PRIVATE EDUCATION ASSISTANCE COMMITTEE

ADAPTIVE TEACHING GUIDE

Most Essential Topic #3: Normal Random Variable and the Normal Distribution

Lesson # 1 & 2: Introduction to Normal Random Variable & Real-life problems involving the Normal Distribution

Recall concepts on measure of central tendency, standard deviation, concepts on

Prerequisite Content Knowledge:
continuous random variable

Prerequisite Skill: Solving measures of central tendency and standard deviation

Find the mean, standard deviation, and variance in the sample data set given
below:

1. 11, 15, 19, 23, 27, 31

2. 105, 110, 115, 120, 125, 130, 135

-Answer Key-
Prerequisite Assessment: 1. 11, 15, 19, 23, 27, 31
Mean: 21.0
SD: 7.48
Variance: 56.0

2. 105, 110, 115, 120, 125, 130, 135

Mean: 120.0
SD: 10.80
Variance: 116.67
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Pre–lesson Remediation Activity

Video tutorials and/or reading materials on how to solve the mean, standard deviation and variance of random variables and of data sets, highlighting its concept and
importance in statistics.

Suggested readings:
Descriptive Statistics by Adam Hayes
https://www.investopedia.com/terms/d/descriptive_statistics.asp
Guide questions: What are your main takeaways after reading this article regarding Central Tendency and Variability?

Suggested video lectures:

Statistics – Numerical Summaries of Data – Qualitative Data and the Measures of Central Tendency by Chard Aye Alova
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VOzHnaoi0K0&t=768s
Guide questions: What are the different measures of Central Tendency?; What are the assumptions before using the mean; the median; the mode?

Statistics – Numerical Summaries of Data – Measures of Variation / Variability / Dispersion by Chard Aye Alova
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KlGo96IrEDo
Guide questions: What are the different measures of Variability?; What are the assumptions before using the range; the variance; the standard deviation?

Statistics – On Using Jamovi – Finding the Descriptives such as the Mean, Median, Mode by Chard Aye Alova
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aputFhlyodI&t=794s
Guide questions: Is there any difficulty in using Jamovi (or any statistical software) in determining the Mean, Median, and Mode?
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Alternative:
They will engage themselves in a think-pair-share activity guided by the trainer where they will be asked about the importance of the descriptive measures (central tendency
and variability) in Statistics.

Problem-posing techniques can be done here where the teacher-participants will be given the 2022 PISA scores below:

Math (mean=355, SD=65), Reading (mean=347, SD=85), Science (mean=356, SD=78)

And pose some problems regarding this report.

Note: Possible questions and answers: (1) Why is the mean used? Because the mean is the most stable measure of central tendency and that test scores are naturally
normal. (2) What does the standard deviation mean in this context? This means that the scores are not that consistent much given the mean (average).
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Introduction

The teacher-participants will learn the concepts of normality (averages), to understand what it means to be ‘normal’ in a statistical sense. After which, these concepts will be
applied in problems in the future lesson. This lesson will be beneficial in completing the teacher-participants’ students-performance-task specifically when they reach inferential
statistics and when they will be introduced to the assumptions of parametric (and nonparametric) tests. In this lesson, the teacher-participants will be equipped with the
necessary knowledge and skills in data analysis.

Chunk 1 Introduction to the Concept of Normality

Formative Question
Recall the characteristics of normal variable. How important is the mean and standard deviation in the normal distribution?
Chunk 1 Introduction to the Concept of Normality
The teacher-participants will be presented with the following pictures.

Note: They will be asked about their observations on the presented pictures, highlighting the difference of the two pictures. This activity will
be provided to the teacher-participants to assess if they can articulate the general idea of normal distribution - in a group of people, most of
them have “average” height and only few are short, a few are rather tall. Thus, follows the normal curve and the center represents the
average height. When the introduction of normal distribution is presented, the answers of the participants should be affirmed. The teacher-
participants will be given the following processing questions, such as, (1) What is the difference of the two figures?, (2) Are the two figures
the same?, (3) Do they represent the same concept? And follow up: Why?
Alternative NOTE: The trainer will ask the teacher-participants to gather data on heights (their own heights), and try to arrange their heights
following the picture presented (only the right picture should be shown). After, they will be asked: (1) Is the curve familiar to you? (2) What
does the curve represent? (3) Is this the correct way of representing normal distribution?
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Introduction

The normal distribution is perhaps the most widely used and known probability distribution. In many ways, it is considered as the
cornerstone of modern statistics.

