STUDY GUIDE

STATISTICS & PROBABILITY | UNIT 10

Student’s 𝒕-Distribution

Table of Contents

Introduction .................................................................................................................................... 3
Test Your Prerequisite Skills ........................................................................................................ 4
Objectives ...................................................................................................................................... 4
Lesson 1: The 𝒕-Distribution
- Warm Up! ........................................................................................................................... 5
- Learn about It! ................................................................................................................... 6
- Let’s Practice! ..................................................................................................................... 8
- Check Your Understanding! ............................................................................................ 11
Lesson 2: Regions under the t-Distribution
- Warm Up! ......................................................................................................................... 13
- Learn about It! ................................................................................................................. 13
- Let’s Practice! ................................................................................................................... 16
- Check Your Understanding! ............................................................................................ 21
Lesson 3: Calculating Percentiles Using the t-Distribution
- Warm Up! ......................................................................................................................... 22
- Learn about It! ................................................................................................................. 22
- Let’s Practice! ................................................................................................................... 23
- Check Your Understanding! ............................................................................................ 28
Lesson 4: Constructing a Confidence Interval Using the t-Distribution
- Warm Up! ......................................................................................................................... 30
- Learn about It! ................................................................................................................. 30
- Let’s Practice! ................................................................................................................... 31
- Check Your Understanding! ............................................................................................ 37
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Challenge Yourself! ..................................................................................................................... 38

Performance Task ....................................................................................................................... 39
Wrap-up ....................................................................................................................................... 41
Key to Let’s Practice! .................................................................................................................... 42
References ................................................................................................................................... 43

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Table of Contents
GRADE 11/12 | STATISTICS & PROBABILITY

UNIT 10

Student’s 𝒕-Distribution
In the process of collecting data, you might realize that
gathering large samples is either extremely difficult, very
costly, or very time-consuming. For example, in conducting
an experiment on a new but very expensive process of
manufacturing electric cars, you might be able to study
only a few numbers of these cars. With only a few objects
of study, you might find it difficult to describe the cost-effectiveness of all the products
produced by such a process.

Similarly, as a medical researcher, you might find it difficult to call for

many volunteers for a study about blood count, for example, or
other health-related studies. In these sample cases, the large-sample
tests and estimations, such as z-Distribution, are of no use to you.

These are just some examples that illustrate cases where the researcher might need to
consider getting few respondents or small samples only. Thus, a corresponding statistic
that could inform us about possible inferences that we could derive from small samples is
necessary.

In this unit, we will focus on a distribution called Student’s 𝑡-distribution, which we could
use in cases where the data involved small-size samples such as the ones mentioned
above.

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Test Your Prerequisite Skills

• Calculating sample mean

• Calculating the standard deviation of samples

Before you get started, answer the following items on a separate sheet of paper. This will
help you assess your prior knowledge and practice some skills that you will need in
studying the lessons in this unit. Show your complete solution.

Calculate the mean and the standard deviation of the following sets of samples:

1.
10 12 15 8 7 18
1 4 7 9 10 5

2.
20 30 15 21 9 11
12 24 37 18 12 7

Objectives

At the end of this unit, you should be able to

• illustrate the 𝑡-distribution;
• construct a 𝑡-distribution;
• identify regions under the 𝑡-distribution corresponding to different 𝑡-values; and
• identify percentiles using the 𝑡-table.

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Lesson 1: The 𝒕-Distribution

Warm Up!

How Tall Are You?

Materials Needed: pen and paper

Instructions:
1. This activity will be done by the entire class divided into 4 groups.
2. Each group will determine the height (in cm) of the members.
3. Record the data using a table like the one provided below.

Student Name Height (in cm)

4. Calculate the mean and the standard deviation of the heights of the members.
5. Compare and contrast the results between groups.

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Learn about It!

In the Warm Up! activity, you might have noticed that the means vary greatly among
groups. This is a result of having only a few samples. If there are more participants, the
means would be closer to each other and eventually would represent the general
population. In cases where few samples are involved, we use a distribution called t-
distribution to make valid inferences.

Recall that when the original sampled population is normal, the sampling distributions of
the sample mean 𝑥̅ and the z-score are exactly normal regardless of the sample size.
However, when the original sampled population is not normally distributed, the sampling
distributions of the sample mean 𝑥̅ and the z-scores are approximately normal only when
the sample size is large (𝑛 > 30). Unfortunately, if the sample size is small (𝑛 ≤ 30), the z-
statistic does not follow a normal distribution. This means that, for example, we can no
longer say that 𝑥̅ will lie within 1.96 standard deviations away from the population mean
95% of the time.

This problem is not new and has been studied by statisticians. An Englishman named W.S.
Gosset used a mathematical approach to derive a complicated formula for the density
function that describes the sampling distribution for small samples. He published his
results under the pen name “Student” and the statistic has been known as Student’s 𝒕.

The 𝒕-distribution (or Student’s 𝑡-distribution) is a probability distribution that is used to

estimate population parameters when the sample size is small (𝑛 ≤ 30). It can also be
used when the population is unknown.

