Senior High School

Statistics and
Probability
Quarter 3- MODULE 1
Random Variables and Probability Distributions

Department of Education ● Republic of the Philippines

Statistics and Probability – Grade 11
Alternative Delivery Mode
Quarter 3 – Module 1: Random Variables and Probability Distributions
First Edition, 2019

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 Senior High School

Statistics and
Probability
Quarter 3- MODULE 1
Random Variables and
Probability Distributions
This instructional material was collaboratively developed and reviewed by
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 Table of Contents

What This Module is About ................................................................................................................ i

What I Need to Know ......................................................................................................................... i
How to Learn from this Module ........................................................................................................ ii
Icons of this Module .......................................................................................................................... ii
What I Know (Pretest) ...................................................................................................................... .iii
Lesson 1:
The Concept of Random Variables .................................................................. 1
What I Need to Know .............................................................................................. 1
What’s New … ......................................................................................................... 1
What Is It ................................................................................................................. 2
What I Can Do ......................................................................................................... 4
What More ............................................................................................................... 4
Lesson 2:
Probability Distribution of Discrete Random Variables ................ 6
What’s In .................................................................................................................. 6
What I Need to Know ............................................................................................ ...6
What’s New ..............................................................................................................7
What Is It ............................................................................................................... . 8
What I Can Do ………………………………………………………………………….11
What’s More ………………………………………………………………………….12

Lesson 3:
Solving the Mean, Variance and Standard Deviation of Discrete
Probability Distributions ........................................................................................... 13
What I Need to Know .............................................................................................. 13
What’s New . ......................................................................................................... .. 14
What’s Is It ............................................................................................................... 15
What I Can Do ....................................................................................................... .. 19
What’s More .......................................................................................................... .. 20

What I Have Learned …………………………………………………………………………….........… 22

.
Assessment: (Post-Test)……………………………………………………………………………...……23
Key to Answers ............................................................................................................................... .. 26
References ...................................................................................................................................... . 34
What This Module Is About

Statistics and Probability is one of the most important branches of mathematics

that is often taken for granted by everyone. Statistics plays a very important role in our
lives. Without statistics, companies could not effectively assess the performance of their
manufacturing plants, TV channels would have no way of knowing which TV shows
people prefer to watch, we would not be aware of the death rate caused by cancer, and
many more.
This module gives you a head start in understanding Statistics in the future. The
topics that will be discussed in this module are very important tools that you will need to
understand future topics in this subject. Random variables will be referred to repeatedly
in future modules. So you must do your best to retain as much information as you can
from this module.
There will be plenty of practice activities and exercises for you to work on in this
module. So don’t forget to wear your thinking hat, always stay positive, and be confident
that you can finish this module successfully.

The lessons that we will tackle are the following:

Lesson 1 – The Concept of Random Variables
Lesson 2 – Probability Distribution of Discrete Random Variables
Lesson 3 – Solving for the Mean, Variance, and Standard Deviation of Discrete
Probability Distributions

What I Need To Know

At the end of this module, you should be able to:

1. Illustrate a random variable (discrete and continuous) (M11/12SP-IIIa-1);

2. distinguish between a discrete and a continuous random variable(M11/12SP-
IIIa-2);
3. find the possible values of a random variable (M11/12SP-IIIa-3);
4. illustrate a probability distribution for a discrete random variable and its
properties(M11/12SP-IIIa-4);
5. compute probabilities corresponding to a given random variable(M11/12SP-IIIa-
6);
6. illustrate the mean and variance of a discrete random variable(M11/12SP-IIIb-
1);
7. calculate the mean and the variance of a discrete random variable (M11/12SP-
IIIb-2);
8. interpret the mean and the variance of a discrete random variable (M11/12SP-
IIIb-3); and
9. solve problems involving mean and variance of probability distributions
(M11/12SP-IIIb-4).

i
 How to Learn From This Module

To complete the objectives of this module, you must DO THE FOLLOWING:

• Patiently read the text carefully and understand every sentence. Do not proceed to the
next part of the module without fully understanding the previous text.
• Read the directions of each activity carefully. You will be guided as to the steps in
answering the exercises and activities of this module.
• Do not proceed to the next part without completing the previous activities.

Icons of this Module

What I Need to This part contains learning objectives that
Know are set for you to learn as you go along the
module.

What I know This is an assessment as to your level of

knowledge to the subject matter at hand,
meant specifically to gauge prior related
Knowledge
What’s In This part connects previous lesson with that
of the current one.

What’s New An introduction of the new lesson through

various activities, before it will be presented
to you

What is It These are discussions of the activities as a

way to deepen your discovery and under-
standing of the concept.

What’s More These are follow-up activities that are in-

tended for you to practice further in order to
master the competencies.

What I Have Activities designed to process what you

Learned have learned from the lesson

What I can do These are tasks that are designed to show-

case your skills and knowledge gained, and
applied into real-life concerns and situations.

ii
 What I Know (Pre-Test)
Multiple Choice. Encircle the letter of the best answer.