It describes many sets of quantitative data such as some of the human features which include height, weight, IQ level, blood pressure,
marks on a test, among others. Living things have characteristics that can also be modeled with the normal distribution such as the
lifespan of insects and the growth of crops.

It is often called a "Bell Curve" because it looks like a bell.

It manifests a statistical fact of life: that people, things, and events tend to gravitate around the normal.

Normality connotes the average in ability, intelligence, size, emotional traits, and personality.
In plain language, most people and things are mediocre and are embraced in the mean class.

A few are exceptionally bright and about as few are very inferior. The rest are wedged in between the distinct classes.
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Brief History

1733. Abraham de Moivre (1667-1754) developed the mathematical equation of the normal curve but his work went unnoticed.

1809. Karl Friedrich Gauss (1777-1855) who also derived its equation of the normal distribution from a study of errors in repeated
measurements (Gauss’ Law of Error).

Suggested readings:
Normal Distribution | Examples, Formulas, & Uses by Scribbr
https://www.scribbr.com/statistics/normal-distribution/

Suggested video lectures:

The Normal Distribution, Clearly Explained!!! by StatQuest with Josh Starmer
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rzFX5NWojp0
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Chunk 2 Characteristics of the Normal Distribution

Formative Question
Recall the characteristics of normal variable. How important is the mean and standard deviation in the normal distribution?
Chunk 2 Characteristics of a Normal Distribution
Note: Before presenting the following part, the teacher-participants will be asked about the type of random variable involves in normal
distribution.

Formal Definition

Definition. A continuous random variable 𝑋 has a normal distribution with a mean 𝜇(location parameter) and a standard deviation 𝜎(scale
parameter) if its probability distribution function is in the form

1 "
! ! (&!' )!
𝑓 (𝑋) = 𝑒 #$
𝜎√2𝜋
where 𝑥, 𝜇 ∈ 𝑅 and 𝜎 > 0.

Note: The teacher-participants will be presented with the following set of students’ scores in their quiz in Statistics & Probability.
PRIVATE EDUCATION ASSISTANCE COMMITTEE

Activity:
Instruction: Match the Data Sets with the possible graphical representations of such data sets. (Prompting for Effortful Thinking)

DATA SET 1: A

DATA SET 2: B

DATA SET 3: C

DATA SET 4: D

Answer Key: DATA SET 1 = B; DATA SET 2 = A; DATA SET 3 = D; DATA SET 4 = C
PRIVATE EDUCATION ASSISTANCE COMMITTEE
Note: The teacher-participants will be guided with questions that highlight some of the characteristics of a normal curve.
- What have you observed with the value of the mean, median, and mode?
- What does it look like if we try to connect the class marks located in your histograms?

The teacher-participants will be presented with different graphs that show normal distribution. They will then be asked about their
observations with regard to their shapes. (Using examples and nonexamples)

Note: This activity is provided to teacher-participants to process their idea about the characteristics of the normal distribution.

Graph

The normal curve is shaped like the cross section of a bell and is centered at the mean (location parameter).

The standard deviation is the scale parameter. Remember that the standard deviation is a measure of how spread-out numbers are from
the mean. Note: Add and explain the illustrations, note that distributions with lower standard deviations are more lumped about the mean
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with each other, hence the plot is peaks; on the other hand, distributions with higher standard deviations are more spread from the mean,
hence the plot is spread.

Question: What does the graph looks like when the standard deviation is equal to zero?