If the distribution of a random variable 𝑥 is approximately normal, then the formula

𝑥̅ − 𝜇
𝑡= 𝑠
√𝑛
follows a 𝑡-distribution.
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Characteristics of a 𝒕-distribution

1. The 𝑡-distribution is bell-shaped and symmetric about 𝑡 = 0, similar to the normal

distribution.
2. The total area under a 𝑡-curve is 1 (or 100%, similar to the normal distribution).
3. The mean, median, and mode of the 𝑡-distribution are all equal to zero.
𝑛−1
4. The variance of the 𝑡-distribution is equal to which approaches 1 as 𝑛 increases
𝑛−3
infinitely.

𝜇=0

5. The 𝑡-distribution is a family of curves, each determined by a parameter known as

degrees of freedom (𝑑𝑓). This term refers to the number of free choices left after a
sample statistic such as 𝑥̅ is calculated and is given by

𝑑𝑓 = 𝑛 – 1 for a single group; or

𝑑𝑓 = 𝑛1 + 𝑛2 – 2 for two groups,

where 𝑛, 𝑛1 , 𝑛2 are the sample sizes.

6. As the sample size 𝑛 gets larger, the 𝑡-distribution gets closer to the normal
distribution.

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The critical values of 𝑡 allows us to make reliable inferences about the population mean.
The 𝑡-distribution can also be used to test hypotheses concerning population mean and
sample mean, and the difference between two means. However, we need to make sure
that the sample meets the following conditions:

1. The sample is small (𝑛 ≤ 30) and randomly selected.

2. The population standard deviation 𝜎 is unknown.
3. The parent population, the population from which you are sampling, is essentially
normal.

Let’s Practice!

Example 1: What is the degrees of freedom of a sample of 25?

Solution: The degrees of freedom of a single group is 𝑛 − 1 where 𝑛 is the sample size.
Hence, the degrees of freedom of a sample size of 25 is 𝑑𝑓 = 25 − 1 = 24.

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Try It Yourself!

If the degrees of freedom of a sample consist of one group only is 15, what is the
sample size?

Example 2: Two sets of samples from a normal population was randomly selected. If the
first group consists of 20 respondent while the second group consists of 18
respondent, what is the degrees of freedom?

Solution: The degrees of freedom for two groups is given by 𝑑𝑓 = 𝑛1 + 𝑛2 − 2. Hence,

the degrees of freedom of the given case must be 𝑑𝑓 = 20 + 18 − 2 = 36.

Try It Yourself!

Two sample sizes of 15 and 10 were taken from a male and a female population,
respectively. What is the corresponding degrees of freedom of the given samples?

Example 3: Suppose 24 respondents were randomly selected from a normal population

with a population mean of 45. If the sample mean of these 24 scores is 50,
and the standard deviation is 8, what is the corresponding 𝑡-value?

Solution: Since the sample size is small (𝑛 < 30) and it was randomly selected from a
normal population, we can use the formula

𝑥̅ − 𝜇
𝑡= 𝑠
√𝑛

to calculate 𝑡-value. 9
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Based on the given, the following are the values we can substitute to the
formula:
𝑥̅ = 50, 𝜇 = 45, 𝑠 = 8, and 𝑛 = 24.

Hence,
𝑥̅ − 𝜇 50 − 45
𝑡= 𝑠 = 8 = 3.06
√𝑛 √24

Try It Yourself!

Suppose you have a sample of 18 scores from a normal population with a population
mean of 18. If the mean of the 20 scores is 15 and the standard deviation is 3.5, what is
the corresponding 𝑡-value of the given?

Example 4: A sample of internet connect times (in hours) is

obtained from 15 students. For this sample, the mean is
8.2 while the standard deviation is 3.4. If the population
mean from which the sample was from is 10.1, what is
the corresponding 𝑡- value and degrees of freedom for
mean connect times of all such students?

Solution: To calculate the degrees of freedom, we use 𝑑𝑓 = 𝑛 − 1:

𝑑𝑓 = 15 − 1 = 14

To calculate the 𝑡-value, we use

𝑥̅ − 𝜇 8.2 − 10.1
𝑡= 𝑠 = 3.4 = −2.164
√𝑛 √15

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Try It Yourself!

A sample of 10 was randomly collected from a population whose

age ranges from 20 to 30 years to determine their work
experience (in years). The average number of years of work
experience of such population is 8. If the mean of the sample is
8.2 and the standard deviation is 1.3, what is the corresponding
𝑑𝑓 and 𝑡-value of the sample?

Check Your Understanding!

1. Complete the table below.

𝒏 𝒅𝒇
a. 15
b. 24
c. 18
d. 30
e. 17
f. 25
g. 7
h. 11
i. 15

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2. Calculate the 𝑡-value for each item.

𝒏 ̅
𝒙 𝝁 𝒔 𝒕-value
a. 15 2.5 1.3 0.7
b. 7 7 6.5 1.4
c. 18 9 10.1 3.3
d. 30 10.3 10.1 4.4
e. 6 24.52 22.7 2.1

3. A sample of time use (in hours) is obtained from 15 students. For this sample, the
mean is 10 while the standard deviation is 2.8. If the population mean from which
the sample was obtained is 9.1, what is the corresponding 𝑡-value and degrees of
freedom for the mean time use of all such students?

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Lesson 2: Regions under the t-Distribution

Warm Up!

Are-a Ready?

Materials Needed: Grid paper, pen

Instructions:
1. This activity will be done individually.
2. Provide the students with grid papers.
3. Challenge the students to draw as many as possible different closed figures
with the following given areas:
a. 15 square units
b. 20 square units
c. 5.5 square units
4. The students may use straight or curved lines, polygons or basic shapes.
5. Have some students with different answers present their work on the board.

