The Typical Height of a 6th Grader

What is the typical height of a 6th grader? That is the burning question we have been working on for a long time.

The data that we received was from 142 students, so we decided that first we would calculate the mean of the data set. Mathematically, the mean was the average, so we added all of the data together and got the sum of 8656. We divided 8656 by 142, because there were 142 students who had provided the data. The quotient of this equation was 60.9577464789 inches.

However, the range was actually quite large, it was 20 inches. For example. There were two people who were 72 inches tall, and the closest to them was 70 inches, and that was only one person, so that probably had a big effect on the data. So, I decided to look at the mode as well, to see what was the most recurring height in sixth grade. As a result, 61 inches was the mode by a long shot. That was very close to the mean, if estimated, the mean would be 61 inches. In fact, I would say that the mode is 61 inches, because in this case, estimation would be. So even though the range was quite large, the most frequently occurring and the technical average were very close.

Just to make sure, I wanted to find the median. I found that it was 61 as well. The mode, median and mean were all pretty much the same, and I think that was due to the IQR. The IQR proved that the variability was very low, as it was only 4. Since it was so low, it means that it would have been 61 or close.