ParaPro Interpreting Data, Charts, and Graphs — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A scatter plot shows student test scores on the x-axis and hours studied on the y-axis. The data points form a pattern going from lower-left to upper-right. What does this indicate?
- A negative correlation between studying and scores
- A positive correlation between studying and scores (Correct answer)
- No relationship between studying and scores
- Studying hours cause higher test scores
Correct answer: A positive correlation between studying and scores
Data points moving from lower-left to upper-right indicate a positive correlation, meaning as one variable increases, the other tends to increase as well.
Question 2: A pie chart shows how a school spends its budget: 40% salaries, 25% supplies, 20% maintenance, 15% technology. Which two categories together account for more than half the budget?
- Supplies and maintenance
- Salaries and technology
- Salaries and supplies (Correct answer)
- Maintenance and technology
Correct answer: Salaries and supplies
Salaries (40%) plus supplies (25%) equals 65%, which is more than half the budget.
Question 3: A table shows rainfall in inches: January=2.1, February=1.8, March=3.4, April=4.2, May=3.9. What is the range of rainfall across these five months?
- 2.1 inches
- 2.4 inches (Correct answer)
- 3.4 inches
- 4.2 inches
Correct answer: 2.4 inches
The range is the highest value minus the lowest value: 4.2 − 1.8 = 2.4 inches.
Question 4: A double bar graph compares boys' and girls' participation in after-school clubs across four grades. In Grade 7, the boys' bar reaches 30 and the girls' bar reaches 45. What fraction of Grade 7 participants are boys?
- 1/2
- 2/3
- 2/5 (Correct answer)
- 1/3
Correct answer: 2/5
Boys make up 30 out of 30+45=75 total participants: 30/75 = 2/5.
Question 5: A line graph tracks a school's library book checkouts over 6 months. The line rises steeply between October and November, then levels off through January. What can you conclude?
- Checkouts peaked in January
- The largest increase in checkouts happened between October and November (Correct answer)
- Checkouts decreased after November
- The library received new books in January
Correct answer: The largest increase in checkouts happened between October and November
A steep rise between two points on a line graph indicates the greatest rate of increase occurred during that period.
Question 6: A frequency table shows quiz scores for 20 students: Score 70–79 appears 4 times, 80–89 appears 9 times, 90–99 appears 7 times. What percentage of students scored in the 80–89 range?
- 35%
- 40%
- 45% (Correct answer)
- 50%
Correct answer: 45%
9 out of 20 students scored in the 80–89 range: 9/20 = 0.45 = 45%.
Question 7: A histogram displays the distribution of ages of students in an after-school program. The tallest bar is in the 10–11 age group. What does this tell you?
- The average age of participants is 10–11
- More students in the program are ages 10–11 than any other age group (Correct answer)
- All students in the program are between 10 and 11 years old
- Students aged 10–11 participate the most hours per week
Correct answer: More students in the program are ages 10–11 than any other age group
In a histogram, the tallest bar represents the most frequent category, so the 10–11 age group has the highest count.
Question 8: A pictograph shows each symbol equals 10 students. The row for Monday shows 3.5 symbols. How many students does Monday represent?
- 30 students
- 35 students (Correct answer)
- 38 students
- 40 students
Correct answer: 35 students
3.5 symbols × 10 students per symbol = 35 students.
Question 9: A stacked bar chart shows total books read per class. Class A's bar is divided into Fiction (60%) and Nonfiction (40%), and the total bar height is 50 books. How many nonfiction books did Class A read?
- 10 books
- 20 books (Correct answer)
- 30 books
- 40 books
Correct answer: 20 books
40% of 50 books = 0.40 × 50 = 20 nonfiction books.
Question 10: The mean of five numbers is 14. Four of the numbers are 10, 12, 16, and 18. What is the fifth number?
- 12
- 14 (Correct answer)
- 16
- 18
Correct answer: 14
The total sum must be 14 × 5 = 70; the four known numbers sum to 56, so the fifth is 70 − 56 = 14.
Question 11: A line graph shows temperature readings at 6 a.m., 9 a.m., 12 p.m., 3 p.m., and 6 p.m. The line dips between 3 p.m. and 6 p.m. What does this dip represent?
- Temperature increased between 3 p.m. and 6 p.m.
- Temperature stayed the same between 3 p.m. and 6 p.m.
- Temperature decreased between 3 p.m. and 6 p.m. (Correct answer)
- There was no data recorded after 3 p.m.
Correct answer: Temperature decreased between 3 p.m. and 6 p.m.
A downward dip on a line graph shows the value decreased during that time interval.
Question 12: A bar graph compares the number of students absent each day of the week. Wednesday's bar is the shortest. Which statement is best supported by the graph?
- Wednesday had the highest number of absences
- Wednesday had the lowest number of absences (Correct answer)
- Students prefer Wednesdays the least
- Absences increased after Wednesday
Correct answer: Wednesday had the lowest number of absences
The shortest bar in a bar graph represents the smallest value, so Wednesday had the fewest absences.
Question 13: A data set shows the following values: 5, 7, 7, 9, 11, 13, 13, 13, 15. What is the mode of this data set?
Correct answer: 13
The mode is the value that appears most often; 13 appears three times, more than any other value.
Question 14: A two-way table shows 200 survey responses about students' favorite subject and grade level. The cell for '8th grade / Math' shows 35. The total for 8th graders is 100. What percentage of 8th graders chose Math?
- 17.5%
- 25%
- 35% (Correct answer)
- 50%
Correct answer: 35%
35 out of 100 eighth graders chose Math: 35/100 = 35%.