1. Which of the following random variables is discrete?

a. Number of movies made by a director c. Time needed to finish a movie
b. Length of film used in a movie d. Land area of a movie studio

2. If two dice are rolled, which of the following is not a possible outcome of the
random variable 𝑋 = 𝑡𝑜𝑡𝑎𝑙 𝑛𝑢𝑚𝑏𝑒𝑟 𝑜𝑓 𝑑𝑜𝑡𝑠 𝑓𝑎𝑐𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑢𝑝?
a. 2 b. 3 c. 10 d. 13
3. Find the correct value of Y to make a valid probability distribution.
X 1 2 3 4 5
P(X) 0.11 0.15 0.35 Y 0.24
a. 0.11 b. 0.15 c. 0.35 d. 0.24
4. Which of the following is NOT a valid probability distribution?

a. X 1 2 3 4 5
P(X) 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.3 0.1

b. X 1 3 5 7 9
P(X) 1/5 1/5 1/5 1/5 1/5

c. X 0 1 2 3 4
P(X) 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5

d. X 4 8 12 14 16
P(X) 0.36 0.21 0.10 0.09 0.24

5. A family of 4 children has the following probability distribution. What is the

expected number of girls in a group of 4 siblings?
Number of Girls Y 0 1 2 3 4

Probability P(Y) 1/15 3/15 7/15 3/15 1/15

a. 1 b. 2 c. 2.5 d. 3
6. The mean of a probability distribution is the same as the expected value of a
discrete random variable of a probability distribution
a. True b. False c. Both d. Neither

iii
7. Tossing a die has the following probability distribution. Find the standard
deviation of the number of spots that will appear when a die is tossed.
Number of spots (Y) 1 2 3 4 5 6

Probability P(Y) 1/6 1/6 1/6 1/6 1/6 1/6

a. 0.167 b. 1.667 c. 1.7 d. 2.9

For numbers 8-10, refer to the probability distribution below.

Y 0 1 2 3 4 5

P(Y) 0.11 0.15 0.23 0.25 0.13 0.13

8. What is the mean of the probability distribution?

a. 2.23 b. 2.33 c. 2.43 d. 2.53
9. What is the variance of the probability distribution?
a. 1.25 b. 2.25 c. 3.25 d. 4.25
10. What is the standard deviation of the probability distribution?
a. 1.25 b. 1.50 c. 2.00 d. 2.25

iv
Lesson
The Concept of Random
1 Variables
What I Need to Know

A random variable is a variable whose value is unknown or a function that assigns values
to each of an experiment's outcomes. Random variables are often designated by letters and can
be classified as discrete, which are variables that have specific values, or continuous, which are
variables that can have any values within a continuous range. Random variables are often used
in econometric or regression analysis to determine statistical relationships among one another.
This lesson you will be able to learn about the concept of random variables and it's
illustration whether it is discrete or continuous. You may also be able to encounter words and
terminologies that may guide you throughout the lesson.

What’s New
Activity 1

Try and classify the following random variables as discrete or continuous. Each random
variable is assigned a letter. Once grouped, crack and form the “hidden words” from the letters
of each group.
(T) number of deaths due to AIDS (H) number of channels in Sea cable

(O) weight of ₱100 worth of pork (A) number of satellites orbiting the Earth

(K) number of notebooks in a student’s bag (N) number of gadgets in a household

(U) volume of diesel used in a trip (Y) time needed to solve a Rubik’s cube

From the entries written in the table above, try to fill out the table below.

Discrete Random Variable Continuous Random Variable

Don’t forget to re-arrange the letters to form a phrase.

Hidden words: __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __

DISCRETE CONTINUOUS

Did you get the correct phrase? Good job! In that case, you’re welcome…

1
 What Is It

As you have classified the following random variables as discrete or continuous above,
basically you are familiar with the concept of random variable. So, what is random variable
anyway?
A random variable may be confusing to you at first especially if you associate it with
the common variables that we use in algebra. Let us differentiate:

Variable Random Variable

 written in small letter  written in capital letter

give value to equations like x +2=9  a random variable could be X= the number
of dots facing up after rolling a die

In this case can only take on a
distinct value and that is 7
Notice how the random process of rolling
a die gives you a random outcome each
time you perform the experiment. Rolling
once may give you 5, and rolling again
may give you 6, and again 4; I think you
see the point here. Hence it is called a
“random” variable.

 Additionally, we also consider as a

numerical type of data because the outcomes
of the said random variable are numerical in
nature.

A random variable may also be used to quantify unquantifiable processes. For

example, in the random variable Y = sex of college student applicants.

Possible outcomes: male or female

Characteristic: categorical (non-numerical)

It would be very difficult to perform mathematical operations on such kinds of data so

we have to find a way to convert these data into numbers. We could assign the value 0 for
male and 1 for female.

Note: The values “0 and 1” are just models/examples. You may use other values like 10, 500,
and even 2,020. Still, the values 0 and 1 are most commonly used in statistics.

Below are some more examples of random variables:

➢ Number of defective cell phones produced in a manufacturing factory daily

➢ Amount of paint needed to repaint a room
➢ Amount of time needed to walk from home to school
➢ Gender of students taking up BS Criminology
➢ Height of applicants for the Miss Universe pageant

2
 There are two varieties of random variables that are numerical in nature:

DISCRETE RANDOM CONTINUOUS RANDOM

VARIABLE VS VARIABLE

Let us differentiate.

