Idea 2of 22Builds onThe question decides the data
Data in words or in numbers
What is the difference between data in words and data in numbers?
Today you'll discover
- which data is words and which is numbers
- the names for the two kinds
- when a number is only a name
Think firstSix things you could ask about
Is “number of pets” data in words or in numbers?
Decide first, then press Next. Imagine someone answering: a word, or a number?
Six cards in a pile and two columns: qualitative, words; and quantitative, numbers. Favourite colour, type of pet and favourite sport move into words. Number of pets, height in centimetres and minutes to walk to school move into numbers. A rule appears under each column: a name, a colour, a kind; counted or measured. The last step asks about books read in May.
See the whole ideathe big idea and the key word, in one place
The big idea
Qualitative data is words or kinds; quantitative data is numbers you count or measure.
Both kinds
Qualitative: eye colour, type of pet, favourite sport. Quantitative: number of pets, height in centimetres, minutes to get to school.
eye colourqualitativetype of petqualitativenumber of petsquantitativeheightquantitative
Easy to get wrongA number used as a name is not quantitative. Jersey number 14 is a label: you would never add two jersey numbers together.
Key words
- qualitative data
- data in words or kinds, like a colour or a type of pet
- quantitative data
- data in numbers you count or measure, like the number of pets or a height
Ready to use it?
- Sort data as qualitative or quantitative.