Readers' polls
This is a level 3 and 4 statistics activity from the Figure It Out series. It is focused on teaching students to critique, design, conduct and collate a survey, as well as present results. A PDF of the student activity is included.
About this resource
Figure It Out is a series of 80 books published between 1999 and 2009 to support teaching and learning in New Zealand classrooms.
This resource provides the teachers' notes and answers for one activity from the Figure It Out series. A printable PDF of the student activity can be downloaded from the materials that come with this resource.
Specific learning outcomes:
- Critique a survey.
- Design a survey.
- Conduct a survey.
- Collate and display survey results.
Readers' polls
Achievement objectives
S3-1: Conduct investigations using the statistical enquiry cycle: gathering, sorting, and displaying multivariate category and whole number data and simple time-series data to answer questions; identifying patterns and trends in context, within and between data sets; communicating findings, using data displays.
S4-2: Evaluate statements made by others about the findings of statistical investigations and probability activities.
Description of mathematics
This diagram shows the areas of statistics involved in this activity.
Statistical investigation |
Statistical literacy |
Probability |
P |
P |
D |
A |
C |
The bottom half of the diagram represents the 5 stages of the PPDAC (problem, plan, data, analysis, conclusion) statistics investigation cycle.
Statistical ideas
"Readers’ polls" involves the following statistical ideas: using samples to make generalisations about populations and exploring representation and survey bias.
Required materials
- Figure It Out, Levels 3+-4, Statistics in the Media, "Readers' polls", page 24
- a classmate
See Materials that come with this resource to download:
- Readers polls activity (.pdf)
Activity
It is important for students to have some understanding of how information from a sample group can be used to generalise about a population. Generalising can only be done if the sample is representative of the population. Readers’ polls from magazines can only generalise about that magazine’s readership group. Magazine X readers are not representative of the general population. In this magazine, it may be that the readers’ poll is designed to be humorous because the questions are biased and lead the respondent to answer in a certain way. However, the poll can still show the students how bias can impact on conclusions and help them be more discerning in evaluating surveys.
Investigation
Students may enjoy making a deliberately biased survey by asking leading questions and giving limited response options. After they have done this, ask them to rewrite their surveys, removing the bias. They could give both surveys to groups of people and compare the results.
Extension
The students could look for readers’ polls in magazines that they read or have access to. Have them analyse and discuss whether these surveys are unbiased and make conjectures about how representative the results would be of a wider demographic. Have the students complete the surveys, give the same surveys to another demographic group, and compare results.
1.
a. Those readers of Magazine X who chose to fill in and return the survey (many readers may not have bothered)
b. A likely answer is that the readers are young people, probably young males.
c. The readers of Magazine X are from a specific demographic and don’t represent the wider population of New Zealand.
2.
Not useful at all. The questions and their listed possible answers are narrow and are leading the respondents to answer in a certain way.
Investigation
1.
Survey forms and results will vary.
2.
Answers will vary. Given the very small sample, this data is unlikely to be of interest to anyone outside the class. You could improve your survey by modifying questions that are not understood or that do not gain useful information. You could improve your data by asking a larger and more representative sample to answer your questions.
"Readers’ polls" can be used to develop these key competencies:
- thinking: engaging in sense making, discerning if answers are reasonable
- using language, symbols, and texts: communicating findings, demonstrating statistical literacy
- relating to others: understanding others’ thinking, accepting and valuing differing viewpoints
- managing self: reflecting.
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