Common Core: High School - Statistics and Probability : Interpret Difference in Shape of Data Distribution: CCSS.Math.Content.HSS-ID.A.3

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All Common Core: High School - Statistics and Probability Resources

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Example Questions

Example Question #41 : High School: Statistics & Probability

Two students have taken ten math tests in the first quarter of the school year. Joe received the following scores on these ten tests:


Melissa obtained the following ten scores:


Predict which student will get the higher score on the next test.

Possible Answers:

Cannot be determined

Both students will get the same score

Melissa

Joe

Correct answer:

Melissa

Explanation:

In order to solve this problem, we need to make an inference. An inference is made using observations in prior knowledge. If we have multiple observations, then we can make better inferences. Let's develop our inference using the information provided for Joe and Melissa.

Joe obtained the following scores:


Let's tabulate this data into a histogram.

Hist10.1

Let's find the mean of this data series. The mean is the arithmetic average of the data set. The mean is found by adding up the values and dividing the total by the number of values in the series.

Now, let's calculate the standard deviation of the data series. The standard deviation for an entire population is found using the following formula:

First, we need to calculate how much each value deviates from the mean. We will do this by subtracting the mean from each value and squaring the difference.

Second, we will find the variance by adding up this values and dividing by the number of values in the series.

Last, the standard deviation equals the square root of the variance.

 

Now, we need to focus on Melissa's scores:


Let's tabulate this data into a histogram.

Hist10.2

Let's find the mean of this data series. The mean is the arithmetic average of the data set. The mean is found by adding up the values and dividing the total by the number of values in the series.

Now, let's calculate the standard deviation of the data series. The standard deviation for an entire population is found using the following formula:

First, we need to calculate how much each value deviates from the mean. We will do this by subtracting the mean from each value and squaring the difference.

Second, we will find the variance by adding up this values and dividing by the number of values in the series.

Last, the standard deviation equals the square root of the variance.

 

Now, let's review our data and calculations.

Given the information, we can see that Melissa's scores have a higher mean value and a smaller standard deviation for the set of values. This means that her scores are—on average—higher than Joe's and they vary less; therefore, we can predict that she will score higher on the test. Some may argue that Joe will score higher because of his one very high grade. It is true that he has the highest single grade between the two students; however, this is an outlier in the data. His lower mean score and higher tendency to vary between tests indicates that he will most likely not score higher than Melissa.

 

Example Question #42 : High School: Statistics & Probability

Two students have taken ten math tests in the first quarter of the school year. Joe received the following scores on these ten tests:


Melissa obtained the following ten scores:


Predict which student will get the higher score on the next test.

Possible Answers:

Both students will get the same score

Melissa

Cannot be determined

Joe

Correct answer:

Melissa

Explanation:

In order to solve this problem, we need to make an inference. An inference is made using observations in prior knowledge. If we have multiple observations, then we can make better inferences. Let's develop our inference using the information provided for Joe and Melissa.

Joe obtained the following scores:


Let's tabulate this data into a histogram.

Hist7.1

Let's find the mean of this data series. The mean is the arithmetic average of the data set. The mean is found by adding up the values and dividing the total by the number of values in the series.

Now, let's calculate the standard deviation of the data series. The standard deviation for an entire population is found using the following formula:

First, we need to calculate how much each value deviates from the mean. We will do this by subtracting the mean from each value and squaring the difference.

Second, we will find the variance by adding up this values and dividing by the number of values in the series.

Last, the standard deviation equals the square root of the variance.

 

Now, we need to focus on Melissa's scores:


Let's tabulate this data into a histogram.

Hist7.2

Let's find the mean of this data series. The mean is the arithmetic average of the data set. The mean is found by adding up the values and dividing the total by the number of values in the series.

Now, let's calculate the standard deviation of the data series. The standard deviation for an entire population is found using the following formula:

First, we need to calculate how much each value deviates from the mean. We will do this by subtracting the mean from each value and squaring the difference.

Second, we will find the variance by adding up this values and dividing by the number of values in the series.


Last, the standard deviation equals the square root of the variance.

 

Now, let's review our data and calculations.

Given the information, we can see that Melissa's scores have a higher mean value and a smaller standard deviation for the set of values. This means that her scores are—on average—higher than Joe's and they vary less; therefore, we can predict that she will score higher on the test. Some may argue that Joe will score higher because of his one very high grade. It is true that he has the highest single grade between the two students; however, this is an outlier in the data. His lower mean score and higher tendency to vary between tests indicates that he will most likely not score higher than Melissa.

 

Example Question #43 : High School: Statistics & Probability

Two students have taken ten math tests in the first quarter of the school year. Joe received the following scores on these ten tests:


Melissa obtained the following ten scores:


Predict which student will get the higher score on the next test.

Possible Answers:

Both students will get the same score

Joe

Melissa

Cannot be determined

Correct answer:

Joe

Explanation:

In order to solve this problem, we need to make an inference. An inference is made using observations in prior knowledge. If we have multiple observations, then we can make better inferences. Let's develop our inference using the information provided for Joe and Melissa.

Joe obtained the following scores:


Let's tabulate this data into a histogram.

Hist9.1

Let's find the mean of this data series. The mean is the arithmetic average of the data set. The mean is found by adding up the values and dividing the total by the number of values in the series.

Now, let's calculate the standard deviation of the data series. The standard deviation for an entire population is found using the following formula:

First, we need to calculate how much each value deviates from the mean. We will do this by subtracting the mean from each value and squaring the difference.