Learn about It!

The Warm Up! activity shows us that we can draw different

closed figures with the same areas. Similarly, we can have
different illustrations for t-distributions. All of which will
have the same area of 100% or 1. These different t-
distributions are determined by their degrees of freedom.
The number of degrees of freedom is based on the
number of observations in a set of data.

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For a single group of samples, the degrees of freedom (𝑑𝑓) is equal to the sample size 𝑛
minus one:

𝑑𝑓 = 𝑛 − 1.

For other situations, the degrees of freedom can be calculated differently. The degrees of
freedom may change for different applications and, since they specify a correct t-
distribution to use, it is important to calculate the degrees of freedom correctly. For
example, when dealing with two groups of samples, the degrees of freedom is calculated
as
𝑑𝑓 = 𝑛1 + 𝑛2 − 2

where 𝑛1 and 𝑛2 are the two sample sizes.

Also, because the table of probabilities for the standard normal distribution is no longer
useful in computing critical values or p-values for the t-statistic, we will use a new
distribution table instead (see Table 1). When we choose a particular degrees of freedom,
the 𝑡-distribution table shows us the critical values of 𝑡 whose upper-tail area is equal to
the probability indicated by the figure on the top column where the 𝑡-value is located.

For example, the critical value of 𝑡 that is equal to 0.941 with 𝑑𝑓 = 4 has a cumulative
probability of 0.20.

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This cumulative probability represents the area under the curve that is to the right of t =
0.941.

The following table shows the critical values of the t-distribution:

Upper-tail probability 𝒑
𝒅𝒇 .25 .20 .15 .10 .05 .025 .02 .01 .005 .0025 .001 .0005
1 1.000 1.376 1.963 3.078 6.314 12.71 15.89 31.82 63.66 127.3 318.3 636.6
2 0.816 1.061 1.386 1.886 2.920 4.303 4.849 6.965 9.925 14.09 22.33 31.60
3 0.765 0.978 1.250 1.638 2.353 3.182 3.482 4.541 5.841 7.453 10.21 12.92
4 0.741 0.941 1.190 1.533 2.132 2.776 2.999 3.747 4.604 5.598 7.173 8.610
5 0.727 0.920 1.156 1.476 2.015 2.571 2.757 3.365 4.032 4.773 5.893 6.869
6 0.718 0.906 1.134 1.440 1.943 2.447 2.612 3.143 3.707 4.317 5.208 5.959
7 0.711 0.896 1.119 1.415 1.895 2.365 2.517 2.998 3.499 4.029 4.785 5.408
8 0.706 0.889 1.108 1.397 1.860 2.306 2.449 2.896 3.335 3.833 4.501 5.041
9 0.703 0.883 1.100 1.383 1.833 2.262 2.398 2.821 3.250 3.690 4.297 4.781
10 0.700 0.879 1.093 1.372 1.812 2.228 2.359 2.764 3.169 3.581 4.144 4.587
11 0.697 0.876 1.088 1.363 1.796 2.201 2.328 2.718 3.106 3.497 4.025 4.437
12 0.695 0.873 1.083 1.356 1.782 2.179 2.303 2.681 3.055 3.428 3.930 4.318
13 0.694 0.870 1.079 1.350 1.771 2.160 2.282 2.650 3.012 3.372 3.852 4.221
14 0.692 0.868 1.076 1.345 1.761 2.145 2.264 2.624 2.977 3.326 3.787 4.140
15 0.691 0.866 1.074 1.341 1.753 2.131 2.249 2.602 2.947 3.286 3.733 4.073
16 0.690 0.865 1.071 1.337 1.746 2.120 2.235 2.583 2.921 3.252 3.686 4.015
17 0.689 0.863 1.069 1.333 1.740 2.110 2.224 2.567 2.898 3.222 3.646 3.965
18 0.688 0.862 1.067 1.330 1.734 2.101 2.214 2.552 2.878 3.197 3.611 3.922
19 0.688 0.861 1.066 1.328 1.729 2.093 2.205 2.539 2.861 3.174 3.579 3.883
20 0.687 0.860 1.064 1.325 1.725 2.086 2.197 2.528 2.845 3.153 3.552 3.850
21 0.686 0.859 1.063 1.323 1.721 2.080 2.189 2.518 2.831 3.135 3.527 3.819
22 0.686 0.858 1.061 1.321 1.717 2.074 2.183 2.508 2.819 3.119 3.505 3.792
23 0.685 0.858 1.060 1.319 1.714 2.069 2.177 2.500 2.807 3.104 3.485 3.768
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24 0.685 0.857 1.059 1.318 1.711 2.064 2.172 2.492 2.797 3.091 3.467 3.745
25 0.684 0.856 1.058 1.316 1.708 2.060 2.167 2.485 2.787 3.078 3.450 3.725
26 0.684 0.856 1.058 1.315 1.706 2.056 2.162 2.479 2.779 3.067 3.435 3.707
27 0.684 0.855 1.057 1.314 1.703 2.052 2.158 2.473 2.771 3.057 3.421 3.690
28 0.683 0.855 1.056 1.313 1.701 2.048 2.154 2.467 2.763 3.047 3.408 3.674
29 0.683 0.854 1.055 1.311 1.699 2.045 2.150 2.462 2.756 3.038 3.396 3.659
30 0.683 0.854 1.055 1.310 1.697 2.042 2.147 2.457 2.750 3.030 3.385 3.646
40 0.681 0.851 1.050 1.303 1.684 2.021 2.123 2.423 2.704 2.971 3.307 3.551
50 0.679 0.849 1.047 1.299 1.676 2.009 2.109 2.403 2.678 2.937 3.261 3.496
60 0.679 0.848 1.045 1.296 1.671 2.000 2.099 2.390 2.660 2.915 3.232 3.460
80 0.678 0.846 1.043 1.292 1.664 1.990 2.088 2.374 2.639 2.887 3.195 3.416
100 0.677 0.845 1.042 1.290 1.660 1.984 2.081 2.364 2.626 2.871 3.174 3.390
1000 0.675 0.842 1.037 1.282 1.646 1.962 2.056 2.330 2.581 2.813 3.098 3.300
z* 0.674 0.841 1.036 1.282 1.645 1.960 2.054 2.326 2.576 2.807 3.091 3.291