Properties and Characteristics of the Normal Distribution

1. The curve is symmetric about the mean 𝜇, which is the center of the distribution. Note: Recall the Shapes of the Distribution
2. The curve in unimodal. This means that it has a unique mode where the center of the curve lies. Note: Recall the mode
3. The mean=median=mode.
3. The curve is asymptotic to the horizontal axis.
4. The total area under the curve, bounded by the horizontal axis, is equal to 1. That is, 50% of values are less than the mean and 50% of
the values are greater than the mean.
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Suggested reading:
Normal Distributions (Bell Curve): Definition, Word Problems by Statistics How To
https://www.statisticshowto.com/probability-and-statistics/normal-distributions/

Suggested video lecture:

The Bell Curve (Normal/Gaussian Distribution) Explained in One Minute: From Definition to Examples by One Minute Economics
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DJzmb7hGmeM
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Chunk 3: Introduction to the Standard Normal Variable\

Formative Question

What is the z-score of a raw score value of 85 if the mean is 88 and the SD is 3? Interpret the results basing on the concept of Normal Distribution.
(Drawing Attention to Meaning)

A Standard Normal Distribution (SND) is a special type of normal distribution that has a mean of zero (0) and standard deviation of one (1). Below is the picture of an SND:

Each number in the horizontal axis is called a z-

score or standard score. A z-score tells how
many standard deviations an observation is
from the mean (µ).

source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2tuBREK_mgE
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To illustrate the concept of z-score, let us consider the following situation:
A standard normal distribution is conventionally divided equally into 6 parts which are symmetric from the center – the mean labelled as zero (0). To the right of zero, you see
numbers 1 to 3, which illustrate the positive number of standard deviations from the mean. Data found in this region have bigger value than that of the mean. Similarly, to the
left of the mean, you will also notice the same number but negative which signifies that the data in these regions are lower than the mean.

Note: Remind the teacher-participants that this is exactly the Empirical Rule (68-95-99.7 Rule), only that the Empirical Rule is limited to integral z-scores.

The shaded regions illustrate how much data are contained in that region. For example,
the region which is one standard deviation above the mean, 34.13% of data are found
there. Likewise, there are 68.26% of the data are within one (1) standard deviation from the
mean. Thus, this Empirical Rule:
68.26% of all observations lie within in one standard deviation of the mean;
95.44% of all observation lie within two standard deviations of the mean; and
99.74% of all observation lie within three standard deviations of the mean.

source: https://binged.it/3u2scHV
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Z-Table

A z-table on the right shows the areas under the normal curve for every z-score
(in absolute values) from the center z=0.

How to use this table at the right? Note: Teacher-participants will be given links.
Remind the teacher-participants that there are different z-tables available.

Illustration 3.1: Let us locate how much area is covered from z = 0 to z = 1.25.
Note: This is to check if the teacher-participants know how to use the z-table properly.

Since z = 1.25 is positive, it means that the area is at the right of z = 0,

hence, we consider the area between z = 0 and z = 1.25. Using the table,
we look at the leftmost column and find up to tenth value, which is 1.2.
Then, find the hundredth value on the uppermost row, which is 0.05.

The intersection of the two (row = ones and tenths, and column = hundredths)
is the required area. Therefore, the area under the curve from z = 0 to z = 1.25 is 0.3944.
That is, 39.44% of data is within 1.25 standard deviation above (to the right) of the mean.
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Determining the Z-Scores using Software Applications (GeoGebra)

Using Geogebra, we have this value generated. It also shows the area covered by the interval. Note: Emphasize that this is only one of the many software applications that we
can use in Normal Distribution. If the teacher-participants are already using a software, let them use it, as long as you arrive at the same correct answer.
To generate the output below, go to Geogebra and fill in the needed value.

Illustration 3.1: Let us locate how much area is covered from z = 0 to z = 1.25.
Make sure that the 𝜇 = 0, 𝜎 = 1, and the 𝑃( ___ ≤ 𝑋 ≤ ___ ) must be filled with the interval, that is,
0 and 1.25, hence 𝑃( 0 ≤ 𝑋 ≤ 1.25 ).