Discrete Random Variable Continuous Random Variable

its values are obtained through counting its values are obtained through
Examples: measurement
✓
number of rotten bananas in a Examples:
bunch of bananas, ✓ growth of tomato seedlings per
✓
number of honor students in a class, week,
and ✓ time needed to finish an exam, and
✓
number of tiles needed ✓ weight of pigs after 3 months
✓
number of tiles needed to cover a floor.

the sample space is finite (can be counted)

because each sample has a space between
them
there are infinite elements in the sample
space wherein each sample are so closely
packed such that infinite number of elements
can fit throughout the sample space

Note: A sample space is the set of all possible outcomes in a random experiment.

Here are some more examples of discrete and continuous random variables.

Discrete Random Variable Continuous Random Variable

Total number of spots in rolling two dice Power consumption of an appliance

Number of pages in a chapter of a book Body temperature of a person

Number of appliances in a household Cloth needed to make a dress

Total number of all animals in a farm Length of a piece of chalk

Number of cards drawn pH level of an acid

3
 What I Can Do

Activity 1

Classify the following random variables as DISCRETE or CONTINUOUS.

1. Length of a cell phone charger ____________________

2. Number of gadgets in a household ____________________

3. Count of words encoded per minute ____________________

4. Amount of water consumed per day ____________________

5. Sum of burgers sold in a day ____________________

6. Amount of time needed to boil a liquid ____________________

7. Number of channels in a cable TV ____________________

8. Daily count of visitors in a mall ___________________

9. Distance between two barangays ____________________

10. Total area of a rice field ____________________

What’s More
\

Activity 2

Write your own 5 examples of random variables then identify if it is Discrete or Continuous.

1. _____________________________________ 4. ___________________________________

2. _____________________________________ 5. ___________________________________

3. _____________________________________

4
Activity 3
Classify the following random variables as Discrete or Continuous Random
Variables. Write DRV if it is Discrete while CRV if Continuous.

____________ 1. Time to finish a race

____________ 2. Number of diamonds in a poker hand

____________ 3. Height of 100 students

____________ 4. Number of doubles in roll of two dice

____________ 5. Hours of spent answering a test

____________ 6. Your weight before breakfast each morning

____________ 7. The number of ships in Pearl Harbor on any given day.

____________ 8. The distance of golf ball travels after being hit with a driver.

____________ 9. The number of traffic fatalities per year in the state of Florida

____________10. The amount of gasoline needed to drive your car 200 miles.

5
 Lesson
Probability Distribution of
2 Discrete Random Variables

What’s In

Again, the purpose of using random variable is so that we could measure observations
and process data to make a conclusion about the population. So what are the possible values of
a random variable, you might ask?

Below are some random variables with their corresponding possible values.

Random Description Set of Possible Values

Variable

V marital status of teachers single, married, widow, …

W number of dots after rolling a die 1,2,3,4,5,6
X tossing a coin Heads, Tails
Y tossing two coins HT, HH, TH, TT
Z household pet being raised dog, cat, mouse, snake, rabbit, …

As a statistician, you must be able to identify the set of possible values of your random
variable even before conducting your survey.

What I Need to Know

Understanding Probability distribution

A probability distribution is a statistical function that describes all the possible and
likelihoods that a random variable can take within a given range. This range will be bounded
between the minimum and maximum possible values but precisely where the possible value is
likely to be plotted on the probability distribution depends on a number of factors. This factors
include the distribution’s mean (average), standard deviation, skewness, and kurtosis.

Probability distributions describe the dispersion of the values of a random variable.

Consequently, the kind of variable determines the type of probability distribution.

This lesson you will be able to learn how to find the possible values of a random variable,
illustrate a probability distribution for a discrete random variable and its properties, construct the
probability mass function of a discrete random variable and its corresponding histogram.

6
 What’s New

Activity 1

1. Three voters are asked whether they are in favor of online education. Each voter’s
response is recorded as ’Yes (Y)’ or ’No (N)’. Let O be the random variable
representing the number of Yes (Y) votes that occur. Complete the table below to find
the possible values of Y.

Possible Outcomes Value of Random Variable

O
( number of Yes (Y)
votes)
YYY 3

YYN 2

YNY

NYY

YNN

NYN

NNY

NNN

7
 What Is It

In the study of random events, you should be interested in determining the possible values
of a random variable and its probability that will have a particular value.

Example 1. Suppose you are to test three random eggplants from a harvest to see if there are
worms in it. You want to find out the number of eggplants attacked by worms. Use W to represent
if there is a worm attack in an eggplant and N if there is none.

Note: The letters W and N are not random variables but are used to represent
the possible outcome upon checking an eggplant. X is the random variable
representing the number of eggplants attacked by worms.

Again, you are sampling three eggplants. The table has been filled
out to illustrate and demonstrate the possible outcomes of this experiment.
Try to understand the values therein.

Value of Random Variable X The possible values of the

Possible Outcomes (number of eggplants with random variable X are
worm attacks) 0, 1, 2, and 3.
NNN 0

NNW 1

NWN 1

NWW 2

WNN 1

WNW 2

WWN 2

WWW 3

There is a total of 8 possible outcomes with 4 distinct possible values of X. We now

assign the probability values of each.

8
 Number of eggplants Probability
with worm attacks X P(X)

There are 8 possible outcomes and only 1 of

1 them had no worm at all. So the probability that
0
8 1
we shall assign is 8.

