An outlier in a scatterplot sits far from the pattern most dots follow. Read the axes, then trace the main group of dots from left to right. Compare a dot that looks unusual with the scores at nearby horizontal positions. A large or small coordinate alone doesn’t make a point an outlier if it still fits the pattern.
Hints
- Hint 1
An outlier is a dot far from the pattern made by most dots, not necessarily the dot farthest right or highest up. As the number of quizzes increases, what happens to most test scores?
- Hint 2
Compare a dot with others at nearby quiz counts. A score might look ordinary among all the scores but be unusual for its position on the horizontal axis. Does each dot fit the rising group?
Step-by-step
Read the pattern in the scatterplot
Step 1Find the pattern most dots follow
No Desmos needed. Read the pattern directly from the scatterplot. The horizontal axis gives quizzes taken, and the vertical axis gives test score. Dots such as , , and rise from left to right, so most scores increase as quiz counts increase.
- Step 2
Compare the dots at nine quizzes
At quizzes, the plot has dots at and . The score fits between the nearby scores of at quizzes and at quizzes. The score is far below that pattern. An outlier is far from the pattern at its horizontal position. So the outlier represents a student who took quizzes and scored : . Choice A.