Utilization and

Interpretation of
Assessment Data
Expected Outcomes:
• explain the meaning and uses of the Measures of
Central Tendency and Dispersion; (CLO.S.3)
• compute the Measures of Central Tendency and
Dispersion manually and in excel; (CLO.S.3)
• interpret the data score through normal and skewed
score distributions; (CLO.S.3) and
• Appreciate the importance of interpreting
assessment results.
Preliminary Questions:
• Have you ever wondered why a certain size of a pair of shoes or a brand
of shirt is made more available than the other sizes?
• Have you asked yourself why a certain basketball player gets more
playing time than the rest of his teammates?

• Have you thought of comparing your academic performance with your

classmates'? Have you wondered what score you need for each subject
area to qualify for honors?

• Have you, at a certain time, asked yourself how norms and standards are
made?

• What is the best way to measure a given set of data?

Two Types of Data
Interpretation
Norm-Referenced Interpretation
result is interpreted by comparing a student
with another student where some will really
pass.
designed to measure the performance of the
students compared to other students.
Individual score is compared to others.
usually expressed in terms of percentile,
grade equivalent or stanine.
 Norm-referenced grading is a system
typically used to evaluate students
based on the performance of those
around them. IQ tests and SAT exams
would be two examples of this system,
as well as grading “on the curve.
Norm-referenced grading is more
common in schools that emphasize
class rank rather than understanding
of skills or facts.
 Utilization of Assessment Data
Criterion-Referenced Interpretation
result is interpreted by comparing
students based on a predefined
standard where all or none may pass.

designed to measure the performance

of students compared to a pre-
determined criterion or standard,
usually expressed in terms of
percentage.
Criterion-referenced evaluation
should be used to evaluate student
performance in classrooms.
it is referenced to criteria based on
learning outcomes described in the
provincial curriculum.
the criteria reflect a student's
performance based on specific
learning activities.
a student's performance is
compared to established
criteria rather than to the
performance of other
students.
evaluation referenced to
prescribed curriculum
requires that criteria are
established based on the
STATISTICAL TOOLS TO BE USED

Measures of Central
Tendency
Mean, Median, Mode
Measures of Variability/
Dispersion
Range, Quartile Deviation,
Standard
Deviation, Variance
Measures of Central Tendency
A single number to serve as a representative value around
which all the numbers in the set tend to cluster.
Sometimes it is referred to as a “middle” number of the data.
Relates to a point in the distribution around which the scores
tend to center.

Measures of central tendency are values that summarize a set

of data. They are useful when analyzing data.
Measures of Central Tendency

Three types of measures of central tendency:

Mean (average)

Median (middle)

Mode (most)
 Mean
The arithmetic average of a distribution of scores; most
generally used measure of central tendency.

Characteristics:
Most popular and most well known
Most sensitive of all measures of central tendency
Most appropriate measure of central tendency to use
for ratio data (may be used on interval data)
Considers all information about the data and is used to
perform other statistical calculations
Influenced by extreme scores, especially if the
distribution is small
 Measures of Central Tendency
Mean
The mean (arithmetic mean or average) of a set of data is
found by adding up all the items and then dividing by the sum
of the number of items.
The mean of a sample is denoted by x (read “x bar”).
The mean of a complete population is denoted by  (the
lower case Greek letter mu).
The mean of n data items x1, x2,…, xn, is given by the formula

or
 Measures of Central Tendency
Example:
Ten students in a Graduate School class got the following
scores in a 100 – item test:
The raw data is the following set: {70, 72, 75, 77, 78, 80, 84, 87, 90, 92}.
Find the mean score for the ten students.

70+72+75+ 77+78 +80+ 84+ 87+ 90+ 92

𝑥=
10

805
𝑥=
10

𝑥=80.5 𝑎𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑔𝑒 𝑠𝑐𝑜𝑟𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑡h𝑒 𝑔𝑟𝑜𝑢𝑝

 Measures of Central Tendency

Weighted Mean
The weighted mean of n numbers x1, x2,…, xn, that are
weighted by the respective factors f1, f2,…, fn is given by the
formula:

w
  x f 
.
f
 Measures of Central Tendency
Weighted Mean
Listed below are the grades of a students semester courses.
Calculate the Grade Point Average (GPA).

