Explain what the difference between a parameter and a statistic ...

[faduma]

Explain what the difference between a parameter and a statistic is. Give an example of each.

Question 2

Midterm Exam Results reported as z-scores. What percentile does Greg's score correspond to?

[CharlieArnold]

Answer to Question 1

A parameter is a characteristic of a population; a statistic is a characteristic of a sample. An example of a parameter would be the proportion of all students who will vote for a particular candidate for student body president. An example of a statistic is the proportion of students in a sample who will vote for the candidate.

Answer to Question 2

By the empirical rule we could say 16 will be above 70 points. Thus a score of 70 points corresponds to the 84th percentile. Using a table or calculator to obtain the exact area to the left of a z = 1, we could report Greg's score as the 84.13th percentile.