Class 7 · Unit 4: Data visualisation · Lesson 4.2 · 40 min
Collecting data honestly
Are students on time in winter? Ask them, watch the gate, read a thermometer, or check the gate scanner. Four ways to collect data — which one do you trust?
Today you will: Collect real data four different ways · Find the weakness in your own method · Decide which method answers the question
Story
The headmaster wants to know: "Do our students get to school on time in winter?"
- Bilal says: "Let's ask everyone." (survey)
- Hiba says: "Let's stand at the gate and watch at 9:00." (observation)
- Their friend Zoya says: "Let's check the temperature each morning too, with the lab thermometer." (measurement)
- The computer teacher says: "The new gate scanner already records it." (digital collection)
Four ways to collect data. Which one should they trust?
Watch
Four ways to collect data — — scan code 7.4.2 in the printed book.
Warm up your fingers
8 minutes on typing.com: sentences.
- Term 2 sentence lessons.
- Custom lesson words: observation, survey, measurement, digital, anonymous, consent.
- Watch for capital letters with Shift. Use the opposite hand's Shift key.
On the laptop
You need: LibreOffice Calc · unit-4/collection-sheet.ods (four tabs, one per method) · paper slips · the classroom thermometer
Our question: "How warm is our classroom, and how do we feel about it?"
Mission 1: Collect (groups, 10 min)
- ☐1
Predict: which method will give the most useful answer? Each group writes a guess.
- ☐2
Collect for 10 minutes with your group's method:
- Observe: count pherans and jackets, and hands being rubbed — twice, 5 minutes apart.
- Ask: slips with no names — too cold / OK / too warm — into a box, then count.
- Measure: read the thermometer every 2 minutes, 5 readings, with the time.
- Digital: File → Properties on 5 photos in
unit-4/photos/— note when each was taken. The camera recorded that without anyone typing it.
Mission 2: Record and judge (groups, 8 min)
- ☐3
Type your data into your tab, headings in row 1.
- ☐4
Below it, type one weakness of your method — e.g. "Some wrote OK because their friend did."
- ☐5
Each group reads its weakness aloud. Which method best answers the question — or do we need two? Save as
collection-7.ods.
No laptop today?
Observation, survey and measurement all work on paper. The digital group reads the date printed on a bus ticket or a shop receipt instead.
Now you know
- Observation: watching carefully and recording what you see.
- Survey: asking questions and recording the answers.
- Measurement: an instrument — thermometer, scale, ruler — records values.
- Digital collection: devices record data by themselves — step counters, cameras, gate scanners.
- Collect honestly: ask permission, take only what you need, keep it anonymous, and write down your method's weakness.
Debate it
The gate scanner records the exact second every student arrives. It could answer the headmaster's question perfectly. Should it also be used to punish late students? Who should decide, and should the students be told?
Check yourself — practice, not a test
1. Match the method to the example:
Counting buses that pass the school gate · Asking classmates about their favourite winter food · Weighing apples on a scale · A phone counting your steps
Match with: Observation · Measurement · Survey · Digital collection2. Which method records data without anyone typing it in?
- ○ Survey
- ○ Observation
- ○ Digital collection
- ○ Measurement
3. A good survey asks for students' names so the answers are more accurate. (only collect what you need; anonymous answers are often more honest)
- ○ True
- ○ False
4. Which are weaknesses of a survey? (Choose all.)
- ○ People may forget
- ○ People may copy their friend's answer
- ○ The thermometer may be broken
- ○ People may not tell the truth
Remember
Pick the method that fits the question, collect only what you need, and write down its weakness.