There are 8 possible outcomes and 3 of them

3 have exactly 1 eggplant attacked by worms. So
1
8 3
the probability that we shall assign is 8 .

There are 8 possible outcomes and 3

3 of them have 2 eggplants attacked by
2
8 3
worms. So the probability that we shall assign is 8.

There are 8 possible outcomes and only 1 of

1 them had all 3 eggplants attacked by worms. So
3
8 1
the probability that we shall assign is 8.

The table shown on the previous page is what we call the probability distribution or
probability mass function of the random variable. We can graph the distribution in the form of a
histogram as presented below.

3/8
2/8 3/8 3/8
Probability P(x)

1/8
1/8 1/8

0
0 1 2 3
Number of eggplants with worm attacks X

What is a histogram?

A histogram is like a bar graph but has no spaces

in between the bars. Investigate the heights of the
bars and compare it with the probabilities written
in the table above. What have you noticed?

9
 Example 2. Suppose that four coins are tossed. Let Y be the random variable
representing the number of heads that occur.

In this example, the random variable Y represents the number of heads that occur when
tossing four coins. We have defined the sample space and their corresponding values as shown
in the table below.

Possible Outcomes Value of Random Variable Y

HHHH 4
HHHT 3
HHTH 3
HHTT 2
HTHH 3
HTHT 2
HTTH 2
HTTT 1
THHH 3
THHT 2
THTH 2
THTT 1
TTHH 2
TTHT 1
TTTH 1
TTTT 0

There are 5 distinct possible values of which are 0, 1, 2, 3, and 4. We now assign the
probability values of each, as shown below.

Number of Heads Y Probability P(Y) Let’s stop and think for a moment.

0 1 Can you explain why the probability

16 values P(Y) are like that? Where did
1 4 1 the denominator 16 come from? How
𝑜𝑟
16 4 about the numerator values 1, 4, 6, 4,
2 6 3 and 1? Where did they come from?
𝑜𝑟
16 8 Getting the sum of all probabilities in
3 4 1 1 4 6
𝑜𝑟 the distribution we get 16 + 16 + 16 +
16 4
4 1 4 1 16
16
+ 16 = 16 𝑜𝑟 1. The histogram of
16
the distribution is shown below

6/16
Remember this!
Probability P(Y)

The sum of all probabilities in

4/16
a discrete probability
6/16 distribution should always be
2/16 4/16 4/16 equal to 1, no more no less.
Otherwise, the distribution
becomes invalid or incorrect!
0 1/16 1/16

0 1 2 3 4
Number of heads Y

10
 What I Can Do

Activity 1

Consider the histogram above. Answer the questions below.

1. What is the probability of getting more than 2 yes?
2. What is the probability of getting more than 1 yes?
3. What is the probability of getting at least 2 yes?
4. What is the probability of getting at most 1 yes?
5. What is the probability of getting 1 or 2 yes?
6. What is the probability of getting pure yes?
7. What is the probability of getting no yes?
Activity 2
Determine whether the distribution represented
12 is valid or not. Explain your
answer.

11
 What’s More

The 2010 Philippines Census found the chance of a household being a certain size. The data is
in the table ("Households by age," 2013). Draw a histogram of the probability distribution.

Size of 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 or more
household
Probability 0.02 0.02 0.06 0.14 0.16 0.34 0.26

a) Is it unusual for a household to have six people in the family? Explain your answer.

b) If you did come upon many families that had six people in the family, what would you
think?

c) Is it unusual for a household to have four people in the family? Explain your answer.

d) If you did come upon a family that has four people in it, what would you think?

12
 Lesson Solving for the Mean,
Variance, and Standard
3 Deviation of Discrete
Probability Distributions
What I Need to Know

The probability distribution of a discrete random variable is the same with the frequency
distribution of a sample in a given population that needs to be summarized using a central value
for it will give the general behavior of the random variable under observation. Any discrete
probability distribution has a mean, a variance, and a standard deviation

In this lesson, you will illustrate the mean and variance of a discrete random variable,
calculate the mean and the variance of a discrete random variable, interpret the mean and the
variance of a discrete random variable and solve problems involving mean and variance of
probability distributions

The mean is the average of all possible outcomes. It is otherwise

referred to as the “expected value” of a probability distribution. When we say
expected value, it means that if we repeat any given experiment infinite times,
the theoretical mean would be the “expected value”. For instance, the mean of
rolling a die is theoretically 3.5. You will never roll a 3.5 no matter how many times
you roll the die because there’s only 3 and 4. However, if you take the average
of all outcomes, you should get 3.5 or at least close to that value. You will have
a better understanding about this concept with more examples given underneath.

The variance and standard deviation are measures of spread or variability.

HIGH LOW

If the values of the variance and standard
deviation are high, that means that the
individual outcomes of the experiment are
far relative to each other.
In other words, the values differ greatly.
Individual outcomes of the experiment are
far relative to each other.
In other words, the values differ greatly.

13
 As a point of reference, if the values of all the
outcomes in an experiment are all the same, the
variance and standard deviation are both 0. But of
course, this rarely happens in real life application.

The first graph you see

on the top has values that are
more “scattered” than that of
the second graph underneath.

