Statistical Analysis Vocabulary
Read, write, and use the vocabulary of statistical analysis — mean, median, mode, range, frequency, data, sample, average, chart, table, graph, pie chart, scatter graph, correlation — with understanding of what each term describes
What a learner can do afterwards
- Correctly define and calculate the mean, median, mode, and range of a small data set
- Use 'outlier' correctly to identify a value that doesn't fit the pattern, and explain its effect on the mean
- Use 'correlation' correctly when describing the relationship shown in a scatter graph
The lesson
When people collect information, like test scores or how many pets each classmate has, that information is called data. If you only ask a small group instead of everyone, that group is called a sample.
Look at the pet data in order: 1, 2, 2, 3, 7. The mean is the total shared evenly: 1+2+2+3+7=15, and 15 divided by 5 is 3. The median is the middle number once it's in order, which is 2. The mode is the number that appears most, also 2. The range is the biggest minus the smallest: 7-1=6.
An outlier is a value that doesn't fit the pattern of the rest. In the pet data, 7 is much bigger than 1, 2, 2, and 3, so it's the outlier. It pulls the mean up to 3, even though four of the five friends have 3 pets or fewer.
People show data in different ways. A table lines it up in rows and columns, and a chart or graph turns it into a picture. A pie chart is a circle cut into slices to show how a whole splits into parts. A scatter graph plots dots for two things measured together, like hours studied and test score. When the dots follow a pattern, that's called a correlation.
Data tells the story. Mean, median, mode, and range summarize it, and correlation describes the pattern between two things.
Watch it
Where it sits
Learn first
Nothing; this is a starting point.
Where this leads
Jobs that lean on this skill. Follow one to see everything it is built on.
8 questions wait behind this lesson, each with its answer explained. Every answer feeds the sky: stars light as they are learned, and dim when it is time to come back.