Course Grade Points (x) Credits (f) x*f

Math A 4 5 20
History B 3 3 9
Health A 4 2 8
Art C 2 2 4
 Median
Score that represents the exact middle of the
distribution; the fiftieth percentile; the score that
50% of the scores are above and 50% of the scores
are below.
Characteristics
 Not affected by extreme scores.
 A measure of position.
 Not used for additional statistical calculations.
 Represented by Mdn or P50.
 It is the best measure when the distribution is
irregular or skewed. It can be located in an open-
 Measures of Central Tendency
Median
Another measure of central tendency, is the median.
This measure divides a group of numbers into two parts, with
half the numbers below the median and half above it.
The median is not as sensitive to extreme values as the mean.

To find the median of a group of items:

1. Rank the items.
2. If the number of items is odd, the median is the
middle item in the list.
3. If the number of items is even, the median is the
mean of the two middle numbers.
 Measures of Central Tendency
Median
Example:
Ten students in a math class were polled as to the number of
siblings in their individual families and the results were:
3, 2, 2, 1, 1, 6, 3, 3, 4, 2.
Find the median number of siblings for the ten students.
Position of the median: (10+1)/2 = 5.5
Between the 5th and 6th values

Data in order: 1, 1, 2, 2, 2, 3, 3, 3, 4, 6

Median = (2+3)/2 = 2.5 siblings

 Measures of Central Tendency
Median
Example:
Nine students in a math class were polled as to the number of
siblings in their individual families and the results were:
3, 2, 2, 1, 6, 3, 3, 4, 2.
Find the median number of siblings for the ten students.

Position of the median: (9+1)/2 = 5

The 5th value

In order: 1, 2, 2, 2, 3, 3, 3, 4, 6

Median = 3 siblings
 Measures of Central Tendency
Median
Example:
Suppose we have the following data:

Find the median for the set of scores.

Position of the median: (9+1)/2 = 5

The 5th value

In order: 1, 2, 2, 2, 3, 3, 3, 4, 6

Median = 3 siblings
Measures of Central Tendency
MODE – the crude or inspectional average measure. It
is most frequently occurring score. It is the poorest
measure of central tendency.

Advantage: Mode is always a real value since it does

not fall on zero. It is simple to approximate by
observation for small cases. It does not necessitate
arrangement of values.

Disadvantage: It is not rigidly defined and is

inapplicable to irregular distribution
 Measures of Central Tendency
Mode
The mode of a data set is the value that occurs the most often.
If a distribution has two modes, then it is called bimodal.
In a large distribution, this term is commonly applied even
when the two modes do not have exactly the same frequency
Example:
Ten students in a math class were polled as to the number of
siblings in their individual families and the results were: 3, 2,
2, 1, 3, 6, 3, 3, 4, 2. Find the mode for the number of siblings.

3, 2, 2, 1, 3, 6, 3, 3, 4, 2
The mode for the number of siblings is 3.
 Measures of Central Tendency
Mode
Mode in a Frequency Distribution
Example:
Find the mode for the distribution.
Value (x) 1 2 3 4 5
Frequency (f) 4 3 2 6 8

The mode in a frequency distribution is the value that has the

largest frequency.
The mode for this frequency distribution is 5 as it occurs eight
times.
Given the following sample scores of ten students
in a test.
Compute for the mean, median, and the mode of
these scores.

75,60,78, 75, 76, 75, 88, 75, 81, 75

Which Measure of Central Tendency is Best for
Interpretation of Test Results?
Mean, median, and mode are the same for a normal
distribution, but often will not have a normal curve.
The farther away from the mean and median the mode is,
the less normal the distribution.
The mean and median are both useful measures.
In most testing, the mean is the most reliable and useful
measure of central tendency; it is also used in many other
statistical procedures.
 Measures of central tendency
Mean, Median, Mode

The MEAN– denoted by

-Simply the average of the group and most widely
accepted measures of central tendency
For Grouped data

--
For ungrouped data

- using
Where deviation
-- mean
am- assumed mean
d – deviation
-- summation of x --- summation of frequency
N – total number of scores times deviation.
in distribution
The MEDIAN is defined by
-- the middle most score in the distribution. It divides the
distribution in half or 50 % of the scores is found above the
median, and the other 50 % lies below the median .

