Most college students who major in psychology are required to take an introductory statistics course. This course requirement often elicits anxiety because students believe that statistics is a difficult subject, involves lots of math, and is not relevant to their career goals. The first perception is accurate. Statistics is a demanding subject. However, the other two perceptions are not true: the required mathematics is quite basic, and statistics is an indispensable tool for understanding psychological knowledge. A number of proven teaching techniques are described for changing students incorrect perceptions about statistics. Also discussed are teaching techniques fro reducing test anxiety, increasing student-teacher interaction, reducing rote memorization, getting students to read assignments on time, and promoting frequent reviews that lead to better long term retention. (Author)