STATISTICS and

PROBABILITY 11
3rd Quarter
Week 3

Development and Quality Assurance Team

Developer: Danife B. Engcoy

Evaluators: Annabel C. Cubero and Myracell P. Buenaflor
Illustrator: Danife B. Engcoy
Learning Area Supervisor: Regina Euann A. Puerto

Illustration Credits:
Title Page: Marieto Cleben V. Lozada
Visual Cues: Ivin Mae N. Ambos
Disclaimer: This Learning Activity Sheet (LAS) is based from the Self-Learning Modules, Learner’s Materials, Textbooks and Teaching Guides
released by DepEd Central Office. Furthermore, utilization of duly acknowledged external resources is purely of non-profit, for educational use
and constitutes fair use. All Rights Reserved.
 Competencies:
o Interprets the mean and the variance of a discrete random variable
(M11/12SP-IIIb-3);
o Solves problems involving mean and variance of probability
distributions (M11/12SP-IIIb-4); and
o Illustrates a normal random variable and its characteristics
(M11/12SP-IIIc-1)

Objectives: At the end of the week, you shall have

o described a normal random variable and its characteristics;
o applied the formula for mean and variance of probability
distributions in solving real-life situations and interpreted the results;
and
o appreciated the importance of probability distribution in making
wise decisions.

Learner’s Tasks

Lesson Overview

You have learned from your previous topic how to calculate the mean and the
variance of a discrete random variable. In this lesson, you will learn how to interpret
the mean and the variance of a discrete random variable and even solve problems
involving mean and variance of probability distributions. You will also be introduced
to another type of probability distribution with continuous type of data. This distribution
is commonly known as the normal probability distribution or simply the normal curve.

Mean of a Discrete Random Variable

The mean can be regarded as a measure of ‘central location’ of a random

variable. It is sometimes called the expected value or expectation of X and denoted
by 𝑬(𝑿). It is also the average value that we expect when a random experiment is
continually repeated. It is not the value of 𝑋 that we expect to observe. In rolling a die
for example, where random variable 𝑋 represents the number of spots that would
appear, it has a mean of 3.5. This means that the average number of spots that would
appear in a roll of a die is 3.5. Although the die will never show a number, which is 3.5,
this implies that rolling the die many times, the theoretical mean would be 3.5.

The formula for the mean 𝜇 of a random variable with a discrete probability
distribution is given by

𝜇 = 𝑥1 ∙ 𝑃(𝑥1 ) + 𝑥2 ∙ 𝑃(𝑥2 ) + 𝑥3 ∙ 𝑃(𝑥3 ) + ⋯ + 𝑥𝑛 ∙ 𝑃(𝑥𝑛 ) or

𝜇 = ∑[𝑥 ∙ 𝑃(𝑥)]
where,
𝑥1 , 𝑥2 , 𝑥3 , … , 𝑥𝑛 are values of the random variable 𝑋; and
𝑃(𝑥1 ), 𝑃(𝑥2 ), 𝑃(𝑥3 ), … , 𝑃(𝑥𝑛 ) are the corresponding probabilities

Disclaimer: This Learning Activity Sheet (LAS) is based from the Self-Learning Modules, Learner’s Materials, Textbooks and Teaching Guides
released by DepEd Central Office. Furthermore, utilization of duly acknowledged external resources is purely of non-profit, for educational
use and constitutes fair use. All Rights Reserved.
1
Variance of a Discrete Random Variable

While the mean of a random variable 𝑋 measures the central location of the
distribution, the variance, and a closely related measure, the standard deviation, on
the other hand, measure the spread, dispersion, or variability of the items in a
distribution.

Note
 A small standard deviation (or variance) means that the distribution of the
random variable is narrowly concentrated around the mean.
 A large standard deviation (or variance) means that the distribution is spread
out, with some chance of observing values at some distance from the mean.

To solve problems involving variance of probability distributions, the following formula

will be used:

For a discrete random variable 𝑋, the variance 𝜎 2 , of 𝑋 is given by the formula:

𝜎 2 = ∑[[𝑥 2 ∙ 𝑃(𝑥)] − 𝜇2 ]

The standard deviation of a discrete probability distribution is given by the formula:

𝜎 = √∑[[𝑥 2 ∙ 𝑃(𝑥)] − 𝜇2 ]
where:

𝑥 = value of random variable

𝑃(𝑥) = corresponding probability of 𝑥
𝜇 = mean of the probability distribution

Note that the variance cannot be negative, because it is an average of squared

quantities.

Illustrative Example

Dexter is paid ₱30 whenever the results of tossing two coins are both heads but
pays ₱15 whenever the results are not both heads. What is the expected gain per
toss? What is the variance and standard deviation?

Solution. When tossing two coins, the possible outcomes are {HH, HT, TH, TT}.