For ungrouped data

For grouped data
1. Arrange the scores
from highest to lowest
or vise versa.
ll- lowest limit of N/2
2. If odd numbers,
N- no. of cses
median is the middle
Cf- cummulative frequency
most number in the
f- frequency where the measure lies
distribution.
i- nterval
3. If even average the
middle.
The MODE is defined by
-- The most frequent, extremes, and repeated numbers.
It is not affected if one number is changed less than or greater
than

For grouped data

For ungrouped data

1. The mode for

ungrouped data is the

Mode = 3median –
number that occur

(2mean)
most.
MODE
MODE = L Mo + c/2 [ f1 – f2 ]
[2fo – f2 – f1]

LMo – lower limit of the modal class

c – class interval
f1 – frequency of class after modal class
f2 – frequency of class before modal class
f0 – frequency of modal class
 Measures of Central Tendency
Symmetry in Data Sets
The analysis of a data set often depends on whether the
distribution is symmetric or non-symmetric.
Symmetric distribution: the pattern of frequencies from a
central point is the same (or nearly so) from the left and right.
 Measures of Central Tendency
Symmetry in Data Sets
Non-symmetric distribution: the patterns from a central
point from the left and right are different.
Skewed to the left: a tail extends out to the left.
Skewed to the right: a tail extends out to the right.
Normal Distribution
Most statistical methods are based on assumption
that a distribution of scores is normal and that
the distribution can be graphically represented by
the normal curve (bell-shaped).
Normal distribution is theoretical and is based on
the assumption that the distribution contains an
infinite number of scores.
Normal Distribution
A score distribution a sample has a “normal
distribution” when most of the values are
aggregated around the mean, and the number of
values decrease as you move below or above the
mean:
Properties Of Normal Curve
Normal curves are symmetrical.
Normal curves are unimodal.
Normal curves have a bell-shaped form.
Mean, median, and mode all have the same value.
Z-scores departing away from the mean towards the right are
positive while towards the left are negative.

38
mean
median
mode
 THE NORMAL CURVE
The normal curve has a
mean = 0 and a standard
deviation = 1
The normal curve is the
graph of an infinite
number of z-scores
To use the normal curve to
make probability
statements, think of the
area under the curve as
100 equal portions
 50 lie on each side of the
mean
Standard Scores
One use of the normal curve is to explore Standard
Scores. Standard Scores are expressed in standard
deviation units, making it much easier to compare
variables measured on different scales.
There are many kinds of Standard Scores. The most
common standard score is the ‘z’ scores.
A ‘z’ score states the number of standard deviations by
which the original score lies above or below the mean of
a normal curve.

41
The Z Score
The normal curve is not a single curve but a family of
curves, each of which is determined by its mean and
standard deviation.
In order to work with a variety of normal curves, we
cannot have a table for every possible combination of
means and standard deviations.

42
The Z Score
What we need is a standardized normal
curve which can be used for any normally
distributed variable. Such a curve is called
the Standard Normal Curve.

Xi  X
z Where:
S Xi = score
X = mean
S = standard deviation
43
Example Z Score
For scores above the mean, the z score has
a positive sign. Example + 1.5z.
Below the mean, the z score has a minus
sign. Example - 0.5z.
Calculate Z score for blood pressure of
140 if the sample mean is 110 and the
standard deviation is 10
 Z = 140 – 110 / 10 = 3

44
Comparing Scores from Different
Distributions
Interpreting a raw score requires additional information
about the entire distribution. In most situations, we need
some idea about the mean score and an indication of how
much the scores vary.
For example, assume that an individual took two tests in
reading and mathematics. The reading score was 32 and
mathematics was 48. Is it correct to say that performance
in mathematics was better than in reading?

45
Z Scores Help in Comparisons
Not without additional information. One method to
interpret the raw score is to transform it to a z score.
The advantage of the z score transformation is that it takes
into account both the mean value and the variability in a set
of raw scores.

