8A Statistical Questions Study Guide

Key Vocabulary

Statistical Question — a question you expect to get DIFFERENT answers from different people or data points. (pregunta estadística)

Data — information collected by observing, measuring, or asking questions. (datos)

Variability — how much the data values differ from each other. (variabilidad)

Survey — a set of questions asked to collect data from a group of people. (encuesta)

Population — the entire group you want to study. (población)

Sample — a smaller part of the population used to represent the whole group. (muestra)

Visual Example — Statistical vs. Non-Statistical

STATISTICAL (many answers)

"How many hours do 6th graders sleep each night?"
→ Different students sleep different amounts: 7, 8, 9, 10...

"What is the favorite color of students in our class?"
→ Students will give different answers: blue, red, green...

NOT STATISTICAL (one answer)

"How many days are in a week?"
→ Always 7. No variability.

"What is 5 + 3?"
→ Always 8. Only one correct answer.

Step-by-Step: Is It a Statistical Question?

1 Read the question carefully.
2 Ask yourself: "If I asked many people, would I get DIFFERENT answers?"
3 If YES → It IS a statistical question (there is variability).
4 If NO → It is NOT a statistical question (only one answer).

Quick Test

Statistical question = expects VARIED answers (variability)

Non-statistical question = has only ONE correct answer

Watch Out!

A question about one specific fact is NOT statistical. "How old is Ms. Johnson?" has one answer.
A question about a group IS statistical if different members give different answers. "How old are the teachers at our school?" — ages vary!
The word "average" can make a non-statistical question: "What is the average height?" asks for ONE number, but it requires collecting VARIED data first.

Practice Problems

Is each question statistical or non-statistical? Type "statistical" or "non-statistical".

1. "How many pets do students in our school have?"

2. "How many inches are in one foot?"

3. "What score did students get on the last math test?"