The data in the second

graph is more “closely/tightly”
packed together compared to
the first one.

The variance and

standard deviation of the first
graph should have values
greater than the variance and
standard deviation of the
second graph underneath.

What’s New
Activity 1

1. A Random Variable X can take only two values, 1 and 2 .P(1) = 0.8 and P(2) = 0.2
Calculate the Expected value of X.

2. A Random Variable X can take only two values, 1 and 2. P(1) = 0.8 and P(2) = 0.2
Calculate the Variance of X

3. A lottery that pays off 100,000 pesos is made available for 5,000,000 tickets. Each ticket
costs 50 pesos. Suppose the variable X gives the net winnings from playing the lottery.
What is the expected gain for joining the lottery with only one ticket?

4. In a deck of cards which consists of cards numbered 1 to 5, a card is drawn randomly. A

player wins 35 pesos if the number on the card is odd and loses 35 pesos if the number
on the card is even. What is the expected value of his winnings?

14
 What Is It

In this section, we will learn to solve worded problems involving the Mean, Variance, and
Standard Deviation of a Discrete Probability Distributions. Prior in solving, make sure that you
already mastered on the use of the formulas on the terms mentioned. Let us consider the
problems below.

Example 1. In a 5-item test, the probabilities that a student gets 0, 1,2,3,4, or 5 mistakes are
3 5 7 3 1 1
, , , , 𝑎𝑛𝑑 respectively. What is the average number of mistakes that a student
20 20 20 20 20 20
makes in this class? What is the variance and standard deviation of this discrete probability
distribution?

To solve this problem, all you we have to do is arrange the given

entries which are the random variable values and their corresponding
probabilities in the first two columns of a three-column table. So, in this
particular example, our random variable which we are going to call X is the
number of mistakes a student gets in a 5-item quiz. You may use your
calculator in solving for the unknown values.

No. of mistakes Probability 𝑿 ∙ 𝑷(𝑿) Let’s stop and think for a moment.
𝑿 𝑷(𝑿)

0 3 0 The entries in columns 1 and 2 are just

20 copied from the problem statement
1 5 5 above. The entries in the third column
20 20 you have to solve yourself by
2 7 14 multiplying the 1st and 2nd column
20 20 3 5 5
entries. Like, 0  = 0 , 1 = ,
3 3 9 20 20 20
20 20 7 14
2 = , and so on. The number of
4 1 4 20 20
20 20 rows would depend entirely on the

5 1 5 number of possible values that a

20 20 random variable may take.

1st column 2nd column = 3rd column

The symbol for mean is the Greek letter  (read as “my”). To solve for the mean, all you
have to do is add up all the entries of the 3rd column.

Equation 1.  =  X • P(X )
15
 So the value of the mean in the example above is just the sum of all entries in the third
column.
5 14 9 4 5 37
 =  X • P( X ) = 0 + + + + + = = 1.85
20 20 20 20 20 20

Therefore, the mean or expected value on the number of mistakes a student may
have in a 5-item quiz is 1.85. Again, we emphasize that none of the students actually got
1.85 mistakes. However, if we are to take the average of the total mistakes done by each
one of the students, we should get an average value of 1.85.
Now that we have found the mean of the discrete probability distribution, we can
now try and solve for the variance. You cannot solve for the variance without finding first
the mean. To solve for the variance, you need to add more columns in the table made a
while ago.
The table below shall discuss how you can solve the variance of a discrete
probability distribution. A sample value was used for demonstration purposes. A brief
explanation is shown below each entry for your guidance.

X P( X ) X • P( X ) X − ( X −  )2 ( X −  ) 2 • P( X )
2 7 14 0.15 3.4225 1.197875
20 20
You are already familiar with the Subtract the To find the value Lastly, multiply the
first three columns and know computed mean of the entry to value obtained in
how to fill these out. from the value of this column, column 5 back to the
the random simplify square probability in column
variable. Since the value that 2.So,
the computed you obtained in 7
mean is 1.85 column 4. So, 3.4225  = 1.197875
20
then, 2-1.85 = 1.852 = 3.4225
0.15

After performing all calculations, the completed table would look something like this. Try
and solve for yourself to see how these values were obtained.

X P( X ) X • P( X ) X − ( X −  )2 ( X −  ) 2 • P( X )
3 0
0 -1.85 3.4225 0.513375
20
5 5
1 -0.85 0.7225 0.180625
20 20
7 14
2 0.15 0.0225 0.007875
20 20
3 9
3 1.15 1.3225 0.198375
20 20
1 4
4 2.15 4.6225 0.231125
20 20
1 5
5 3.15 9.9225 0.496125
20 20
The symbol for variance is  2 . To solve for the variance, all we have to do is add up all
entries on the last column.

Equation 2.  2 = ( X −  ) 2 • P( X )

16
 So the value of the variance of the discrete probability distribution shown above is just the
sum of all entries in the last column.
 2 =  ( X −  )2 • P( X )
= 0.513375 + 0.180625 +0.007875 + 0.198375 + 0.231125 + 0.496125
= 1.6275

The variance of the probability distribution is 1.6275. Now that the value of the variance is
found, we can now solve for the standard deviation. The symbol for standard deviation is  .
Equation 3.  =  2

So the value of the standard deviation is solved by getting the square root of the
variance. Again, you cannot solve for the value of the standard deviation without finding first the
variance and mean.