46
Did Sara improve?
Score in pretest was 18 and post test
was 42
Sara’s score did increase. From 18 to
42.
But her relative position in the Class
Pretest Post test
decreased.
Observation 18 42
Mean 17 49
Standard deviation 3 49
Z score 0.33 -0.14

47
 MEASURES OF
DISPERSION,
RELATIVE STANDING
AND SHAPE
CONTENTS
 What is measures of dispersion?
 Why measures of dispersion?
 How measures of dispersions are
calculated?
 Range
 Quartile deviation or semi inter-quartile
range,
 Mean deviation and
 Standard deviation.
 Variance
 Measure of shape
LEARNING OBJECTIVE

 They will be able to:

describe the homogeneity or heterogeneity
of the distribution,
understand the reliability of the mean,
compare the distributions as regards the
variability.
describe the relative standing of the data and
also shape of the distribution.
What is measures of dispersion?
(Definition)
Central tendency measures
do not reveal the variability
present in the data.
Dispersion is the scattered
ness of the data series
around its average.
Dispersion is the extent to
which values in a distribution
Dispersion Example

 Number of minutes 20
clients waited to see a
consulting doctor
Consultant Doctor  X:Mean Time = 14.6 min
X Y  Y:Mean waiting time =14.6 min
05 15 15 16
12 03 12 18
 What is the difference in the
04 19 15 14 two series?
37 11 13 17
06 34 11 15

X: High variability, Less consistency.

Y: Low variability, More Consistency
 Frequency curve of distribution of
three sets of data

A
B
How dispersions are measured? Contd.
 The following measures of
dispersion are used to study the
variation:
 The range
 The standard deviation
 The inter quartile range and
quartile deviation
 The mean deviation or average
deviation
 Variance
How dispersions are measured? Contd.
Range:
The difference between the values of the two
extreme items of a series.
Example:
Age of a sample of 10 subjects from a population
of 169subjects are:
X1 X2 X3 X4 X5 X6 X7 X8 X9 X10
42 28 28 61 31 23 50 34 32 37
The youngest subject in the sample is
23years old and the oldest is 61 years,
The range: R=XL – Xs
= 61-23 =38
 Standard Deviation (σ)
It is the positive square root of the average of squares
of deviations of the observations from the mean. This is
also called root mean squared deviation (σ) .
For Ungrouped Data:
Σ ( xi–x )2
σ=
√ ------------
n
σ=
√ n -(n )
∑xi2 ∑xi 2

For Grouped Data:

Σ fi ( xi–x )2
σ= ∑fixi2 ∑fixi
------------
Σ fi
σ=
∑fi -( ∑f )
i
2
 Characteristics of Standard Deviation(s):

 Standard deviation is very satisfactory and most

widely used measure of dispersion
 Amenable for mathematical manipulation
 It is independent of origin, but not of scale
 If s is small, there is a high probability for getting
a value close to the mean and if it is large, the
value is farther away from the mean
 A small standard deviation mean that the group
has small variability or relatively homogeneous.
 It is the most important and best measure of
variability of test
scores.
Variance and Coefficient of Variation

Variance: It is the square of the

standard deviation (s^2)

Coefficient of Variation (CV):

Corresponding Relative measure of
dispersion.
S Where: S = sample standard deviation
CV = -------  100
X X = Sample mean
 Percentiles, Quartiles (Measure of Relative
Standing)
Descriptive measures that locate the relative position of an
and Interquartile Range
observation in relation to the other observations are called measures
of relative standing.
They are quartiles, deciles and percentiles
The quartiles & the median divide the array into four equal parts,
deciles into ten equal groups, and percentiles into one hundred equal
groups.
Given a set of n observations X1, X2, …. Xn, the pth percentile ‘P’ is
the value of X such that ‘p’ per cent of the observations are less than
and 100 –p per cent of the observations are greater than P.
25th percentile = 1st Quartile i.e., Q1
50th percentile = 2nd Quartile i.e., Q2
75th percentile = 3rd Quartile i.e., Q3
 Measure of Shape

Figure 8.2 +ve or Right-skewed Figure 8.3 –ve Left-skewed distribution

distribution
The distributions with positive and negative kurtosis
are depicted in Figure 8.4 , where the distribution with
null kurtosis is normal distribution.
 Different Curves
 leptokurtic - very homogeneous group
 platykurtic - very heterogeneous group

 bimodal - two high points

 skewed - scores clustered at one end;

positive or negative
64