1
P(both heads) = = 0.25 , the probability of getting both heads is 1 out of 4
4
possible outcomes
3
P(not both heads) = = 0.75 , the probability of not getting both heads is 3 out
4
of 4 possible outcomes

Disclaimer: This Learning Activity Sheet (LAS) is based from the Self-Learning Modules, Learner’s Materials, Textbooks and Teaching Guides
released by DepEd Central Office. Furthermore, utilization of duly acknowledged external resources is purely of non-profit, for educational
use and constitutes fair use. All Rights Reserved.
2
The table below shows how to solve for the mean, variance, and standard deviation
using the formula presented in this lesson.

𝒙 𝑷(𝒙) 𝒙 ∙ 𝑷(𝒙) 𝒙𝟐 ∙ 𝑷(𝒙)

30 0.25 7.5 225

−15 0.75 −11.25 168.75
Total sum 𝑢 = ∑[𝑥 ∙ 𝑃(𝑥)] = −3.75 ∑[𝑥 2 ∙ 𝑃(𝑥)] = 393.75

Variance 𝜎 2 𝜎 2 = ∑[[𝑥 2 ∙ 𝑃(𝑥)] − 𝜇2 ]

= 393.75 − (−3.75)2
= 379.69

Standard deviation 𝜎
𝜎 = √∑[[𝑥 2 ∙ 𝑃(𝑥)] − 𝜇2 ]
= √379.69
= 19.49

Interpretation: Since the mean 𝜇 = −3.75, this means that Dexter would lose Php 3.75
per toss. The variance of his gain is 379.69 with standard deviation of 19.49 and these
indicate how spread out the values of 𝑥 per toss are around the mean.

Normal Distribution

Normal Probability Distribution or simply the normal curve is a probability

distribution of continuous random variables. It shows graphical representations of
random variables obtained through measurement like the height and weight of the
school children, the percentile ranks of the students in their National Career
Assessment Examination (NCAE) result, or any data with infinite values. It is used to
describe the characteristics of populations and help us visualize the inferences we
make about the population. It also used to determine the probabilities and percentile
of the continuous random variables in the distribution. For example, your grades in
Mathematics is one of the scores in the distribution, you can predict the location of
that score in the distribution and interpret it with regards to the mean and standard
deviation.

Properties of Normal Curve

The graphical representation of the normal distribution is popularly known as a

normal curve. The normal curve has the following properties or characteristics:

1. The normal curve is bell-shaped.

2. The curve is symmetrical about its center. This means that, the segment at the
center divides the curve into two equal parts or areas.
3. The mean, median, and mode coincide at the center. This also means that in
a normal distribution, the mean, median, and mode are equal.
4. The width of the curve is determined by the standard deviation, 𝝈 of the
distribution.
Disclaimer: This Learning Activity Sheet (LAS) is based from the Self-Learning Modules, Learner’s Materials, Textbooks and Teaching Guides
released by DepEd Central Office. Furthermore, utilization of duly acknowledged external resources is purely of non-profit, for educational
use and constitutes fair use. All Rights Reserved.
3
 5. The tails of the curve flatten out indefinitely along the horizontal axis, always
approaching the axis but never touching it. That is, the curve is asymptotic to
the baseline.
6. The total area under a normal curve is 1. Thus it represents the probability or
proportion or the percentage associated with specific sets of measurement
values.

To visualize and understand the properties or characteristics of a normal curve, please

refer to Figure 1, as shown below.

mean = median = mode

symmetrical sides

asymptotic tail asymptotic tail

Figure 1. Properties of the Normal Curve

The normal distribution, also known as the Gaussian Distribution, has the following
formula.

1 (𝑥−𝜇)2
−
𝑝(𝑥) = 𝑒 2𝜎2
𝜎√2𝜋
where:
𝜇 = mean, 𝜎 = standard deviation, 𝜋 = 3.14159… , 𝑒 = 2.71828 …

There are many normal distributions. A normal

distribution is determined by two parameters:
mean 𝜇 and the standard deviation 𝜎. If the
mean 𝜇 is 0 and the standard deviation 𝜎 is 1, 𝜇=0
then the normal distribution is a standard normal 𝜎=1
distribution. See Figure 2. The areas under this
curve can be found using the Areas under the −3 −2 −1 0 1 2 3
Standard Normal Curve table also known as the
Figure 2. The Standard Normal Curve
z-Table.

However, the mean 𝜇 is not always equal to 0

and the standard deviation 𝜎 is not always equal
𝜇 = 40
to 1. In the normal curve as shown in Figure 3, 𝜇 =
𝜎 = 12
40 and 𝜎 = 12.

4 16 28 40 52 64 76
Figure 3. The mean 𝜇 ≠ 0, and standard
deviation 𝜎 ≠ 1

Disclaimer: This Learning Activity Sheet (LAS) is based from the Self-Learning Modules, Learner’s Materials, Textbooks and Teaching Guides
released by DepEd Central Office. Furthermore, utilization of duly acknowledged external resources is purely of non-profit, for educational
use and constitutes fair use. All Rights Reserved.
4
Suppose two curves are sketched above the
same horizontal axis and these normal curves
have the same standard deviations but different
means. See Figure 4. Notice that if the mean 𝜇 is
changed from 55 to 39, the curve is moved to
the left but its shape remains the same.