 =  2 = 1.6275  1.28
The standard deviation is approximately equal to 1.28. We say “approximately equal to”
because we already rounded off the value from 1.2757350822 to 1.28.

Example 2. In a seafood restaurant, the manager wants to know if their customers like their new
raw large oysters. According to their sales representative, in the past 4 months, the number of
oysters consumed by a customer, along with its corresponding probabilities, is shown in the
succeeding table. Compute the mean, variance and standard deviation.

Number of oysters Probability

consumed P( X )
X
0 2
20

1 2
20

2 3
20

3 2
20

4 1
20

17
Solution:

X P( X ) X • P( X ) X − ( X −  )2 ( X −  ) 2 • P( X )
2
0 0 -1.8 3.24 0.648
20
2 2
1 -0.8 0.64 0.128
20 20
3 6
2 0.2 0.04 0.012
20 20
2 6
3 1.2 1.44 0.288
20 20
1 4
4 2.2 4.84 0.484
20 20

What is the mean?

2 6 6 4 18
 =  X • P( X ) = 0 + + + + = = 1.8
10 10 10 10 10
What is the variance?
 2 =  ( X −  )2 • P( X ) = 0.648 + 0.128 + 0.012 + 0.288 + 0.484 = 1.56
What is the standard deviation?

 =  2 = 1.56  1.25

Based on the computation, the mean of the distribution is

1.8. That implies that the average number of oysters ordered by a
customer is 1.8 oysters. Again none of the customers actually
8
ordered 1 and of an oyster. The number 1.8 is just the best
10
estimate of the average number of oyster consumed by a buying
customer. The variance is 1.56 oysters, while the standard
deviation is 1.25 oysters.
This is the main advantage of standard deviation over
variance. The standard deviation is the same unit as your random
variable, while the variance isn’t.

18
 What I Can Do
Activity 1

A. Find the mean, variance, and standard deviation of the following probability
distribution by completing the tables below.

19
Activity 2

A. Solve the following problems.

1. The probabilities of a number of students to come late in a class are shown in
the table below. Find the average number of students to come late daily in this
class.
Number of students (X) 0 1 2 3 4 5

Probability P(X) 0.40 0.22 0.15 0.10 0.08 0.05

2. A police lieutenant records the number of police blotter filed each day in their city. Based
on his records, the probability distribution of the number of police blotters filed each day is
in the table below. The city mayor claims that the crime rate is in its all-time low with only 2
blotters being filed each day. Determine the mean of the probability distribution shown and
decide if the mayor’s claim is valid.

Number of students (X) 0 1 2 3 4

Probability P(X) 0.33 0.13 0.23 0.15 0.16

What's More
Activity 1: Let Me Try!

Solve the following problems. Show your solution.

1. The probabilities that 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, or 10 accidents happen in Northern Mindanao

Highway in a year is 0.45, 0.22, 0.15, 0.10, 0.05, 0.02, and 0.01, respectively. Find the
average number of accidents that occur in the said highway each year, variance, and
standard deviation.

20
2. The number of items sold per day at retail store, with its corresponding probabilities,
is shown in the table. Find the variance and standard deviation of the probability
distribution.

Number of items sold Probability

X P( X )

19 2
10

2
20 10

3
21 10

2
22 10

1
23 10

21
 What I Have Learned

This is a summary of all that we’ve learned so far.

• A random variable is a function that links a specific numerical value to each element in
the sample space of any given experiment or situation.
• A discrete random variable is a random variable whose set of possible outcomes is finite.
Values of each sample are separated with a finite gap or space. Values of this variable
may be obtained through counting.
• A continuous random variable is a random variable whose set of possible outcomes is
infinite. This type of variable may take on a continuous stream of values. Its values can
only be obtained through measurement.
• A discrete probability distribution, otherwise known as a probability mass function, is
made up of the values that a random variable can take with their corresponding
probabilities. A valid probability distribution must have a sum of exactly equal to 1, no
more no less.

• Formulas for Mean, Variance, and Standard Deviation.

Equation 1. 𝜇 = ∑ 𝑋 ∙ (𝑋)
Equation 2. 𝜎2 = ∑(𝑋 - 𝜇)2 ∙ 𝑃(𝑋)
Equation 3. 𝜎 = √𝜎2

 Steps in Finding the Mean:

1. Multiply the random variable by its probability.
2. Use equation 1 to find the mean by adding all products obtained in step 1.
 Steps in Finding the Variance:
3. Subtract the computed mean from each value of the random variable: 𝑋 - 𝜇.
4. Square the value obtained in step 3: (𝑋 - 𝜇)2.
5. Multiply the value obtained in step 4 by the corresponding probability:
(𝑋 - 𝜇)2 ∙ 𝑃(𝑋)
6. Use equation 2 to find the variance by adding all products obtained in step 5.
 Steps in Finding the Standard Deviation:
7. Use equation 3 to find the standard deviation by getting the square root of the
value obtained in step 6.