Second, we will find the variance by adding up this values and dividing by the number of values in the series.

Last, the standard deviation equals the square root of the variance.

 

Now, we need to focus on Melissa's scores:


Let's tabulate this data into a histogram.

Hist9.2

Let's find the mean of this data series. The mean is the arithmetic average of the data set. The mean is found by adding up the values and dividing the total by the number of values in the series.

Now, let's calculate the standard deviation of the data series. The standard deviation for an entire population is found using the following formula:

First, we need to calculate how much each value deviates from the mean. We will do this by subtracting the mean from each value and squaring the difference.

Second, we will find the variance by adding up this values and dividing by the number of values in the series.

Last, the standard deviation equals the square root of the variance.

Now, let's review our data and calculations.

Given the information, we can see that Joe's scores have a higher mean value and a smaller standard deviation for the set of values. This means that his scores are—on average—higher than Melissa's and they vary less; therefore, we can predict that he will score higher on the test. Some may argue that Melissa will score higher because of his one very high grade. It is true that she has the highest single grade between the two students; however, this is an outlier in the data. Her lower mean score and higher tendency to vary between tests indicates that she will most likely not score higher than Joe.

 

Example Question #44 : High School: Statistics & Probability

Two students have taken ten math tests in the first quarter of the school year. Joe received the following scores on these ten tests:


Melissa obtained the following ten scores:


Predict which student will get the higher score on the next test.

Possible Answers:

Both students will get the same score

Melissa

Joe

Cannot be determined

Correct answer:

Melissa

Explanation:

In order to solve this problem, we need to make an inference. An inference is made using observations in prior knowledge. If we have multiple observations, then we can make better inferences. Let's develop our inference using the information provided for Joe and Melissa.

Joe obtained the following scores:


Let's tabulate this data into a histogram.

Hist11.1

Let's find the mean of this data series. The mean is the arithmetic average of the data set. The mean is found by adding up the values and dividing the total by the number of values in the series.

Now, let's calculate the standard deviation of the data series. The standard deviation for an entire population is found using the following formula:

First, we need to calculate how much each value deviates from the mean. We will do this by subtracting the mean from each value and squaring the difference.

Second, we will find the variance by adding up this values and dividing by the number of values in the series.

Last, the standard deviation equals the square root of the variance.

 

Now, we need to focus on Melissa's scores:


Let's tabulate this data into a histogram.

Hist11.2

Let's find the mean of this data series. The mean is the arithmetic average of the data set. The mean is found by adding up the values and dividing the total by the number of values in the series.

Now, let's calculate the standard deviation of the data series. The standard deviation for an entire population is found using the following formula:

First, we need to calculate how much each value deviates from the mean. We will do this by subtracting the mean from each value and squaring the difference.

Second, we will find the variance by adding up this values and dividing by the number of values in the series.

Last, the standard deviation equals the square root of the variance.

Now, let's review our data and calculations.

Given the information, we can see that Melissa's scores have a higher mean value and a smaller standard deviation for the set of values. This means that her scores are—on average—higher than Joe's and they vary less; therefore, we can predict that she will score higher on the test. Some may argue that Joe will score higher because of his one very high grade. It is true that he has the highest single grade between the two students; however, this is an outlier in the data. His lower mean score and higher tendency to vary between tests indicates that he will most likely not score higher than Melissa.

 

Example Question #45 : High School: Statistics & Probability

Two students have taken ten math tests in the first quarter of the school year. Joe received the following scores on these ten tests:


Melissa obtained the following ten scores:


Predict which student will get the higher score on the next test.

Possible Answers:

Both students will get the same score

Cannot be determined

Melissa

Joe

Correct answer:

Joe

Explanation:

In order to solve this problem, we need to make an inference. An inference is made using observations in prior knowledge. If we have multiple observations, then we can make better inferences. Let's develop our inference using the information provided for Joe and Melissa.

Joe obtained the following scores:


Let's tabulate this data into a histogram.

Hist12.1

Let's find the mean of this data series. The mean is the arithmetic average of the data set. The mean is found by adding up the values and dividing the total by the number of values in the series.

Now, let's calculate the standard deviation of the data series. The standard deviation for an entire population is found using the following formula:

First, we need to calculate how much each value deviates from the mean. We will do this by subtracting the mean from each value and squaring the difference.

Second, we will find the variance by adding up this values and dividing by the number of values in the series.

Last, the standard deviation equals the square root of the variance.

 

Now, we need to focus on Melissa's scores:

Let's tabulate this data into a histogram.

Hist12.2

Let's find the mean of this data series. The mean is the arithmetic average of the data set. The mean is found by adding up the values and dividing the total by the number of values in the series.

Now, let's calculate the standard deviation of the data series. The standard deviation for an entire population is found using the following formula:

First, we need to calculate how much each value deviates from the mean. We will do this by subtracting the mean from each value and squaring the difference.

Second, we will find the variance by adding up this values and dividing by the number of values in the series.

Last, the standard deviation equals the square root of the variance.

 

Now, let's review our data and calculations.

Given the information, we can see that Joe's scores have a higher mean value and a smaller standard deviation for the set of values. This means that his scores are—on average—higher than Melissa's and they vary less; therefore, we can predict that he will score higher on the test. Some may argue that Melissa will score higher because of his one very high grade. It is true that she has the highest single grade between the two students; however, this is an outlier in the data. Her lower mean score and higher tendency to vary between tests indicates that she will most likely not score higher than Joe.

 

All Common Core: High School - Statistics and Probability Resources

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