4.

6 WS – Std Dev 1 Name _____ ____________ # __

8 Step Process Date_________
Standard deviation tells us How far, on average Any data point is from the mean
Standard Deviation is the Average Distance from the Mean.
Smaller standard deviation – scores are closer, on average, to the mean
Larger standard deviation – scores are further away, on average, from the mean

Follow the steps below to calculate the standard deviation.\

Step 1: Order Data from lowest to highest
Step 2: Mean y

Step 3: (Difference of the Mean) Subtract each score from the

yi y mean
2 Square each number from
Step 4: (Difference of the Mean)2 yi y
Step 2
∑ (Difference of the n
(yi y ) 2
Sum (Difference of the
Step 5:
Mean)2 i 1 Mean)2

Step 6: Count n # of items in data set

Step 7: Degrees of freedom (n – 1)

2
2 yi y
Step 8: Variance s s 2

n 1
2
yi y
Step 9: Standard Deviation s s
n 1

Okay, technically 9 Steps, but step 6 is a do over.

For each practice problem use the 8 step process and find:
A) Mean B) Degrees of Freedom
C) Variance D) Standard Deviation
Practice Problem #1:
Number of baskets scored per game: 8, 4, 6, 6, 7, 7, 9, 4, 8, 5.

Practice Problem #2
Test scores: 85, 100, 92, 96, 87, 94, 75

Practice Problem #3
Quiz Scores: 22, 99, 102, 33, 57, 75, 100, 81, 62, 29