Statistics Lesson #1
Topic: Statistical Analysis of Magazine Advertisements.
Grade Level: 7-12
NCTM Standards: Numbers and Operations, Data Analysis and Probability, Communication, Problem Solving, Connections, Representation
Count the number of each type of advertisement in several Women's Magazines and several General Interest (Men and Women) magazines.
Example: A survey was made of the types of ads appearing in 5 women's magazines (Good Housekeeping, First for Women, Family Circle, Redbook, and McCalls) and 3 General Interest magazines (Readers Digest, Newsweek, and Discover). The results are shown below:
|
|
Type of Ad |
Number found in General Interest Magazines |
Number found in Women's Magazines |
|
1 |
Cosmetics |
3 |
59 |
|
2 |
Clothing |
2 |
12 |
|
3 |
Medicine |
21 |
56 |
|
4 |
Cleaners, Chemical |
2 |
18 |
|
5 |
Cleaners, Equipment |
1 |
16 |
|
6 |
Food, Essential |
16 |
24 |
|
7 |
Food, Junk |
5 |
34 |
|
8 |
Kitchenware |
2 |
10 |
|
9 |
Travel |
0 |
13 |
|
10 |
Pets |
6 |
12 |
|
11 |
Cigarettes |
0 |
9 |
|
12 |
Health and Fitness |
1 |
6 |
|
13 |
Financial |
4 |
3 |
|
14 |
Psychics |
1 |
19 |
|
15 |
Cars |
10 |
13 |
|
16 |
Computers |
15 |
0 |
|
17 |
Charities |
1 |
3 |
|
18 |
Entertainment Devices |
9 |
2 |
|
19 |
Entertainment Media |
7 |
20 |
|
20 |
Insurance |
3 |
3 |
|
21 |
Decorations |
2 |
16 |
|
22 |
Environment |
2 |
0 |
|
23 |
Home Furnishings |
1 |
13 |
|
24 |
Children |
0 |
6 |
Students will work in groups to do the following:
1. Answer the following questions:
a. Which type of ad is the most common in the Women's magazines?
b. Which type of ad is the most common in the General Interest magazines?
2. Enter the data into a computer spreadsheet.
3. Use the spreadsheet to calculate the total number of ads in the General Interest magazines and in the Women's magazines. Label all data and results.
4. Find the experimental probability for finding each type of ad in each type of magazine and display the results in the spreadsheet.
5. Display the experimental probability data as line graphs on the same chart for comparisons. What trends do you see?
6. For which type of ad is the difference greatest between Women's and General Interest magazines?
7. What percent of all ads in the Women's magazines were for chemical products? (Cosmetics, Medicines, Chemical Cleaners, Junk food, Cigarettes). What percent of all ads in the General Interest magazines were for chemical products? Demonstrate your results as a circle graph.
8. Separate the ads for chemical products into the five different types and show your results as a circle graph. Remember to include labels and units for your graphs.
9. Which types of ads target mostly women? Mostly men?
10. What percent of all ads were for entertainment? Which types of ads did you decide to place in the category of entertainment?
11. What type of ad was most common overall?
12. Write down three other observations you made about the data.
13. Use your graphing calculator to make a line graph of the experimental probability data. Use the TRACE function to find the experimental probability of finding an ad for psychics in a Women's magazine.
14. Calculate the ratio of junk foods to essential foods in each magazine type? Which magazine type has the greater ratio of junk foods to essential foods?
15. What percent of the ads for medicine are found in the Women's magazines?