Which of the following is an example of a parameter?

Over 10,000 out of 15,000 citizens in a precinct participate in a special election.

All 450 students attending a school are asked to rank the quality of cafeteria food.

Fifty students in first grade have their heights taken to estimate average length.

Thirty randomly selected teens are asked about their average weekly hours spent on the Internet.

A **parameter** is a value that describes a characteristic of a **population**, whereas a **statistic** describes a characteristic of a **sample**.

Let's review the options:

1. **Over 10,000 out of 15,000 citizens in a precinct participate in a special election.**  
   This is referring to the entire population of the precinct (15,000 citizens). Therefore, this describes a **parameter** since the data refers to the whole population.

2. **All 450 students attending a school are asked to rank the quality of cafeteria food.**  
   This describes the entire population of 450 students. Thus, this is a **parameter**.

3. **Fifty students in first grade have their heights taken to estimate the average length.**  
   This is an example of taking a **sample** of 50 students to estimate a characteristic (height) for a larger group. This is a **statistic**, not a parameter.

4. **Thirty randomly selected teens are asked about their average weekly hours spent on the Internet.**  
   This is also a **sample** of teens, and the data collected would be considered a **statistic**.

### Conclusion:
The correct examples of **parameters** are **(1) Over 10,000 out of 15,000 citizens in a precinct participate in a special election** and **(2) All 450 students attending a school are asked to rank the quality of cafeteria food.**

Would you like more details or clarifications? 

Here are 5 related questions to explore further:
1. What is the difference between a parameter and a statistic?
2. How do you determine when a value represents a population or a sample?
3. Can a parameter ever be estimated using a statistic?
4. What are common methods for collecting population data?
5. How do sampling methods affect the accuracy of statistics?

**Tip:** Parameters are typically fixed values for a population, whereas statistics can vary depending on the sample selected.

Learn to identify examples of parameters and statistics with this problem involving population data. Understand the difference between parameters and statistics by examining examples like 10,000 out of 15,000 citizens participating in a special election, and all 450 students ranking cafeteria food. Suitable for students in Grades 9-12.

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