22
 Assessment (Post-test)

A. Multiple Choice. Encircle the letter of the best answer.

1. Which of the following random variables is discrete?

a. Number of movies made by a director c. Time needed to finish a movie
b. Length of film used in a movie d. Land area of a movie studio

2. If two dice are rolled, which of the following is not a possible outcome of the random
variable X: total number of dots facing up?
a. 2 b. 3 c. 10 d. 13
3. Find the correct value of Y to make a valid probability distribution.

X 1 2 3 4 5

P(X) 0.11 0.15 0.35 Y 0.24

a. 0.11 b. 0.15 c. 0.35 d. 0.24

4. Which of the following is NOT a valid probability distribution?

a. X 1 2 3 4 5

P(X) 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.3 0.1

b. X 1 3 5 7 9

P(X) 1/5 1/5 1/5 1/5 1/5

c. X 0 1 2 3 4
P(X) 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5

d. X 4 8 12 14 16
P(X) 0.36 0.21 0.10 0.09 0.24

5. A family of 4 children has the following probability distribution. What is the expected
number of girls in a group of 4 siblings?
Number of Girls Y 0 1 2 3 4

Probability P(Y) 1/15 3/15 7/15 3/15 1/15

a. 0.11 b. 0.15 c. 1 d. 2
6. The mean for a probability distribution is the same as the expected value of a discrete
random variable of a probability distribution
a. True b. False c. Both d. Neither
23
For numbers 7-11, refer to the probability distribution below. A birthing home recorded the
number of live births that materialize in their birthing home in the past 2 years.
Live births per month Y 0 1 2 3 4 5

Probability P(Y) 0.11 0.15 0.23 0.25 0.13 0.13

7. What is the probability that exactly 2 babies will be born in the home in any month?
a. 0.11 b. 0.15 c. 0.23 d. 0.25
8. What is the probability that less than 2 babies will be born in the home in any month?
a. 0.26 b. 0.38 c. 0.48 d. 0.36
9. What is the probability that more than 2 babies will be born in the home in any month?
a. 0.26 b. 0.51 c. 0.74 d. 0.89
10. What is the probability that at least 2 babies will be born in the home in any month?
a. 0.26 b. 0.51 c. 0.74 d. 0.89
11. What is the probability that at most 2 babies will be born in the home in any month?
a. 0.26 b. 0.49 c. 0.74 d. 0.87

12. Tossing a die has the following probability distribution. Find the standard deviation
of the number of spots that will appear when a die is tossed.

Number of spots (Y) 1 2 3 4 5 6

Probability P(Y) 1/6 1/6 1/6 1/6 1/6 1/6

a. 0.167 b. 1.667 c. 1.7 d. 2.9

For numbers 13-15, refer to the probability distribution below.

Y 0 1 2 3 4 5

P(Y) 0.11 0.15 0.23 0.25 0.13 0.13

13. What is the mean of the probability distribution?

a. 2.23 b. 2.33 c. 2.43 d. 2.53
14. What is the variance of the probability distribution?
a. 2.25 b. 2.50 c. 2.75 d. 3.00
15. What is the standard deviation of the probability distribution?
a. 1.25 b. 1.50 c. 1.75 d. 2.00

24
B. Identify weather the given variable is discrete or continuous. Write your answer on the space
provided before each item.
__________________ 1. number of cars in a parking lot
__________________ 2. time it takes to finish a bowl of noodles
__________________ 3. number of visitors in a resort each day
__________________ 4. temperature needed to melt a metal
__________________ 5. weight of one whole watermelon

25
 Key to Answers

PRE-TEST
1. A
2. D
3. B
4. C
5. B
6. A
7. C
8. D
9. B
10.B

What’s New, Page 1

Activity 1, Page 1
Discrete Random Variable Continuous Random Variable
(T) number of deaths due to AIDS (O) weight of ₱100 worth of pork
(K) number of notebooks in a (U) volume of diesel used in a trip
student’s bag
(H) number of channels in Sea cable (Y) time needed to solve a Rubik’s
cube
(A) number of satellites orbiting the
Earth
(N) number of gadgets in a
household

Hidden Words: THANK YOU

What I Can Do, Page 4

Activity 1, Page 4
1. Continuous 7. Discrete
2. Discrete 8. Discrete
3. Discrete 9. Continuous
4. Continuous 10. Continuous
5. Discrete
6. Continuous

26
What’s More, Page 4
Activity 2, Page 5

1. CRV 7. DRV
2. DRV 8. CRV
3. CRV 9. DRV
4. DRV 10. CRV
5. CRV
6. CRV

What’s New, Page 7

Activity 1, Page 7

1. Possible Outcomes Value of Random Variable O

( number of Yes (Y) votes)
YYY 3

YYN 2

YNY 2

NYY 2

YNN 1

NYN 1

NNY 1

NNN 0

2. No. of Yes (Y) Probability P(Y)

0 1/8

1 3/8

2 3/8

3 1/8

Total: 1

27
What I Can Do, Page 11
Activity 1, Page 11

1. 1/8
2. 4/8 or 1/2
3. 7/8
4. 4/8 or ½
5. 6/8 or ¾
6. 1/8
7. 1/8

Activity 3, Page 13

What’s More, Page 14

State random variable: x = number of people in a household. You draw a histogram, where
the x values are on the horizontal axis and are the x values of the classes (for the 7 or more
category, just call it 7). The probabilities are on the vertical axis.