Let’s Practice!

Example 1: In a 𝑡-distribution, what is the area under the curve that is to the right of 𝑡 =
1.708 and with 𝑑𝑓 = 25?

Solution: By using the 𝑡-distribution table,

we will see that the area to the
right of 𝑡 = 1.708 with 𝑑𝑓 = 25 is
0.05.

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Try It Yourself!

In a 𝑡-distribution, what is the area under the curve that is to the right of 𝑡 = 2.048
and with 𝑑𝑓 = 28?

Example 2: A sample size of 20 has been randomly selected from a normal population to
be used for a particular study. After using the 𝑡-statistic, the researcher found
out that the area to the right of the 𝑡-value is 20%. What is the 𝑡-value?

Solution: Since the sample size is 20, 𝑑𝑓 must be equal

to 20 – 1 = 19. Now, we need to look at the row
that contains the 𝑑𝑓 =19 and trace the 𝑡-value
whose upper-tail probability is 0.20, as shown
below.

Try It Yourself!

Suppose you have a sample size of 12 from a normal population. Find the value of 𝑡
such that only 2.5% of all values of 𝑡 will be larger.

Example 3: A sample of 25 was randomly selected from a normal population. If the

computed sample mean is 36, the population mean is 29, and the standard
deviation is 8, what is the 𝑡-value and approximately how many of all the
values of 𝑡 is less than the 𝑡-value?

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Solution: To solve the problem, we can use the formula for 𝑡:

𝑥̅ − 𝜇
𝑡= 𝑠
√𝑛

In the given problem, 𝑥̅ = 32, 𝜇 = 29, 𝑠 = 8, and 𝑛 = 36. Substituting these

values to the formula, we will obtain the value of 𝑡 as

32 − 29 3
𝑡= 8 = 8 = 2.25
√36 6

We know that 𝑑𝑓 = 25 – 1 = 24, so we will look at the row where 𝑑𝑓 = 24 and

locate the 𝑡-value of 2.25. In doing so, we will notice that it is between two
critical values, as shown below.

Hence, the upper-tail probability of our computed 𝑡-value is also between

0.01 and 0.02. This further means that the percentage of values less than the
computed 𝑡-value is around 0.98 to 0.99 or 98% to 99% of all scores.

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Try It Yourself!

A sample of 18 was randomly selected from a normal population. If the computed

sample mean is 25.49, the population mean is 23, and the standard deviation is 5,
what is the corresponding 𝑡-value and what is the area under the curve that is to
the right of the 𝑡-value?

Real-World Problems

Example 4: In a study-habit research, 20 graduating students

were selected to determine the number of hours
they spend each day on a research paper. If the
standard deviation of these 2 scores is 1.5 hours and
the population mean is 3 hours, what is the
probability that the sample mean is 3.5 hours or
less?

Solution: To solve the problem, we can use the formula for 𝑡:

𝑥̅ − 𝜇
𝑡= 𝑠
√𝑛

In the given problem, 𝑥̅ = 3.5, 𝜇 = 3, 𝑠 = 2, and 𝑛 = 20. Substituting these

values to the formula, we will have the value of 𝑡 as

3.5 − 3
𝑡= 2 = 1.118
√20

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Since 𝑛 = 20, 𝑑𝑓 must be equal to 19. So, we need to look at the row where
𝑑𝑓 =19 and locate the 𝑡-value of 1.118. In doing so, we will notice that it is
between two critical values, as shown below.

Since the 𝑡-value is between 1.066 and 1.328, the upper-tail probability of the
sample mean is between 0.10 and 0.15. Hence, the probability that the
sample mean is 3.5 hours or less is around 0.85 to 0.90.

Try It Yourself!

An apparel company randomly selects seventeen18-year old boys

and records various measurements. Their heights have a mean
of 160 cm and the standard deviation is 11.8. Calculate the
probability that a 15-year old boy will have a height greater than
the mean height of all 18-year old boys if the mean height of such
population is 155 cm.

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Check Your Understanding!

1. Complete the table below by using the 𝑡-distribution table.

𝒕-value 𝒅𝒇 Lower-tail probability Upper-tail probability

2.571 5
10 0.02
12 0.975
0.870 13
24 0.001

2. Calculate the 𝑡-value of the following given then determine the area of the region
under the curve that is to the right of the calculated 𝑡-value. Note: Choose the
closest value in the table.

