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G101 AY2020 Critical Thinking and Problem Solving

Lesson 8: Numbers in the news

The Problem

The Solution

Part 1: Explain your analysis of the presented data by considering way the data was presented in the article and the correctness of his interpretations based on data. In explaining your answer, you
should draw reference to the following guidelines, where appropriate:
 type of chart used and if it is appropriate
 how the presentation of data is / is not misleading
 whether Abang has interpreted the presented data correctly
[Tip: bolden the fonts of key terms you used to show your lecturer you are applying concepts]

Interpretation 1 Interpretation 2 Interpretation 3 Interpretation 4 Interpretation 5

Analysis 1 Analysis 2 Analysis 3 Analysis 4 Analysis 5

The type of chart used is the pie
chart.
Singaporeans are unable to tell
fake news is false.From the pie
chart 91% out of 100% of the
people who took the survey
wrongly indetified 1 or more news
article out of 5 fake news article
Abang cannot simply come to a
conclusion saying that as some
people out of the 91% might have
gotten more than one correct.
Hence this conclusion cannot be
made since not all Singaporeans
are unable to tell real news from
fake news
The type of chart used is the
pictograph
It is appropriate because the sizes
of the data are all the same
For Abangs view
“4 out of 5 Singaporeans trust
traditional media” is true because 4
out 5 people have a fair amount of
trust or a great deal of trust
towards traditional media
However,I disagree that “We
should encourage more to stick to
traditional media sources.
Reason:There is insufficient
evidence provided to support his
conclusion that we should
encourage more people to stick to
traditional media sources
The type of chart use is also the
pictograph
It is appropriate vecause the sizes
of the data are all the same
“2 out of every 5 Singaporeans are
not thinking critically" is true
because these people are making
decisions based on their personal
opinions
However,I dsiagree that “its only a
minority” because 2 out of 5
Singaporeans is equivalent to 40%
and 40% is considered a majority
instead of a minority
The data used here is bar graph. The data used here is the bar graph.However it is misleading
However,it is misleading.
Reason:Because the percentages Reasons for it being misleading:
in 2017 and 2018 does not add up 1. All the opinions ranging from strongly disagree to not sure are all
to 100% connected into a graph.This makes the graph very misleading
I think it is instead representing the because it makes the reader very difficult to visualise the groups.
number of times people came 2. There is no appropriate scale given to illustrate the x and y axis.If
across fake news through the there is no scale given,the reader cannot interperate and infer
different platforms in 2017 and from the graph correctly
2018 respectively
How should the bar graph be represented instead:
A more suitable way to represent
this data is the line graph to show
the trends of people spreading fake
news in 2017 and 2018
respectively
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G101 AY2020 Critical Thinking and Problem Solving

Lesson 8: Numbers in the news

Also,the survey evaluated

Singaporeans view towards the Not sure
traditional media but didn’t check
the credibility history of the
Strongly agree
traditional media so it cannot be
concluded that Singaporeans
should stick to traditional media Agree
sources
Neutral

Disagree

Strongly disagree

0 10 20 30 40 50 60

For Abang view

The more appropriate graph is the pie chart .
Reason:Because he is using percentages to interperate the data.Pie
charts are good to show percentages represented by each catergory

Pie chart

Chart Title
2% 1%
4%
13%
24%

56%

Strongly disagree Disagree Neutral

Agree Strongly agree Not sure

From the pie chart above,it can be concluded that Abangs view is not
accurate.
Reason for this: 24% strongly agree
56% agree
13% neutral
So,he only mentions about the 24% strongly agree but he did not take
into account of other views such as agree and neutral.Also,these
percentages are subjected to change over time
Hence it can be concluded that Abangs view is not accurate

Part 2: Explain how you would administer the same survey* in RP by considering the following:
 Sample size (use the course intake numbers for 2020 as an estimate)
 Sampling strategy (include at least ONE strategy and explain why)
 Method for conducting (e.g. phone, email, etc.)
[Tip: bolden the fonts of key terms you used to show your lecturer you are applying concepts]
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G101 AY2020 Critical Thinking and Problem Solving

Lesson 8: Numbers in the news

Click here for access to a rough guide of RP course intake numbers per school. You can work with an average range of 13000 to 15000 polytechnic students in total (Year 1 to 3, inclusive).

*You do not need to redesign the questions. Assume that the survey contains only the 5 items Abang mentioned in the problem statement.

Since the sample size has to be more than 30 respondents (30-400 preferred),350 participants will be used for the survey

For the sampling strategy, I will choose random sampling. Since there are students from different years (year 1,2 and 3),random sample is better as it divides the selection into different subgroups
This allows the group data to be better represented, allowing us to then pick a random sample within each year to aid in the conclusion for the survey

Method for conducting: Online surveys which will be sent to all RP students via their RP email
Reason for this:
1. It is able to target a wider range of audience
2. Easy to compile the data
3. Easy to administer as compared to other methods such as phone calls and face to face

Word count: ______________ (not including 270 words from the template, and links/references if any)

References
(include the links, if any)

Honour Code

Student Acknowledgment

I __________LIM LIANG XUAN 20007322_________ (Name and Student ID) fully understand and accept the above-stated honour code without reservation.