STAT Interpreting Informative Texts 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A public health report states: 'Among adults aged 18–44, vaccination rates rose from 34% to 61% over three years.' What is the percentage point increase?
- 27 percentage points (Correct answer)
- 34 percentage points
- 61 percentage points
- Nearly double
Correct answer: 27 percentage points
61% − 34% = 27 percentage points, which is the absolute difference in the two rates.
Question 2: A technical document contains the phrase 'as previously defined.' A reader encountering this phrase should:
- Skip to the next section
- Refer back to the earlier definition given in the text (Correct answer)
- Assume the term has its everyday meaning
- Look the term up in an external dictionary
Correct answer: Refer back to the earlier definition given in the text
The phrase signals that the author established a specific definition earlier that should be applied to the current usage.
Question 3: A bar chart shows four categories labeled A, B, C, and D. Category B's bar is twice the height of Category A's bar. This means:
- Category B is twice as important as Category A
- The value represented by Category B is twice that of Category A (Correct answer)
- Category A has half as many respondents as Category B
- There is a direct causal link between A and B
Correct answer: The value represented by Category B is twice that of Category A
In a standard bar chart, bar height directly represents the measured value, so B's value is double A's value.
Question 4: An author writes: 'Data were collected from a convenience sample of university students.' A limitation the reader should acknowledge is:
- The data were collected unethically
- The findings may not generalize to all adults (Correct answer)
- The sample size is definitely too small
- University students are unreliable respondents
Correct answer: The findings may not generalize to all adults
Convenience samples are not randomly selected, so results from one narrow group may not represent broader populations.
Question 5: A passage uses italics for the phrase terra nullius and then immediately provides its meaning. This formatting choice most likely indicates:
- The phrase is the title of a book
- The term is a foreign or technical expression being introduced to the reader (Correct answer)
- The author disagrees with the phrase's usage
- The phrase was added by an editor
Correct answer: The term is a foreign or technical expression being introduced to the reader
Italics conventionally signal foreign words or newly introduced technical terms, especially when a definition follows.
Question 6: A policy brief concludes: 'Based on the evidence above, the committee recommends expanding the program.' The word 'recommends' signals that the statement is:
- A proven scientific fact
- A prescriptive judgment based on the preceding evidence (Correct answer)
- A summary of a previous study
- A disclaimer limiting liability
Correct answer: A prescriptive judgment based on the preceding evidence
Recommendations are value-laden conclusions that go beyond description, suggesting a course of action supported by evidence.
Question 7: A text includes a table with a footnote marked by an asterisk (*) reading: 'Data unavailable for 2018.' How should a reader interpret figures in the 2018 column?
- The 2018 figures are estimates extrapolated by the author
- The 2018 column contains no valid data and should not be used for comparison (Correct answer)
- The asterisk indicates the highest value in the column
- The 2018 data were collected using a different methodology
Correct answer: The 2018 column contains no valid data and should not be used for comparison
The footnote explicitly states that 2018 data are unavailable, making any values in that column unreliable for analysis.
STAT Interpreting Informative Texts 3
A public health report states: 'Among adults aged 18–44, vaccination rates rose from 34% to 61% over three years.' What is the percentage point increase?