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Year 10
Higher

Types of data

I can identify the different types of data.

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New
New
Year 10
Higher

Types of data

I can identify the different types of data.

Download all resources
Share activities with pupils

Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. Primary data is collected first-hand, secondary data was collected by someone else.
  2. Qualitative data is non-numeric information, quantitative is numeric information.
  3. Quantitative data can be either discrete or continuous.

Common misconception

Pupils may think that primary data means data they collect first hand (and no one else can collect it).

Primary data refers to data that are directly collected for specific use in an investigation. This means that a team of researchers could collect the data for you for your investigation and this is still primary data.

Keywords

  • Primary/Secondary data - Primary data refers to data that are directly collected for specific use in an investigation. Secondary data refers to data that were previously collected for a different or unknown purpose.

  • Qualitative - Qualitative data are data that are non-numerical, and usually describe a quality of something.

  • Quantitative - Quantitative data are numerical data that can be counted or measured.

  • Discrete - Discrete data can only take specific numerical values.

  • Continuous - Continuous data can take any value on a scale to as much precision as we can measure it.

A categorisation tree has been included which pupils may feel is a helpful aid to remembering how to classify data.
Teacher tip

Licence

This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2024), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

Video

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Starter quiz

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6 Questions

Q1.
Match each stage of the Statistical Enquiry Cycle to the order it should come in.
Correct Answer:First,Planning

Planning

Correct Answer:Second,Collecting

Collecting

Correct Answer:Third,Processing and presenting

Processing and presenting

Correct Answer:Fourth,Interpreting

Interpreting

Correct Answer:Fifth,Communicating and evaluating

Communicating and evaluating

Q2.
Laura has drawn a scatter graph to display her findings. Which stage of the Statistical Enquiry Cycle does this event fit in?
Planning
Collecting
Correct answer: Processing and presenting
Interpreting
Communicating and evaluating
Q3.
Match each stage of the Statistical Enquiry Cycle to an event.
Correct Answer:Planning,Deciding to research the safety of a new medicine

Deciding to research the safety of a new medicine

Correct Answer:Collecting,Testing a new medicine

Testing a new medicine

Correct Answer:Processing and presenting,Using a spreadsheet to analyse the data

Using a spreadsheet to analyse the data

Correct Answer:Interpreting,Looking at results and deciding what they show

Looking at results and deciding what they show

Correct Answer:Communicating and evaluating,Concluding a new medicine is safe

Concluding a new medicine is safe

Q4.
Which stage is missing from this Statistical Enquiry Cycle?
An image in a quiz
Correct Answer: Collecting, collecting, Collect, collect
Q5.
Aisha wants to know what type of music students like for the school prom. She plans to ask 'What type of music do you listen to?'. What statistics can she find with the data from this question?
Mean
Median
Correct answer: Mode
Range
Q6.
Sam wants to find out whether pupils who got a high mark in French also did well in English. She collects data for 20 pupils on their end of year exam marks. Sam should draw a graph of the data.
Correct Answer: scatter, Scatter

Exit quiz

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6 Questions

Q1.
Select all the examples of qualitative data.
The distance a bird flies in a day
The number of eggs in a nest
Correct answer: The colour of a bird's wings
Correct answer: The type of tree that a bird's nest is in
The number of insects a bird eats in a day
Q2.
Sofia has some qualitative data. Which summary statistic can she use with her data?
Mean
Median
Correct answer: Mode
Range
Q3.
Andeep collects some data on the cost of meals in the school canteen. Which of these statements are correct?
The cost of school meals is qualitative data.
Correct answer: The cost of school meals is quantitative data.
The cost of school meals is continuous data.
Correct answer: The cost of school meals is discrete data.
Q4.
Match each type of data to an example.
Correct Answer:qualitative,model of car

model of car

Correct Answer:quantitative discrete,number of cars in car park

number of cars in car park

Correct Answer:quantitative continuous,volume of petrol in car

volume of petrol in car

Q5.
Lucas measures how much rain fell each week in his garden for a year. He uses a measuring cylinder and records the volume of water collected each week. What type of data has Lucas collected?
Correct answer: continuous data
discrete data
Correct answer: primary data
qualitative data
secondary data
Q6.
Aisha writes an article for the school magazine about transport to school. She uses data from the local bus company on how many buses were late each day. What type of data has Aisha used?
continuous data
Correct answer: discrete data
primary data
Correct answer: quantitative data
Correct answer: secondary data