Equivalent to the manual (using the z-table), the answer is 0.3944 (𝑃( 0 ≤ 𝑋 ≤ 1.25 ) = 0.3944,
this means that 39.44% of the data can be found inside this interval.
Note: If needed, guide the teacher-participants how to input the parameters accordingly.

Teacher-participants may also draw the graph manually. Locate the area under the curve
from z = 0 to z = 1.25.
Note: We will emphasize, that if possible, we would like to use a statistical software.

Draw a straight perpendicular line to the horizontal axis up to the curve.

Shade the area from zero up to your drawn line.

What you will end up drawing must be similar to what is shown here

Note: Check the answers of the participants in both the manual and statistical software answers. Processing and feedbacking will happen here.

Further reading:
Teacher-participants may check this video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lC6TJL1jvN8
if they need more help in determining the area covered under a normal distribution curve given a z-score.
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Chunk 4: Standard Scores and Problems involving Standard Scores

Formative Question
What is the area under the normal curve from z = 0 and z = −1.23? Interpret the results. (Drawing Attention to Meaning)
Standardizing a Raw Score (x) into a Standard Score (a.k.a. z-score)
An observation (x) equivalent’s standard score or z-score can be computed using
𝑥−𝜇
𝑧=
𝜎
where 𝜇 is the mean and 𝜎 is the standard deviation.
Note: Greek letters are used since they are parameters instead of statistics.
Note: The teacher-participants will be reminded and it will be emphasized that standardizing is transforming a raw score into a z-score, so that the normal distribution can be
applied. If transformation is not used, the topic needs Integral Calculus to determine the area under the curve. This can be posed to the teacher-participants (processing/
feedbacking may happen here). Put an analogy for standardizing units coming from different units of measures, hence, the z-score is a way to make the units the same
(standardizing, standard scores).

Let the teacher-participants use the z-table, and at the same time, either using application or manual

Illustration 4.1.

Solution:
(𝑥 − 𝜇) 264 − 283 −19
𝑧= = = = −2.38
𝜎 8 8
A z-score of – 2.38 means that Alex height is
2.38 standard deviations below the mean height.
(Drawing Attention to Meaning) Note: Check the answers
of the participants in both the manual and statistical
software answers. Processing and feedbacking will
happen here.
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Illustration 4.2.

Let the teacher-participants use the z-table, and at the same time, either using application or manual

Solution:
(𝑥 − 𝜇) 94 − 89 5
𝑧= = = = 1.67
𝜎 3 3
A z-score of 1.67 means that Beth’s grade is 1.67 standard deviations above the mean Mathematics grade.
(Drawing Attention to Meaning) Note: Check the answers of the participants in both the manual and statistical
software answers. Processing and feedbacking will happen here.

For those teacher-participants who have access to the internet, they may watch this video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xxzEy3Wlv9M on how to solve for z-score.

Important Note: It should be reminded that z-scores of more than 3 and less than -3, it is automatically values as 0.4999 ~ 0.5000 or 50%. This came from the idea that the
total probability of the whole normal distribution is 100%, hence dividing into two, 50%. (Using examples and nonexamples) Note: Ask why? Answer: The normal curve is
symmetric about the mean, since 100% is the total probability, half of it is 50% = 0.5000.

Chunk 5: Probabilities involving the Normal Distribution

Formative Question

A teacher in Statistics subject gave a 100-item test to all her 120 students. The result, which is normally distributed, has a mean of 85 and standard deviation of 4.
Answer the following questions.
a. How many percent of students got 81? Interpret. (Drawing Attention to Meaning)
b. How many students scored above 90? Interpret. (Drawing Attention to Meaning)
c. How many students scored between 75 and 80? Interpret. (Drawing Attention to Meaning)
d. How many students scores above 100? Interpret. (Drawing Attention to Meaning)
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In this last part of our discussion, we will look at further the situations of Alex and Beth. We already converted their data into SND. (Using Examples and Nonexamples)
Note: Let the teacher-participants go back to Example 1 in the previous chunk. Remind the teacher-participants of the connection between the area and the probability under
the normal curve.

