Statistic with computer application
Organizing and Presenting Data through Tables
Learning Outcomes
At the end of this module, you should be able to
• Comprehend the terms involved in table construction.
• Label any presentation of data.
• Construct frequency distribution tables for both qualitative and quantitative data;
• Graphical representation of the Frequency Distribution
Frequency distribution – shows the frequency, or number of occurrences, in each of several
categories. Frequency distributions are used to summarize large volumes of data values. When the raw
data are measured on a quantitative scale, either interval or ration, categories or classes must be designed
for the data values before a frequency distribution can be formulated. Procedure in putting raw data into a
frequency distribution table contains class intervals and the frequencies, as well as the class boundaries,
class marks, and cumulative and relative frequencies.
Illustration. Construct a frequency distribution table of score obtained by a class of 44 students. They
were given a test made up of 100 problems which resulted to the following scores:
66 80 57 94 76 48 48 61 69 86 65
64 60 63 68 41 46 76 84 68 67 68
27 59 78 59 72 90 67 68 54 62 64
72 61 67 39 57 57 75 69 61 44 65
Solution:
1. Decide on the number of class intervals. Usually this given in a problem or by the teacher; but
if not, then use Sturges’ Formula:
Ideal number of class intervals (i)
log n
i=1+ 2 (round the usual way)
log
log 44 1.64
i=1+ 2 = = 5.46 + 1 = 6
log 0.30
2. Determine the range (highest measurement minus the lowest measurement).
Range = 94-27= 67
3. Divide the range by the number of class intervals to estimate the approximate
Class Width C (round upward).
Range 67
C= = = 11.17( round upward) = 12
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4. List the lower-class limit of the lowest class interval (usually the lowest measurement) and then add the class
width in order to obtain the succeeding lower-class limits.
5. List the upper-class limit of each class interval. Note: the highest score need not be equal to the highest upper
boundary. What is important is that the highest score must be in the class interval.
27 - 38
39 - 50
51 - 62
63 - 74
75 - 86
87 - 98
6. Tally the frequencies for each class and sum them up
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7. Add the sums of the frequencies. Note: the result should equal the number of observations.
27 – 38 = 1
39 – 50 = 6
51 – 62 = 11
63 – 74 = 17
75 – 86 = 7
87 – 98 = 2
1 + 6 + 11 + 17 + 7 + 2 = 44
Frequency Distribution Table
Below is the frequency distribution of the score of 44 students in a 100-items test. It is an
expanded frequency distribution table that includes the class boundaries, class mark, relative
frequency, less-than cumulative frequency, and the greater than cumulative frequency.
Class F Class Class rf% <CF >CF
Interval Boundaries Mark
27 - 38 1 26.5 – 38.5 32.5 2.27% 1 44
39 - 50 6 38.5 – 50.5 44.5 13.64% 7 43
51 - 62 11 50.5 – 62.5 56.5 25% 18 37
63 - 74 17 62.5 – 74.5 68.5 38.64% 35 26
75 - 86 7 74.5 – 86.5 80.5 15.91% 42 9
87 - 98 2 86.5 – 98.5 92.5 4.54% 44 2
Total… 44 100%
• Class boundaries are the numbers used to separate classes. The size of the gap between classes is
the difference between the upper-class limit of one class and the lower-class limit of the next
class.
Let V be the gap between lower and upper limits of any or the first two consecutive class
intervals, divided by two, that is,
Then lower boundary = Lower limit – V
And upper boundary = Upper limit + V
In the example, V = = 0.5
2
Hence, the first lower boundary = 27 – 0.5 = 26.5
And the first upper boundary = 38 + 0.5 = 38.5
• The class midpoint (or class mark) is a specific point in the center of the bins (categories) in a
frequency distribution table.
• The relative frequency of an event is defined as the number of times that the event occurs during
experimental trials, divided by the total number of trials conducted.
• Less than cumulative frequency distribution is obtained by adding successively the frequencies of
all the previous classes including the class against which it is written.
• Similarly, cumulative frequency of greater than type for a particular value of the variable is
obtained by cumulating or adding the frequencies of all values greater than that value, starting
from the frequency that particular value, i.e., by adding its frequency to the frequencies of all the
values greater than.
Graphical representation of the Frequency Distribution
• A histogram consists of a set of rectangles having bases on a horizontal axis which centers on the
class marks. The base widths correspond to the class boundaries rectangles correspond to the
class frequencies.
What is the purpose of histogram graph?
It can provide information on the degree of variation of the data and show the distribution pattern
of the data by bar graphing the number of units in each class or category. A histogram takes
continuous (measured) data like temperature, time, and weight, for example, and displays its
distribution.
• Frequency polygons are constructed by plotting class frequencies against class marks and
connecting the consecutive points by a straight line
Frequency polygons are a graphical device for understanding the shapes of distributions. They
serve the same purpose as histograms but are especially helpful for comparing sets of data.
• Ogive is obtained by plotting the cumulative frequency by connecting points of intersection
between the class boundaries, versus cumulative frequencies “less than” or more than”
An ogive (oh-jive), sometimes called a cumulative frequency polygon, is a type of frequency
polygon that shows cumulative frequencies. In other words, the cumulative percent are added on
the graph from left to right. An ogive graph plots cumulative frequency on the yaxis and class
boundaries along the x-axis.
Activity:
Using the Frequency Distribution Table above, construct histogram, frequency polygon and ogive graphs
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