Upper-tail
𝒏 ̅
𝒙 𝝁 𝒔 𝒕-value 𝒅𝒇
probability
a. 22 4.87 4 1.3
b. 13 5.2 3 2
c. 5 12 14 2.09
d. 10 12.16 11 1.3
e. 9 12.2 9 5.16

3. The test scores for a 100-item test were recorded for 20 students. If the sample
mean is 85 and the standard deviation is 10, and the population mean for such test
was found to be 80, what is the percentage of the students got a score higher than
the mean?

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Lesson 3: Calculating Percentiles Using the t-Distribution

Warm Up!

Line It Up!

Materials Needed: pen, paper, tape measure

Instructions:
1. This activity will be done initially by group, and then as a class.
2. Divide the class into 4 groups. In each group, the members will measure their
arm span.
3. List down the measurements and arrange in increasing order.
4. Your teacher will ask a random member from each group to describe his or her
arm span relative to the measurements of the other students’.

Learn about It!

Comparing a measure relative to the value of the other scores in the data is a sample of
measures of position. In the given Warm Up! activity, if your arm span is greater than half
of the arms span of your classmates, that means that your arms span represents the 50th
percentile.

Recall that percentiles are sets of scores that divide the whole set of data into 100 equal
parts. This means that the 95th percentile, for example, is the value that separates the
lower 95% and the upper 5% of the scores.

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On a statistical distribution, a percentile is defined in a similar sense. That is, a percentile

is a number on a statistical distribution whose percentage is equal to the area to its left
that is under the curve.

For instance, the 90th percentile of the t-distribution is the value whose left-tail probability
(the area under the curve that is to the left of the t critical value) is 0.90 and whose right-
tail probability (the area under the curve that is to the right of the t critical value) is 0.10.

We can use the t-table (refer to the table in the previous lesson) to calculate and solve
problems involving percentiles.

Let’s Practice!

Example 1: If 𝑡 = 3.747 with degrees of freedom equal to 4, what percentile does this
represent?

Solution: Let us look at the t-table.

The given 𝑑𝑓 is 4, so we need to look at the row containing 4 as the degrees

of freedom. Then, we locate the 𝑡-value equal to 3.747.

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We will see that the upper-tail probability is equal to 0.01 or 1%. This means
that to the right of 𝑡 = 3.747 with 𝑑𝑓 = 4, the area under the curve is 0.01.
Consequently, the area to the left of the 𝑡-value must be 0.99. Hence, the
t-score given represents the 99th percentile.

Try It Yourself!

If 𝑡 = 1.093 with degrees of freedom equal to 10, what percentile does this
represent?

Example 2: It was found out that in a sample of 24 students the 90th percentile of the
first quarter grades was 89. What is the corresponding 𝑡-value of this score?

Solution: Since we are looking for the 𝑡-value that

represents the 90th percentile, we need to look
at the table with an upper-tail probability of 0.10.
We also need to consider that the degrees of
freedom is 𝑑𝑓 = 24 − 1 = 23.

Hence, the corresponding 𝑡-value of the 90th

percentile score is 1.319, as shown.

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Try It Yourself!

In a sample of 28 test takers, 5% got a score higher than 150. What is the
corresponding 𝑡-value of this score?

Example 3: Suppose 19 respondents were selected from a normal population. If the

mean population was 10, the sample mean is 11.52, and the standard
deviation is 2.3, what percentile does the 𝑡-value of the given represent?

Solution:
Step 1: Identify the degrees of freedom: 𝑑𝑓 = 19 − 1 = 18.
Step 2: Calculate the 𝑡-value:
𝑥̅ − 𝜇 11.35 − 10
𝑡= 𝑠 = 2.3 = 2.558
√𝑛 √19

Step 3: Locate the upper tail probability using the computed 𝑡-value and 𝑑𝑓.

The closest value that we have in the tale is 2.552 and since the upper-tail
probability of this 𝑡-value is 0.01, the given mean approximately represents
the 99th percentile. This means that only 1% of the all t-values will be greater
than 2.552.
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Try It Yourself!

Suppose 25 respondents were selected from a normal population. If the population

mean was 12, the sample mean is 13.06, and the standard deviation is 5, what
percentile does the 𝑡-value of the given represent?

Real-World Problems

Example 4: A medical researcher conducted a study about the effect

of an antiplaque rinse on plaque buildup on teeth on
seven people. A plaque index (a measure of plaque
buildup) was recorded for 15 days and are presented
below.

1.26, 1.54, 3.5, 7.8, 2.2, 0.8, 1.01

If the population mean of such sample is 1.53, determine the percentile of

the sample mean.

Solution: First, find the mean by adding all the scores and then divide by seven:

1.26 + 1.54 + 3.5 + 7.8 + 2.2 + 0.8 + 1.01

= 2.587
7

Next, calculate the sample standard deviation 𝑠.