We may begin with these questions: Note: See Illustration 4.1 and 4.2
How many students are taller than Alex?
How many students scored lower than Beth’s score? (Using Examples and Nonexamples)

Teacher-participants recall that Alex’s height is 264 cm. The group’s height is normally distributed with the mean of 283 cm and a standard deviation of 8 cm. We need to
determine how many students are taller than Alex. Note: See Illustration 4.1 and 4.2

Illustration 5.1.
We already computed Alex z-score value which is -2.38. This means that his height is 2.38 below the mean. The area covered by Alex’s z-score (-2.38) is 0.4913 based on the
z-table. This area covers only one side of the curve from the mean (µ=0) up to -2.38. Since the question was asking about all the heights taller than Alex, we need also to
consider all areas above the mean. Thus,
0.5 (area above the mean) + 0.4913 (from the µ up to -2.38) = 0.9913 or 99.13%

Here is the picture of the covered area.

This shows that 99.13% of the number of students where Alex belongs to have heights taller than him. Processing and feedbacking will happen here. Insert conclusions here.
PRIVATE EDUCATION ASSISTANCE COMMITTEE
Illustration 5.2.
Beth’s Mathematics grade is 94. Using the same procedure for solving about Alex’s Height, we get
0.5 (below the mean) + 0.4525 (from the µ up to 1.67) = 0.9525

This means that Beth’s grade is higher than 95.25% of all the other students’ grade in Mathematics.
Processing and feedbacking will happen here. Insert conclusions as well.

Let us look at more examples:

Illustration 5.3.
In an NCAE test, Bob scored 88. The national average is 84 with a standard deviation of 4.
What is the percentile rank of Bob if all the scores are normally distributed?

Solution:
Given: 𝜇 = 84, 𝜎 = 4

!"# %%"%& '

Then: 𝑧= = = = 0.5
$ & &
Thus, the area of under the normal curve from z = 0 to z = 0.5 (using the z-table) is 0.1915 or 19.15%.

Therefore, since Bob’s score is above the mean and the area
is considered to be 0.1915 (19.15%) plus the all the area under the mean
(left side of the normal curve), his percentile rank is:

0.5 + 0.1915 = 0.6915

Hence, Bob outscored 69.15% of all who took the NCAE.

Processing and feedbacking will happen here. Insert conclusions as well.

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Illustration 5.4.
There were 2,300 students took the Engineering Entrance Exams. The scores were normally distributed with the mean of 78 and a standard deviation of 6.
Find the following:
5.4.1. How many percent scored 80 and above?
Solution:
Given: 𝜇 = 78, 𝜎 = 6, 𝑥 = 80

!"# %(")% '

Then: 𝑧= = = = 0.33
$ * *
Thus, the area of 0.33 (using the z-table) is 0.1293 or 12.93%.
Since the question is about the score of 80 and above, the shaded region can be determined
by subtracting 0.1293 from 0.5.

0.5 - 0.1293 = 0.3333

The result is 0.3707, that is, 37.07% scored 80 and above.

Processing and feedbacking will happen here. Insert conclusions as well.

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5.4.2. How many percent scored between 75 and 85?

Solution:
Given: 𝜇 = 78, 𝜎 = 6
For 𝑥 = 75:
𝑥 − 𝜇 75 − 78 −3
𝑧= = = = −0.5
𝜎 6 6
For 𝑥 = 85:
𝑥 − 𝜇 85 − 78 7
𝑧= = = = 1.17
𝜎 6 6
The area of −0.5 using the z-table is 0.1915 below the mean while that of 1.17 is 0.3790 above the mean.
Thus, the combined area is:

0.1915 + 0.3790 = 0.5705

Therefore, this means that 57.05% who took the exam scored between 75 and 85.
Processing and feedbacking will happen here. Insert conclusions as well.
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5.4.3. How many students scored between 75 and 85?
Solution:
Using the answer in letter 5.4.2,

2,300 x 57.05% = 1,312.15

Note: 1,312.15 which is approximately 1,312 (rounding off to the nearest integer)

Approximately 1,312 scored between 75 and 85

Processing and feedbacking will happen here. Insert conclusions as well.

