Read the passage below, and answer the questions that follow. Passage: In the Ge
ID: 3461362 • Letter: R
Question
Read the passage below, and answer the questions that follow.
Passage:
In the Georgia State University History Department, students are invited to submit written evaluations of their instructors to the department's personnel committee, which uses those evaluations to determine whether history instructors should be recommended for retention and promotions. In his three history classes, Professor Ludlum has a total of one hundred students. Six students turned in written evaluations of Ludlum. Two of these evaluations were favorable and four were negative. Professor Hitchcock, who sits on the History Department Personnel Committee, argued against recommending Ludlum for promotion. "If a majority of the students who bothered to evaluate Ludlum find him lacking," he stated, "then it's clear a majority of all his students find him lacking."
Questions:
What is the sample in Hitchcock's reasoning?
What is the population?
What is the attribute of interest?
Are there differences between the sample and the population sizes that should reduce our confidence in Hitchcock's conclusion?
Is the sample random?
Is the sample large enough?
Based on the above considerations, how strong is Hitchcock's reasoning?
Explanation / Answer
1. The sample in Hitchcock’s reasoning is six history students who turned in written evaluations of the professor.
2. The population is the total of 100 students in the Georgia State University History Department.
3. The attribute of interest the evaluation a professor receives from his students.
4. There is a huge discrepancy between the sample size and the population size, as only 4% of the students form the sample. This can lead to error in Hitchcock’s conclusion.
5. The sample is not random as students voluntarily submitted an evaluation.
6. The sample should comprise of at least 30 students to be considered large.
7. From these considerations, one can concluded that Hitchcock’s reasoning is faulty.
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