Carl wants to estimate the number of students in 5th grade who like to play basketball. He needs to create a random sample of students. How should Carl collect his sample?

Question

A.
Carl should ask 30 students who are playing basketball.

B.
Carl should ask 30 5th-grade students.

C.
Carl should ask 30 students who are playing football.

D.
Carl should ask 30 students who go to the same school.

Answer 1

To create a random sample that accurately represents the population of 5th-grade students who like to play basketball, Carl should aim to ensure that his sample is unbiased and reflects the diversity of all 5th-grade students.

The best option would be:

B. Carl should ask 30 5th-grade students.

This option ensures that he is sampling directly from the population of interest (5th-grade students), rather than limiting his sample to those engaged in a specific activity (like basketball or football) or those from a specific school without ensuring they are representative of all 5th graders.