5.4.4. How many percent scored 99 and below?

Solution:
Given: 𝜇 = 78, 𝜎 = 6, 𝑥 = 99

(!"#) --")% '/

Then, 𝑧= = = = 3.5
$ * *
Notice that the z-score of 3.5 is beyond the z-scores given on the z-table,
Hence, it will be automatically 50% or 0.5000 above the mean
This is since half of the normal curve is 0.5
Since the question is about the score of 99 and below,

The shaded region can be determined by adding 0.5 (the area below the mean) with 0.5.
The result is 1.0000 or 100%. That is, all of the students or
100% of the students scored 99 and above

Processing and feedbacking will happen here. Insert conclusions as well.

Further reading:
Teacher-participants may watch the video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K_Y0_a5rCMQ for more problem-solving situations using the ideas of a normal curve.
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Synthesis: After this lesson, the teacher-participants have recalled the characteristics of a normal random variable (Prompting Connection to Prior Knowledge) and they have
learned that a standard score or z-score in a distribution is expressed in terms of how many standard deviations a score is away from the mean; a z-score could be either
negative or positive; a z-table could help determine the area under a normal curve using the value of z-score; and concepts and how to properly and appropriately interpret
areas under normal curve (Drawing Attention to Meaning), and it has many applications (Using Examples and Nonexamples) in real-life situations (Prompting for Effortful Thinking).
(Processing, reflection, highlighting of important concepts and correcting misconceptions will happen here. We will generalize here as well.)

1. State when to use the normal distribution and how it is applied. Give examples as well.
2. State the importance of including the normal distribution in the data based on its definition.

(Assist the teacher – participants on how to provide synthesis about the topic.)

RUA of Learning

Here is a normally distributed data with the mean of 70 and standard deviation of 5. This data is taken from the different scores in Statistics and Probability class.
(Prompting for Effortful Thinking).

72.61, 60.87, 64.16, 68.20, 69.95, 71.57, 72.17, 73.99, 63.06, 69.68, 65.69, 74.75, 61.92, 63.84, 68.47, 71.90, 77.21, 72.42, 70.54, 76.52, 63.72, 72.04, 71.64, 63.84, 63.55,
79.67, 79.09, 72.37, 61.22, 69.22

Do the following:
1. Draw the normal curve. Label the horizontal axis using the data itself and using the standard normal markings.
2. Shade the area 2 standard deviations from the mean. Compute for the number of data belong to this range. List these data. (Using Examples and Nonexamples)
3. Solve for the percentile rank of 76. Interpret accordingly. (Prompting Connection to Prior Knowledge)
4. Give your reflection and your meaningful insights regarding the results of the survey.

Teacher-participants may use any statistical applications for this activity. Submissions can be online or printed.
Processing and feedbacking will happen here. Insert conclusions as well.
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Post – lesson Remediation Activity

Reading materials, video lectures, and practice worksheets will be provided for the teacher-participants to understand more the concept of normality, and the normal
distribution, and see more advanced ideas anchored on the normal distribution and normality.

Suggested readings:
Probability & Statistics for Engineers & Scientists (9th ed.) by Walpole, Myers, Myers, & Ye
https://www.academia.edu/48950313/Probability_and_Statistics_for_Engineers_and_Scientist_9th_Edition_by_Walpole_Mayers_Ye_

Suggested video lectures:

The Normal Distribution: Crash Course Statistics #19 by CrashCourse
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rBjft49MAO8

If activities are needed:

For those with strong internet connectivity:
Teacher-participants may watch videos and answer worksheets in this website: https://bit.ly/3EzwqKw.

For those without internet connectivity:

Teacher-participants will answer this worksheet: https://bit.ly/3rKYVzN which is saved in the flash drive. They will submit their completed work to the teacher in class.