𝒙 𝒙−𝒙̅ ̅) 𝟐
(𝒙 − 𝒙
1.26 −1.32714 1.761308
1.54 −1.04714 1.096508
3.5 0.912857 0.833308
7.8 5.212857 27.17388 26
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2.2 −0.38714 0.14988

0.8 −1.78714 3.19388
1.01 −1.57714 2.48738
∑(𝑥 − 𝑥̅ )2 = 36.69614

∑(𝑥 − 𝑥̅ )2 36.69614
𝑠=√ =√ ≈ 2.473
𝑛−1 7−1

Next, calculate the 𝑡-value:

𝑥̅ − 𝜇 2.587 − 1.53
𝑡= 𝑠 = 2.473 = 1.13
√𝑛 √7

Lastly, locate the upper-tail probability using the calculated 𝑡-value and 𝑑𝑓.

Since the upper-tail probability is 0.15, the 𝑡-value of the sample mean is the
85th percentile of the scores. This further means that the mean is higher
than 85% of all the 𝑡-vallues.

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Try It Yourself!

A botanist conducted a study about a fertilizer by measuring

the heights of 10 plants (in centimeters) after five days of using
the said fertilizer. Estimate the percentile rank of the sample
mean if the population mean is 4 cm.

Heights of the 10 plants: 3 cm, 7 cm, 8 cm, 5 cm, 1 cm, 1 cm, 10 cm, 5 cm, 7 cm, 5 cm

Check Your Understanding!

1. Determine the percentile rank of the following 𝑡-scores and degrees of freedom.

𝒕-value 𝒅𝒇 Percentile Rank

0.711 7
2.821 9
2.249 15
0.859 21
1.703 27

2. Determine the 𝑡-value and the corresponding percentile rank of each of the
following sets of given (Note: use the nearest t-value that can be found on the t-
distribution table).

𝒏 ̅
𝒙 𝝁 𝒔 𝒕-value 𝒅𝒇 Percentile Rank
a. 13 45.008 43 2.7
b. 11 23 20 4.22
c. 19 31 30 4.1
d. 22 17 15.5 2.25
e. 23 19 20 1.91
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3. A company statistician took 6 samples of the battery produced by the company and
tested how long each will last when used to power a flashlight continuously. The
following are the number of hours (h) the 6 batteries lasted:

1.5 h, 2 h, 1.75 h, 2.1 h, 1.9 h, 2.2 h

If the population mean of such batteries is 1.7 hours, what is the percentile rank of
the sample mean of the 6 batteries?

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Lesson 4: Constructing a Confidence Interval Using the

t-Distribution

Warm Up!

Guess What?

Materials Needed: pictures of different objects (e.g. bus, building, door)

Instructions:
1. This activity will be done as a class.
2. Your teacher will show you images of objects (with hidden measurement) and
will ask you to estimate the length or the height of each object.
3. The one whose guess is closest to the actual measurement of the object will
earn 1 point.

Learn about It!

Estimating measures is important in the field of mathematics. However,

the estimate must be close enough to the exact value. The length or
height of the given objects in the Warm Up! Activity, for example, can be
estimated by comparing it to known measures such as1 foot, 1 meter, etc.
Similarly, constructing a confidence interval in statistics is a form
estimation. It gives us a range of values that encloses the measure we are
estimating.

Constructing a confidence interval is particularly helpful when we want to know where a

parameter is more likely to be located. For example, if we want to estimate and describe
the mean height of girls and boys from a population using only a few samples, we could
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get a range of values by constructing an interval estimator otherwise known as confidence

interval. In some cases, we could also use the confidence interval to test claims or
hypotheses.

To construct a confidence interval for small samples, we follow the steps indicated below.

Guidelines in constructing a confidence interval for the mean in 𝒕-distribution:

1. Identify the following sample statistics: sample size 𝑛, sample mean 𝑥̅ , and sample
standard deviation 𝑠.
2. Identify the degrees of freedom 𝑑𝑓, the level of confidence (1 − 𝛼)
3. Calculate the corresponding critical value 𝑡𝛼/2 (from the 𝑡-distribution table).
𝑠
4. Find the margin of error 𝐸 = 𝑡𝛼/2 ( 𝑛), where 𝑡𝛼/2 has 𝑛 − 1 degrees of freedom.
√
5. Find the left and right endpoints and write down the confidence interval as:
𝑠 𝑠
𝑥̅ − 𝑡𝛼/2 ( ) < 𝜇 < 𝑥̅ + 𝑡𝛼/2 ( )
√𝑛 √𝑛

Let’s Practice!

Example 1: Suppose you have to construct a 90% confidence interval for an 18-sample
study, what is the corresponding critical value of 𝑡𝛼/2 ?

Solution: The sample size is 18; thus, 𝑑𝑓 = 17.

Since we need to construct a 90%
interval, it means that our 𝛼 is 0.1.
Henceforth, 𝛼/2 is 0.05.

With these, we can now look at the

corresponding critical value of 𝑡𝛼/2
using the 𝑡-distribution table.

Thus, 𝑡𝛼/2 = 1.740.

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Try It Yourself!

Suppose you have to construct a 98% confidence interval for a 10-sample study,
what is the corresponding critical value of 𝑡𝛼/2 ?

Example 2: A sample of 15 from a normal population was randomly selected. If the mean
of these 15 scores is 30 and the standard deviation is 7, construct a 95%
confidence interval.

Solution:
Step 1: Determine the sample statistics 𝑛, 𝑥̅ , and 𝑠.

𝑛 = 15, 𝑥̅ = 30, and 𝑠 = 7

Step 2: Identify the degrees of freedom 𝑑𝑓 and the level of confidence(1 − 𝛼).

