Y EA R 6 U N I T O N E

S TA T I S T I C S
T I C AL I N V E S T I G A TION
D C O N D U C T I N G A ST A T IS
PLANNING AN ABOU T S US T A I N A B I L I T Y☼P

Ja yd e n
a n g 6S
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INSTRUCTIONS
This assessment is an investigation. It is made up of four different parts and each part has a
number of questions and tasks for you to complete. You may need to use Numbers or other
apps to display your data. These can be screenshot and inserted into your assessment.

Read each slide carefully and if you need some clarification you will be able to ask your
teacher.

Questions and tasks will be in a blue box and a green box is provided for you to type your
answers. The green box will expand as you type. If you need more space to show your reasoning
you are able to insert an additional slide.
PART A: Critique arguments presented in the media based on statistics
Everyone has a role to play in keeping our environment ‘clean and green’ by using sustainable
practices, for example: riding and walking to school to reduce the number of vehicles on our road.
Barry’s Bikes has created an advertisement.
Look at the advertisement and answer the questions on the following slides.
What is the message of the advertisement?

To show that kids are choosing to ride bikes to school every day and to purchase one from Barry’s
Bikes.

How is the message presented in the advertisement supported by the graph?

The bike “bar” is coloured red and the graph doesn’t have a title
Look at the graph. Why is it misleading?

Because the bikes “bar” is coloured red and is made by the company.

What information could you add to or change in the graph used in this advertisement to
make the message less misleading?

You could change the bike “bar” colour to black instead of red as the red wants you to notice
the bike “bar”.
PART B: INTERPRET AND COMPARE CONTINUOUS
NUMERICAL DATA

The Queensland Government wants to become a zero-waste society by avoiding, reusing or

recycling waste as much as possible. This line graph shows the trends in recycling aluminium
cans, steel cans and plastics in Queensland from 2004 to 2020.
Use the line graph on the next slide to answer the following questions.
What types of packaging are represented on the line graph?

Aluminium Cans, Steel Cans & Plastic Bottles.

What is the unit of measurement used for the packaging?

Tonnes

Approximately how many tonnes of steel cans were recycled in 2007–08?

Approximately 5000 (5K) Tonnes of Steel Cans were recycled in 2007-2008.

 What is the range of the data (in years)?

17 Years.

Cognitive verb
alert: Compare

Compare the distributions for the recycling of aluminium cans, steel cans and plastic in
Queensland from 2003–2020. Think about the shape of the data for each material.

The Aluminium Cans had the least amount of recycling over the years and had a decline from
the years 2017-2020. The steel cans had a steady pace with some spikes and with declines. The
plastic bottles on the other hand, spiked to its peak amount at 2016-2017 before it had started
declining from 2017-2020.
 Cognitive verb alert:
predict

Look at how the data changes over time for one type of packaging. Predict the mass of recycling
in tonnes for 2020–2021.

I predict that the plastic will go down by 2500 tonnes as from the data shown, every year it declined, it dropped
2500 tonnes.

Cognitive verb alert:

identify

Look at the data as a whole. What trends can you identify about recycling between 2003 and
2020?

The plastic had spiked over the years while steel and aluminium had remained a steady pace before aluminium
had a major decline and steel had a minor decline. The plastic however, did have a decline from 2017-2020.
PART C: PLAN AND CONDUCT STATISTICAL
INVESTIGATIONS

Everyone has a part to play in helping to protect the environment.

You will plan and conduct two investigations to collect data to answer this key question:
Are we playing a part in Queensland becoming a
zero-waste society?
Collect and compare data from your class and another class to find out if school students
use sustainable practices.

In the investigations, you will:

• pose and refine questions to collect relevant data

• plan how to use digital tools to collect and record the data from two classes
• conduct each investigation using digital tools
• choose and represent data in appropriate displays
• analyse, compare and interpret the two class data sets
• communicate findings.
POSE AND REFINE QUESTIONS
Consider information that would help you find out if you and others are playing a part in
Queensland becoming a zero-waste society.

Spend no more that one hour researching ways

that students could participate in a zero waste
society.
1 a) List some questions could you ask where the possible answers are: ‘always’, ‘sometimes’ or
‘never’?

Do you recycle and how frequently do you recycle?

1 b) List some questions could you ask where the possible answers are numbers?

How many cans do you recycle per day?

 Choose and refine your best question from 1a and your best question from 1b that will collect
the most relevant data to answer the key question. Record them in the box below.

Question 1: Do you recycle and how frequently?

Question 2: How much does 6L recycle?

For each of your chosen questions, you are going to complete a statistical investigation.
The following pages are a planner for Question 1 and Question 2.
STATISTICAL INVESTIGATION ONE
Question One: Do you recycle and how frequently do you?

How will you collect the data using a digital tool?

By using excel

How will you record the data using a digital tool?

By adding every time they vote for a catergory.

STATISTICAL INVESTIGATION ONE
Create a data collection method to record each set of data using a digital tool.

Conduct the investigation with your class and another class using your chosen question and
record the data.
STATISTICAL INVESTIGATION ONE
Look at the two sets of data you have collected for your class and another class. What type
of display will best represent the data? Why?

A column graph would display best as it is easy to read and is simple.

DOES 6S
RECYCLE
STATISTICAL INVESTIGATION ONE
Create a data display representing the data.
This may be completed in a different app and inserted below
STATISTICAL INVESTIGATION TWO
Question Two: How many cans do you recycle per day?

How will you collect the data using a digital tool?

By using Excel.

How will you record the data using a digital tool?

By putting what people vote.

STATISTICAL INVESTIGATION TWO
Create a data collection method to record each set of data using a digital tool.

Conduct the investigation with your class and another class using your chosen question and
record the data.
STATISTICAL INVESTIGATION TWO
Look at the two sets of data you have collected for your class and another class. What type
of display will best represent the data? Why?

Column is best as it is easy to read.

STATISTICAL INVESTIGATION TWO
Create a data display representing the data.
This may be completed in a different app and inserted below
 PART D: COMMUNICATE FINDINGS ABOUT THE KEY QUESTION
You have interpreted Queensland recycling data, and collected and interpreted data for two
investigation questions.
Cognitive verb alert:
analyse
Analyse one set of the data displays from Part C (Either Question 1 or Question 2) to answer
the key question: Are we playing a part in Queensland becoming a zero-waste society?
Cognitive verb alert:
justify
Justify your answer using the two data sets. Remember to consider the mode, range and shape
of the data.
 Look at your display and answer the following questions about your class data set.
Cognitive verb alert:
describe
Describe the data. (How many people were surveyed, what were their responses)

Around 26 students in my class were surveyed. Their responses were either sometimes, always
or never.
What is the mode?

Frequently

What does the shape of the data tell you?

That most people recycle frequently

 Look at your display and answer the following questions about the other class data set.
Cognitive verb alert:
describe
Describe the data. (How many people were surveyed, what were their responses)

24 students were surveyed and most said frequently.

What is the mode?

Frequently

What does the shape of the data tell you?

That most people recycle.

Cognitive verb alert:
compare

Compare the data for the two classes. Think about the similarities and differences in the
mode and shape of the data.

The similarities are that both classes recycle frequently. The differences are that 6S & 6L all have different
student amounts.

Cognitive verb alert:

explain

What are your findings for the chosen investigation question? Explain using the data.

That most people in the graph said “Frequently”.

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