Investigating a dataset from question to conclusion

Name:

Date:

Class:

Quick Questions

Shade in the A or B circle for each question.

1. A student wants to investigate solar panels. Which is the best first step?

A Make a chart straight away

B Write a clear question the data can answer

2. Which order is correct for a data investigation?

A Question, prepare, analyse, chart, conclude

B Chart, conclude, question, prepare, analyse

3. Question: 'Which state had the most solar installations in 2023?' Which columns do you need?

A State and Installations 2023

B Every column in the dataset

4. Your solar dataset has two rows for the same suburb and a blank cell in Installations. When should you fix this?

A In the prepare step, before using formulas

B After you have made the chart

5. Which step uses SUM, AVERAGE, sort and filter on the solar data?

A Question

B Analyse

Match the Pairs

Draw a line connecting each item on the left to its match on the right.

Left column		Right column
1question > prepare > analyse > chart > conclude		AThe conclusion ignores the limits of the data. It has only a few years of data, so a prediction cannot be certain.
2=SUMIF(B2:B9,">=2020",C2:C9)		BThe order of a data investigation, from asking a question through to drawing a conclusion
3Prepare step: remove a row with a missing value before calculating, so the answer is not affected		CQuestion: Did installs rise each year? Use columns Year and Installs only
4Check each step against the question: only use the columns that help answer it		DAnalyse step: adds up the solar installations from 2020 onwards to help answer the question
5Draw a pie chart of installs for each year from 2015 to 2024		EDelete row 7 (blank installs) then =AVERAGE(C2:C9)
6Conclusion: Installs will keep rising forever, so there is no need to mention limits.		FA pie chart shows parts of a whole, not change over time. A line chart should be used to show a trend across years.

Definitions

question > prepare > analyse > chart > conclude

Fill in the Blanks

Complete each line of code by filling in the missing parts.

question > _______ > analyse > chart > conclude

Step 3: analyse =_______(C2:C20)

Step 3: analyse =_____(B2:B20,"NSW",C2:C20)

Step 3: analyse =MAX(C2:C20)-___(C2:C20)

Step 5: conclude and report ______

Spot the Error

Shade in the letter of the line that contains an error.

Question 1

A Question: Do installs rise?

B Use columns: Suburb, Roof

C Sort: Year, oldest first

D Chart: line of Installs

Question 2

A Question: Which state is top?

B Columns: State, Installs

C =MIN(B2:B9)

D Chart: column by State

Question 3

A 1 Ask a question

B 2 Conclude and predict

C 3 Analyse with formulas

D 4 Chart the results

E 5 Conclude and report limits

Question 4

A Question: Is solar cool?

B Columns: Year, Installs

C Sort: Year, oldest first

D Chart: line of Installs

Question 5

A Question: Do installs rise?

B Chart: line of Year, Installs

C Trend: goes up each year

D Limit: none, so it is certain

Answer Key

Investigating a dataset from question to conclusion

Section A: Quick Questions

B — Write a clear question the data can answer

A — Question, prepare, analyse, chart, conclude

A — State and Installations 2023

A — In the prepare step, before using formulas

B — Analyse

Section B: Match the Pairs

question > prepare > analyse > chart > conclude → The order of a data investigation, from asking a question through to drawing a conclusion

=SUMIF(B2:B9,">=2020",C2:C9) → Analyse step: adds up the solar installations from 2020 onwards to help answer the question

Prepare step: remove a row with a missing value before calculating, so the answer is not affected → Delete row 7 (blank installs) then =AVERAGE(C2:C9)

Check each step against the question: only use the columns that help answer it → Question: Did installs rise each year? Use columns Year and Installs only

Draw a pie chart of installs for each year from 2015 to 2024 → A pie chart shows parts of a whole, not change over time. A line chart should be used to show a trend across years.

Conclusion: Installs will keep rising forever, so there is no need to mention limits. → The conclusion ignores the limits of the data. It has only a few years of data, so a prediction cannot be certain.

Section C: Definitions

question > prepare > analyse > chart > conclude — The order of a data investigation: ask a question, prepare the data, use formulas and sort or filter, chart it, then conclude, predict and report limits.

Section D: Fill in the Blanks

question > prepare
 > analyse > chart > conclude

Step 3: analyse
=AVERAGE(C2:C20)

Step 3: analyse
=SUMIF(B2:B20,"NSW",C2:C20)

Step 3: analyse
=MAX(C2:C20)-MIN(C2:C20)

Step 5: conclude and report limits

Section E: Spot the Error

B — The columns chosen must help answer the question. To see if installs rise over time you need Year and Installs, not Suburb and Roof.

C — The question asks for the top state, so the formula must find the largest value with MAX. MIN finds the smallest.

B — Step 2 must be preparing the data. You cannot conclude or predict before you have prepared, analysed and charted the data.

A — An investigation starts with a question the data can answer. 'Is solar cool?' is an opinion. It should be something like 'Do installs rise?'.

D — Every dataset has limits, such as a short time span. Reporting limits means saying predictions are not certain. It should name a real limit like the small number of years.