𝑑𝑓 = 15 − 1 = 14
Level of confidence: 95% or 0.95

Step 3. Calculate the corresponding critical value 𝑡𝛼/2 (from the 𝑡=distribution table).
𝛼
Since the level of confidence interval is 95%, we have 𝛼 = 0.05. Hence, 2 =
0.025.

Using the table, we need to locate the 𝑡-value with 14 𝑑𝑓 and 0.025 upper-tail
probability.

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STUDY GUIDE

𝑠
Step 4: Find the margin of error 𝐸 = 𝑡𝛼/2 ( 𝑛).
√
7
𝐸 = 2.145 ( ) = 3.877
√15

Step 5: Find the left and the right bounds using the formula:
𝑠 𝑠
𝑥̅ − 𝑡𝛼 ( ) < 𝜇 < 𝑥̅ + 𝑡𝛼 ( )
2 √𝑛 2 √𝑛

By substitution, we have

30 − 3.877 < 𝜇 < 30 + 3.877

26.123 < 𝜇 < 33.877

Hence, the confidence interval is 26.123 to 33.877

Try It Yourself!

The standard deviation and the mean of 25 students’ scores are 10 and 38,
respectively. Construct a 99% confidence interval.

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 STUDY GUIDE

Example 3: If the standard deviation and the mean of 30 teenagers’ heights are 25 cm
and 150 cm, respectively, construct a 95% confidence interval and interpret
the result.

Solution:
Step 1: Determine the sample statistics 𝑛, 𝑥̅ , and 𝑠.

𝑛 = 30, 𝑥̅ = 150, and 𝑠 = 25

Step 2: Identify the degrees of freedom 𝑑𝑓 and the level of confidence(1 − 𝛼).

𝑑𝑓 = 30 − 1 = 29
Level of confidence: 95% or 0.95

Step 3: Calculate the corresponding critical value 𝑡𝛼/2 (from the 𝑡=distribution table).

Since the level of confidence interval is 95%, our 𝛼 = 0.05.

Hence, 𝛼/2 = 0.025. Using the table, we need to locate the 𝑡-value with 29 𝑑𝑓
and 0.025 upper-tail probability.

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STUDY GUIDE

𝑠
Step 4: Find the margin of error 𝐸 = 𝑡𝛼/2 ( 𝑛).
√

25
𝐸 = 2.045 ( ) = 9.334
√30

Step 5: Find the left and the right bounds using the formula:

𝑠 𝑠
𝑥̅ − 𝑡𝛼 ( ) < 𝜇 < 𝑥̅ + 𝑡𝛼 ( )
2 √𝑛 2 √𝑛

By substitution, we have
150 − 9.334 < 𝜇 < 150 + 9.334
140.666 < 𝜇 < 159.334

Hence, the confidence interval is 26.123 to 33.877. This means that with a
95% level of confidence, we can say that the population mean height of
teenagers ranges from 140.666 cm to 159.334 cm.

Try It Yourself!

If the mean and the standard deviation of 21 scores are 50 cm and 6.5, respectively,
construct a 99% confidence interval and interpret the result.

Real-World Problems

Example 4: Suppose you work for the Department of

Environment and National Resources (DENR).
You want to estimate, with 95% confidence, the
mean length of all tilapia in a fish hatchery
pond. You take a random sample of 10 tilapia
and determine the average length is 10.5 inches and the sample standard
deviation is 2.9 inches. Construct a confidence interval for this sample and
interpret the result. 35
 STUDY GUIDE

Solution:
Step 1: Determine the sample statistics 𝑛, 𝑥̅ , and 𝑠.

𝑛 = 30, 𝑥̅ = 150, and 𝑠 = 25

Step 2: Identify the degrees of freedom 𝑑𝑓 and the level of confidence(1 − 𝛼).

𝑑𝑓 = 10 − 1 = 9
Level of confidence: 95% or 0.95

Step 3: Calculate the corresponding critical value 𝑡𝛼/2 (from the 𝑡=distribution table).
Since the level of confidence interval is 95%, we have 𝛼 = 0.05. Hence, 𝛼/2 =
0.025. Using the table, we need to locate the 𝑡-value with 𝑑𝑓 = 9 and 0.025
upper-tail probability.

𝑠
Step 4: Find the margin of error 𝐸 = 𝑡𝛼/2 ( ).
√𝑛

2.9
𝐸 = 2.262 ( ) = 2.07
√10

Step 5: Find the left and the right bounds using the formula:

𝑠 𝑠
𝑥̅ − 𝑡𝛼 ( ) < 𝜇 < 𝑥̅ + 𝑡𝛼 ( )
2 √𝑛 2 √𝑛 36
STUDY GUIDE

By substitution, we have
10.5 – 2.07 < 𝜇 < 10.5 + 2.07
8.43 < 𝜇 < 12.57

Hence, the confidence interval is 8.43 inches to 12.57 inches. This means
that, with a 95% level of confidence, the estimated population length of the
tilapia can be found between 8.43 inches to 12.57 inches.

Try It Yourself!

The red blood cell counts (in 106 cells per microliter) of 7 healthy persons are listed
below.
5.4, 4.9, 5.2, 5.5, 5.1, 5.3, 4.8

Find a 95% confidence interval estimate of the population mean.

