ISIMG Subject: English LAM1 Prepared By: Miss Naouras Tabib
Bar Graph & Histogram Analysis
I. Bar chart
1. What is a bar chart?
A bar chart, also known as a bar graph and column chart, is a type of chart that uses rectangular bars of
varying lengths or heights to represent and compare numerical data. There are two main types of bar charts:
single bar chat and dual bar chart.
2. Use of Bar Charts
Bar charts work best when comparing and displaying data across different categories. The rectangular
bars of various lengths and heights make it easy to visualize and evaluate differences at a quick glance.
The use of bars allows easy identification of patterns, shifts, or fluctuations. Bar charts can also help to
visualize qualitative data.
3. Parts of the Bar Charts
Illustration of the bar chart in the Figure below.
Title: all bar charts need a title to explain what data is being shown.
Key: bar charts with more than one bar for each section need a key so it is clear what each bar refers to.
Bars: bar graph needs accurately drawn bars that are all the same width.
Bar labels: each bar must be clearly labelled.
ISIMG Subject: English LAM1 Prepared By: Miss Naouras Tabib
Horizontal axis title: all bar charts need a title along the axis to describe what the information along the
axis relates to.
Vertical axis title: all bar charts need a title along this axis to describe what the informa tion along this
axis refers to.
Numbered scale: the axis must be numbered with a sensible scale, the numbers could go up in 1s, 2s, 5s
etc. depending on what is appropriate for the data.
4. Advantages
a. Easy to understand
Bar charts provide an easy-to-understand visual representation of data. The presence of bars makes it
simple to compare different categories or variables.
b. Flexible presentation options
With many types of bar graphs, such as vertical, horizontal, and stacked bar charts, there are endless
ways to present data.
ISIMG Subject: English LAM1 Prepared By: Miss Naouras Tabib
5. Limitations
a. Less effective for large datasets
As the number of categories or data points increases, the bars can become crowded and make it
challenging to interpret or compare the data accurately.
b. Lack of preciseness
The lengths of a bar only give a general sense of relative values and are not exact numerical
measurements. This makes it hard to make precise comparisons between different bars.
II. Histogram
1. What is a histogram?
A histogram is a visual representation of the distribution of data.
It consists of adjacent rectangular bars, where the width of each bar represents a range of values, and the
height of the bar represents the frequency or the data.
ISIMG Subject: English LAM1 Prepared By: Miss Naouras Tabib
2. Use of Histograms
Histograms are useful when dealing with continuous data or when data points are limited to a numerical
range. Histograms are also extremely useful in any type of statistical analysis work. By providing a visual
representation of data, it becomes easy to spot patterns and variability, allowing for more informed
decision-making. A histogram allows easy detection of any extreme values or outliers that fall outside a
typical range
3. Advantages
a. Easy to Identify Patterns
Histograms make it easy to visualize patterns and understand the shape, symmetry, and skewness of data,
which gives unique insights into the data.
b. Detection Of Outliers
Detecting anomalies in data or extreme values outside a typical range is easy with a histogram.
4. Limitations
a. Manual Statistical Calculation
Histograms require manual calculation of statistical measures such as mean, median, or standard
deviation. This can not only be time-consuming but also lead to errors.
b. Restrictive Data Type
Histograms are only effective for data that falls within a range (not qualitative variables).
III. The Difference between a Histogram & a Bar Graph
Although histograms and bar charts use a column-based display, they serve different purposes.
A bar graph is used to compare discrete or categorical variables in a graphical format whereas a histogram
depicts the frequency distribution of variables in a dataset.
ISIMG Subject: English LAM1 Prepared By: Miss Naouras Tabib
IV. Vocabulary
1. Date, month & year
Between ... (year/ month)... and ... (year/ month)...
From ... (year/ month/ day/date)... to ... (year/ month/day/date)...
In ... (year/ month)...
On ... (day/ day of the week/ a date)...
During ... (year)...
Over the period/ over the century/ later half of the year/ the year...
Over the next/ past/ previous........ Days/ weeks/ months/ years/ decades...
ISIMG Subject: English LAM1 Prepared By: Miss Naouras Tabib
2. Presenting Percentages:
% = in percentage / in %. (20%, 25 percentage, ten per cent etc.)
% = in proportion. (Two out of five, every student out of three etc.)
% = in fraction. (One-third, two-fifth, a quarter etc.)
3. Vocabulary to show how many times:
Exactly the same/ Roughly the same/ Practically the same
Twice/ Thrice/ Four times/ Five times.
4. Vocabulary to Show How Much Changed:
Noun Verb (In past)
Half Halved
Equal Equaled
Double (Two times) Doubled
Treble/ Triple (Three times) Trebled /tripled
5. Other Expressions to Use in a Bar Chat/Histogram Analysis
Type Word(s) should be used
Similar about / almost / nearly / roughly / approximately / around / just about
Just over just above / just over / just bigger / just beyond / just across
Just short just below / just beneath / just short / just under / just a little
Much more well above / well above / well beyond / well across / well over
Much less well below / well under / well short / well beneath
Example:
1. About 1000 people died in the highway car accident in 2003 which is well above the statistics of all other
years.
2. The number of domestic violence cases was just below 500 in March which is just a little over than the
previous months.
3. The salaries of male executives in three out of four companies were well above the salaries of female
executives in 1998.
