposed model can combine information from potentially many subjects to discover a set of interpretable, dynamic patterns. Experiments on simulated data compare the estimation performance of the proposed model against ground-truth values and other statistical methods, showing that it performs well at identifying ground-truth subject and measurement clusters even when no subject or time dependence is present.

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arXiv2024

Automated grading workflows for providing personalized feedback to open-ended data science assignments

Open-ended assignments - such as lab reports and semester-long projects - provide data science and statistics students with opportunities for developing communication, critical thinking, and creativity skills. However, providing grades and formative feedback to open-ended assignments can be very time consuming and difficult to do consistently across students. In this paper, we discuss the steps of a typical grading workflow and highlight which steps can be automated in an approach that we call automated grading workflow. We illustrate how gradetools, a new R package, implements this approach within RStudio to facilitate efficient and consistent grading while providing individualized feedback. By outlining the motivations behind the development of this package and the considerations underlying its design, we hope this article will provide data science and statistics educators with ideas for improving their grading workflows, possibly developing new grading tools or considering use gradetools as their grading workflow assistant.

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