28
 0.3
Probability
0.2

0.1

0
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Household size

a) Is it unusual for a household to have six people in the family? Explain your answer.

To determine this, you need to look at probabilities. However, you cannot just look at
the probability of six people. You need to look at the probability of x being six or more
people or the probability of x being six or less people.

The P( x ≤ 6) = P( x = 1) + P( x = 2) + P( x = 3) + P( x = 4) + P( x = 5) + P( x = 6)
= 0.02 + 0.02 + 0.06 + 0.14 + 0.16 + 0.34 = 0.74 or 74%

Since this probability is more than 5%, then six is not an unusually low value.
The P (x ≥ 6) = P( x = 6) + P( x ≥ 7) = 0.34 + 0.26 = 0.6 or 60%
Since this probability is more than 5%, then six is not an unusually high value. It is
usual for a household to have six people in the family.

b) If you did come upon many families that had six people in the family, what would you
think?

Since it is not unusual for a family to have four members, then you would not think
anything is amiss.

c) Is it unusual for a household to have four people in the family? Explain your answer.

Solution: To determine this, you need to look at probabilities. Again, look at the
probability of x being four or more or the probability of x being four or less.

The P( x ≥ 4) = P( x = 4) + P( x = 5) + P( x = 6) + P( x = 7)
= 0.14+ 0.16+ 0.24+ 0.36 = 0.9 or 90%
Since this probability is more than 5%, four is not an unusually high value.

The P( x ≤ 4) = P( x = 1) + P( x = 2) + P( x = 3) + P( x = 4)
= 0.02+ 0.02+0.06+0.14 = 0.28 or 28%
Since this probability is more than 5%, four is not an unusually low value. Thus, four
is not an unusual size of a family.

d) If you did come upon a family that has four people in it, what would you think?

Since it is not unusual for a family to have four members, then you would not think
anything is amiss.

29
What’s New , Page 17
Activity 1

1. µ = 1.2
2. 𝜎 2 = 0.68
3. One lottery ticket will have an expected loss of 48 pesos.
4. The expected value is 7. Thus, the player is expected to gain an average of 7
pesos in the game.

What I Can Do, Page 22

Activity 1, Page 22

30
31
32
POST-TEST
A. B.
1. A 1. Discrete
2. D 2. Continuous
3. B 3. Discrete
4. C 4. Continuous
5. D 5. Continuous
6. A
7. C
8. A
9. B
10. C
11. B
12. C
13. D
14. A
15. B

33
 REFERENCES

Albay, Eduard M.,Statistics and Probability, 2nd ed.Makati City: DIWA Textbooks, 2019,
34-47.

Belecina, Rene S., Elisa S. Baccay, and Efren B. Mateo, Statistics and Probability, Manila:
Rex Book Store, Inc., 2016, 1-48.
Canva. Accessed December 22, 2020. https://www.canva.com/education

Calaca, Ninia I., Chin Uy, Nestor M. Noble, and Ronaldo A. Manalo, Statistics and Probability,
Quezon City: Vibal Group, Inc., 2016, 40-92.

Ellen, L., Larry, O., Raja, A., Brenda, M. and Danielle, D., 2014. Ck-12 Advance Probability
And Statistics. 2nd ed. [ebook] United States: FlexBook, pp.128-129. Available
at: <http://www.ck12.org> [Accessed 24 June 2020].

Frost, Jim,Diego, Shepard,Ngwaro,Neda,Mitch,Thanga,Michael Thomas, et al.

“Undestanding Probability Distributions “Statistics By Jim, October 1, 2019.
https://statisticsbyjim.com/basics/probability-distributions/

Hayes,Adam. “What are the Odds? How Probability Distribution Works.”Investopia.

Investopia, January 29, 2020.
https://www.investopedia.com/terms/p/probabilitydistribution.asp

Licuanan,Patricia B.,Albert, Jose Ramo G.,Statistics and Probability,Quezon City: CHED,

2016, 156-163, 182-190, 201-203 .

Walpol, Ronald E., Raymond H. Myers, and Sharon L. Myers, Probability and Statistics: for
Engineers and Scientists, Upper Saddle River, New Jersey 07458: Pearson
Education Asia Pte Ltd., 2001, 51-83.
“Section 5-Coconino Country Community College.” Accessed June 25,2020.
https://www.coconino.edu/Resources/Files/Pdfs/Academics/Sabbatical-
Reports/Kate-Kozak/chapter_5.docx.

“Random Variables,” Khan Academy, Inc., last modified August 1, 2019,

https://www.khanacademy.org/math/statistics-probability/random-variables-stats-
library/random-variables-discrete/v/random-variables.
“Probability Distributions,” Batia Infotech, last modified Jan 28, 2013,
https://www.proprofs.com/quiz-school/story.php?title=probability-distributions.

“Probability Distributions for Discrete Random Variables”. Accessed June 25, 2020.
https://saylordotorg.github.io/text_introductory-statistics/s08-02-probability-
distributions-for-.html

34
For inquiries and feedback, please write or call:

Department of Education – Bureau of Learning Resources (DepEd-BLR)

DepEd Division of Cagayan de Oro City

Fr. William F. Masterson Ave Upper Balulang Cagayan de Oro
Telefax: ((08822)855-0048
E-mail Address: cagayandeoro.city@deped.gov.ph

35