Mr. White notices that of the 30 students in his science class, 18 are using yellow pencils, 6 are using blue pencils, 4 are using erasable ink pens,
and 2 are using mechanical pencils. If his class is representative of the student body, and there are 600 students in the school, what is the best prediction of the total number of students that are using erasable pens?
A 80 students
B 120 students
C 100 students
D 300 students
4/30 = 0.1333 = 13.33%
0.1333 * 600 = 80 students
To find the best prediction of the total number of students using erasable pens, we need to determine the proportion of students in the science class that use erasable pens and apply that proportion to the total number of students in the school.
First, we need to calculate the proportion of students using erasable pens in the science class. We have been given that out of the 30 students in Mr. White's science class, 4 are using erasable pens. To find the proportion, we divide the number of students using erasable pens by the total number of students in the class:
Proportion of students using erasable pens = Number of students using erasable pens / Total number of students in the class
Proportion of students using erasable pens = 4 / 30 ≈ 0.133
Next, we apply this proportion to the total number of students in the school to make the prediction. We know that there are 600 students in the school, so to find the best prediction of the total number of students using erasable pens, we multiply the proportion we calculated by the total number of students in the school:
Best prediction of total number of students using erasable pens = Proportion of students using erasable pens * Total number of students in the school
Best prediction of total number of students using erasable pens = 0.133 * 600 = 79.8
Rounding it to the nearest whole number, the best prediction of the total number of students using erasable pens is 80 students.
Therefore, the correct answer is A) 80 students.