Statistics worksheet — GCSE Foundation

1.For each of 30 fires in one county, the number of fire engines sent and the cost of the damage were recorded. The scatter graph of the data shows strong positive correlation. A newspaper prints the headline "Sending more fire engines causes more damage". Is the newspaper right? Give a reason for your answer.

2.A scatter graph has 12 plotted points. Four pupils each draw a line of best fit on the same graph and count how many of the 12 points lie above their line and how many lie below it: Amir — 10 above, 2 below. Priya — 6 above, 6 below. Kofi — 2 above, 10 below. Leah — 0 above, 12 below. Write down the name of the pupil whose line was drawn correctly, so that the points are roughly balanced above and below it.

3.A scatter graph plots the shoe size and the spelling test score of 25 pupils. The points are scattered with no pattern across the graph. Write down the type of correlation shown.

4.A town council wants to find out about the eating habits of the people who live in the town. It asks only the members of a local sports club. Give a reason why this sample is biased.

5.A council wants to find out what all residents of a town think about a new cycle lane. It posts a survey only on its website and asks people to fill it in online. Give a reason why this sample is likely to be biased.

6.A council in Leeds wants to know what local people think about letting shops stay open later in the evening. It rings landline telephone numbers between 10 am and 2 pm on a Tuesday. Write down which group is most likely to be under-represented in the sample, and give a reason for your answer.

7.A café owner in Brighton records the midday temperature, x °C, and the number of hot chocolates sold, y, on 12 days. The temperatures recorded run from 4 °C to 18 °C, and the line of best fit is y = −3x + 74. The forecast for tomorrow gives a midday temperature of 12 °C. Work out the number the line of best fit predicts, and write down how much confidence the owner can have in it.

8.Five pupils spent these numbers of minutes on their homework: 50, 65, 55, 90, 60. Work out the median time.

9.A café in Preston records the type of drink ordered by 20 customers one morning: tea 8, coffee 7, hot chocolate 4 and juice 1. Write down the modal drink.

10.A stem-and-leaf diagram, described in words, shows the ages of 9 people at a family party. The stem is the tens digit: stem 1 has leaves 4 and 8; stem 2 has leaves 0, 3, 5 and 9; stem 3 has leaves 1 and 6; stem 4 has leaf 2. Work out the median age.

11.On a scatter graph of the arm span and the height of some pupils, the points rise from left to right. Write down the type of correlation this shows.

12.A sector of a pie chart stands for 25% of the data. Work out the angle at the centre of that sector.

13.Four pairs of variables are listed below. Write down the pair that you would expect to show negative correlation.

14.A scatter graph shows the midday temperature, x °C, and the number of ice creams sold at a seaside kiosk, y. The line of best fit is y = 3x − 20. Give a reason why the y-intercept of this line of best fit is not a sensible estimate of the number of ice creams sold.

15.Four books have 120, 200, 160 and 80 pages. Work out the mean number of pages.