Assignment ODEL Descriptive Statistics

QUESTION ONE (15 MARKS)
Wisdom and Joy want to collect data on the numbers of hours students at their school spend
on homework. There are 1100 students at their school. Wisdom is planning to use a random
sample of 50 students.
(a) Explain what is meant by a random sample. (3 marks)
A random sample is a subset of individuals or items selected from a larger population where
each member of the population has an equal chance of being chosen. This ensures that the
sample is representative of the population and reduces the likelihood of bias in the data
collected.
(b) Describe how Wisdom could use random numbers to take a random sample of the
students at his school. (5 marks)
i. Assign a unique identifier to each student, such as a student ID number.
ii. Generate a list of random numbers, either manually or using a random number
generator.
iii. Use these random numbers to select 50 students from the list of 1100 students. For
example, if the random number is 347, then select the student with the corresponding
ID number.
Joy is planning to use a stratified sample that is stratified by school year.

(c) Comment on whether Joy's plan is appropriate (7 marks)
Joy's plan to use a stratified sample, stratified by school year is appropriate in certain
contexts.
Stratified sampling involves dividing the population into subgroups based on certain
characteristics, in this case, school year and then taking a random sample from each stratum.
(2)
This ensures that each subgroup is represented in the sample proportionally to its presence in
the population, which can be useful if there are significant differences between the subgroups
that could affect the results. (2)
In this case, since students from different school years may have varying homework habits
and time commitments, using a stratified sample can provide a more comprehensive
understanding of the overall distribution of homework hours among the students at the
school. (2)
QUESTION TWO (10 MARKS)

Shalom and John work in the head office of a chain of restaurants. The menu in all the
restaurants has recently been changed. Shalom and John have been asked to find out the
effect of these changes. They are going to start by finding out what the kitchen staff think of
the new menu. Shalom thinks that they should use a cluster sample of kitchen staff in the
restaurants. The restaurants would be the clusters. John thinks that they should use judgement
sampling. The head chef of the company would be asked to select suitably experienced
kitchen staff for the judgement sample. Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of using
these two sampling methods in this context.
Both cluster sampling and judgment sampling have their strengths and weaknesses in this
context.
Cluster Sampling
Advantages
i. This method provides a diverse range of opinions, as it captures feedback from
multiple restaurants with potentially different kitchen cultures and dynamics.
ii. It allows for the representation of different perspectives from kitchen staff across
various restaurants. By treating each restaurant as a cluster, Shalom ensures that the
opinions of staff from different locations are considered.
iii. It can be more efficient in terms of time and resources compared to individually
selecting kitchen staff from each restaurant. Shalom can select a random sample of
restaurants and survey all kitchen staff within those chosen restaurants, reducing the
overall workload.
Disadvantages
i. Homogeneity Assumption: Cluster sampling relies on the assumption that the
opinions of kitchen staff within each restaurant are relatively homogenous. If
significant differences exist among staff within the same restaurant, this method might
not provide an accurate representation due to potential diversity within clusters.
ii. Variability within Clusters: Despite treating each restaurant as a cluster, there may
still be variability within clusters, leading to potential bias if certain clusters have
disproportionately strong opinions. This variability within clusters could impact the
accuracy of the sampling results.
Judgment Sampling
Advantages
i. Expertise: Judgment sampling benefits from the head chef's expertise in selecting
participants who can offer informed opinions about the menu changes. This ensures
that the chosen kitchen staff have valuable insights based on their experience and
knowledge.
ii. Relevance: The head chef's selection process focuses on choosing kitchen staff
directly involved in menu preparation and familiar with the new menu. This ensures
that the opinions gathered are not only insightful but also relevant to assessing the
impact of the menu changes.
Disadvantages
i. Bias: Judgment sampling carries the risk of bias if the selection process lacks
transparency or if the head chef's choices are influenced by personal biases or
preferences. This can result in a non-representative sample if certain perspectives or
experiences are overlooked.
ii. Limited Diversity: There's a possibility that the selected kitchen staff may not fully
represent the entire population, particularly if the head chef's selection criteria are
narrow or subjective. This limitation could impact the diversity of opinions gathered
from the sample.
QUESTION THREE (45 MARKS)
Given the following dataset of exam scores: 78, 85, 92, 78, 85, 90, 68, 72, 85, 92, 82, 88, 75,
80, 83, 79, 84, 87, 90, 88, 73, 76, 81, 84, 86, 89, 91, 77, 79, 82.
a. Construct a frequency distribution table with class intervals of width 10 starting from 60.
(8 marks)
b. Calculate the relative frequency for each class interval in the frequency distribution.
(5 marks)
Solution
Relative Frequency = Frequency / Total Number of Observations
Relative Frequency for 60-69: 2/30 = 0.067

c. Using the frequency distribution created above, create a histogram to represent the
distribution of exam scores. (5 marks)
d. Draw a frequency polygon for the same dataset of exam scores. (5 marks)
e. Based on the histogram and frequency polygon, describe the shape of the distribution of
exam scores. Is it skewed? If so, in which direction? (2 marks)
The distribution appears to be approximately symmetric, with no significant skewness

observed in either direction.
f. Calculate the mean, median, and mode for the exam scores dataset. (7 marks)
Mean = (78 + 85 + 92 + ... + 79 + 82) / 30 = 82.4

Median = (81 + 82) / 2 = 81.5
Mode = 85 (appears most frequently)
g. Determine the range of the exam scores. (3 marks)

Range = Maximum score - Minimum score = 92 - 68 = 24
h. Compute the standard deviation of the exam scores. (6 marks)

First, calculate the variance:
Variance = Σ((x - mean)^2) / n
= ((78 - 82.4)^2 + (85 - 82.4)^2 + ... + (82 - 82.4)^2) / 30
= 44.933
Then, compute the standard deviation:

Standard Deviation = √Variance
= √44.933
≈ 6.71
i. What does the standard deviation tell you about the variability of the exam scores?
(2 marks)
The standard deviation of approximately 6.71 indicates that the exam scores are relatively
spread out around the mean of 82.4.
j. Suppose a new student scores 82 on the exam. How does this score compare to the rest of
the class? Use the descriptive statistics to provide context. (2 marks)
A score of 82 is equal to the mean of the class, indicating that the new student's
performance is consistent with the average performance of the class.

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QUESTION ONE (15 MARKS)

Joy is planning to use a stratified sample that is stratified by school year.

QUESTION TWO (10 MARKS)

Relative Frequency for 60-69: 2/30 = 0.067

The distribution appears to be approximately symmetric, with no significant skewness

Mean = (78 + 85 + 92 + ... + 79 + 82) / 30 = 82.4

g. Determine the range of the exam scores. (3 marks)

h. Compute the standard deviation of the exam scores. (6 marks)

Then, compute the standard deviation:

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