Check Your Understanding!

1. Determine the value of 𝛼 and 𝑡𝛼/2 for each of the following given using the 𝑡-
distribution table.

Confidence Level 𝒅𝒇 𝜶 𝒕𝜶/𝟐

90% 7
95% 9
98% 15
99% 21
80% 27

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2. Construct the confidence interval satisfying the given information below by

completing the given table.

𝒏 𝒙̅ Confidence Level 𝒔 𝒅𝒇 𝒕𝜶/𝟐 Confidence Interval

a. 13 45.008 90% 1.5
b. 11 23 95% 2.3
c. 19 31 98% 3.7
d. 22 17 99% 5
e. 23 19 80% 2.1

3. A researcher would like to determine the average battery life of a laptop when it
plays music until the “low battery” sign comes on. If 9 laptops worked on an average
of 5.3 hours with a standard deviation of 1.2 hours, construct a confidence interval
with 95% level of confidence estimating the battery life of all laptops when playing
music.

Challenge Yourself!

1. Two sets of data of 13 samples each were collected. The computed t-value for the
first set was 0.695 while the second set has a 𝑡-value of 2.681. What is the area
under the curve that is between the two 𝑡-values?

2. Consider the graph of the normal

distribution and the t-distribution shown
on the right. Why are the tails of the t-
distribution heavier than the tails of the
normal distribution?

𝜇=0

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3. If you are tasked to create a confidence interval, which level of confidence would
you use to make sure that the estimate encloses the population perimeter? Why?

4. If you are given the 𝑡-value, population mean, standard deviation, and the sample
size, how would you solve for the sample mean?

5. If the percentile rank of a certain 𝑡-value is 25th while another 𝑡-value’s percentile
rank is 80th, how many scores (percentage) are not in between the two t-values?
Justify your answer.

Performance Task

As the statistician of a company manufacturing shoes for boys, you are tasked to provide
an estimate of the shoe size of 17- or 18- year old boys. You are required to do the
following:

1. Collect at least 15 measures but not more than 25 measures. To do this, collect the
shoe sizes of the 17- or 18- year old students in your school.
2. Construct a confidence interval to describe the estimate.
3. You are also tasked to determine the mean value of your samples and the
cumulative probability it represents.
4. Use graphical charts/illustrations to present your data.

You need to present your findings and analysis to the board members of the company.

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Performance Task Rubric

Below Needs Successful Exemplary

Criteria Expectation Improvement Performance Performance
(0–49%) (50–74%) (75–99%) (100%)
Accuracy of There are a There are a few All computations All computations
Computation significant number errors in the are correct, and are correct and
and Analysis of errors in the computation and the data are with a complete
of Data computations that there is no clear analyzed solution. The data
lead to wrong basis in the properly. are analyzed on
analysis of data. analysis of data. a clear basis.
Organization Data are not Data are Data are Data are
of Data organized organized organized organized
properly. properly but properly. All properly. All
some necessary information information
parts are needed in the needed in the
missing. analysis are analysis is
present. present.
Mathematical There is no The presentation The presentation The presentation
Justifications observable shows some shows an shows an in-
and comprehension of observable observable depth
Presentation the problem and understanding of complete understanding of
the method being the required understanding all the required
presented. The mathematical of the required mathematical
solution covers knowledge. mathematical components of
none of the Some of the components and the task. The
mathematics solutions used are presented solutions,
components are correctly clearly. procedures, data
required to solve executed.` are presented
the task clearly and
concisely.

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Wrap-up

Key Terms/Formulas

Key Term/Formula Description

𝑡-statistic The 𝑡-statistic is used when the sample is small (𝑛 ≤ 30) whose
parent population is normal.
𝑥̅ − 𝜇
𝑡=
𝑠/√𝑛 In the formula, 𝑥̅ is the sample mean, 𝜇 is the population mean, 𝑠 is
the standard deviation of the samples, and 𝑛 is the sample size.
Confidence interval The confidence interval provides an estimate of the population
mean.
𝑠
𝑥̅ − 𝑡𝛼 ( )<𝜇
2 √𝑛 In the given formula, 𝑥̅ is the sample mean, 𝑠 is the standard
𝑠
< 𝑥̅ + 𝑡𝛼 ( ) deviation of the samples, 𝑛 is the sample size, and 𝑡𝛼/2 is the 𝑡-
2 √𝑛

value of the 𝛼/2.

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Key to Let’s Practice!

Lesson 1
1. 16
2. 23
3. 2.42
4. 𝑑𝑓 = 9, 𝑡 ≈ 0.487

Lesson 2
1. 0.025
2. 2.201
3. 𝑡 = 2.11, area=0.025
4. 0.05

Lesson 3
1. 85th percentile
2. 1.703
3. 85th percentile
4. Between 85th and 90th percentile.

Lesson 4
1. 2.821
2. (32.406, 43.594)
3. (45.96, 54.04); this means that 99% of the time, the population perimeter is
between 45.96 and 54.04.
4. (4.93, 5.407)

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References

Mendenhall III, William, Robert J. Beaver, and Barabara M. Beaver. Introduction to

Probability and Statistics. United States of America: Brooks/Cole Cengage Learning,
2013.

Pennsylvania State University. “Students t-Distribution”. Accessed September 20, 2018.

https://onlinecourses.science.psu.edu/stat414/node/175/

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