Figure 4. The means are not equal but the

standard deviations are equal.

Suppose the normal curves have the same

means but different standard deviations. See
Figure 5. Notice that the shape of the normal
curve with 𝜎 = 20 is flatter than that with 𝜎 = 10.

Figure 5. The means are equal but

the standard deviations are not
equal.
Suppose the normal curves have different
means and different standard deviations. See
Figure 6. Notice that they are centered at
different positions on the horizontal axis. The
normal curve on the left is flatter and spreads
out further. This is because it has a larger
standard deviation.
Figure 6. The means are different and the
standard deviations are also different.

Empirical Rule
You can easily understand the functions of normal probability distribution in our
real-life world using the empirical rule. Because this rule is used to roughly test the
distribution’s normality, if many data of a random variable fall outside the lower and
upper limits of the three-standard deviation, this means that the distribution is not
normal.

The empirical rule is better known as 68% − 95% − 99.70% rule. This rule states
that the data in the distribution lies within one (1), two (2), and three (3) of the standard
deviations from the mean are approximately 68%, 95%, and 99.70%, respectively.
Since the area of a normal curve is equal to 1 or 100% as stated on its characteristics,
there are only a few data which is 0.30% falls outside the 3 – standard deviation from
the mean. For instance, the distribution of the grades of the Senior High School
students in Statistics and Probability for the Third Quarter is shown in Figure 7.

Disclaimer: This Learning Activity Sheet (LAS) is based from the Self-Learning Modules, Learner’s Materials, Textbooks and Teaching Guides
released by DepEd Central Office. Furthermore, utilization of duly acknowledged external resources is purely of non-profit, for educational
use and constitutes fair use. All Rights Reserved.
5
 Most of the students’ grades
are close to the mean

Figure 7. Grades Distribution of SHS Students in Statistics

and Probability for the Third Quarter

Using the empirical rule, you can say that the distribution of the grades of the
Senior High School students in Statistics and Probability are distributed normally
because the shape of the graph is bell-shaped and symmetric about its mean, which
is 85. This also indicates that most of the students’ grades fall close to the mean and
fewer of them are far below and/or above the mean.
It can summarize the distribution in the following percentage:
 68% of data lies within 1 standard deviation from the mean have a grade of 81
to 89.
 95% of data lies within 2 standard deviations from the mean have a grade of 77
to 93.
 99.70% of the data lies within 3 standard deviations from the mean have a grade
of 73 to 97.

Activity 1: TRUE or FALSE

Directions: Determine whether the following statements is TRUE or FALSE. Write the
word TRUE if it is correct and FALSE if it is incorrect, then modify the statement to make
it true. Write your answer on a separate sheet of paper.

1. Normal probability distribution is used to determine the probabilities of a discrete

random variable.
2. The tails of a normal curve spread out indefinitely touching the horizontal axis.
3. The standard normal distribution has a mean 𝜇 = 1 and standard deviation 𝜎 = 0.
4. The total area under a normal curve is less than or equal to 1.
5. Suppose two normal curves have the same means. The shape of the normal curve
with 𝜎 = 5 is taller than that with 𝜎 = 15.

Disclaimer: This Learning Activity Sheet (LAS) is based from the Self-Learning Modules, Learner’s Materials, Textbooks and Teaching Guides
released by DepEd Central Office. Furthermore, utilization of duly acknowledged external resources is purely of non-profit, for educational
use and constitutes fair use. All Rights Reserved.
6
Activity 2. Solve and Interpret Me!

Directions: Read each situation carefully to solve each problem. Write your answer
on a separate sheet of paper.

1. Your father said, if in one grading period your grade in Math is 90 and above, he
will add Php 50 to your daily allowance, Php 20 if your grade is 80 – 89, but decrease
it by Php 10 if your grade is 79 and below. If the probability to get 90 and above is
12%, while you have 45% chance to get 80 – 89,
a. What is your expected additional allowance per quarter?
b. What is the variance and standard deviation of the distribution?
c. What do these results in (a) and (b) mean?

2. The number of computers sold per day (x) at a local computer store, along with its
corresponding probabilities P(x), is shown in the table. Find the mean or expected
number of computers sold per day, the variance and standard deviation of the
distribution, then interpret the results.

x P(x)
0 0.1
1 0.2
2 0.3
3 0.2
4 0.2

Activity 3. Game of Chance

Directions: Refer to the situation below and answer the questions that follow. Write
your answer on a separate sheet of paper.

Situation:

A lotto works by picking 6 numbers from 1-42 (combinations of numbers from 1-

42 taken 6 at a time produce 5,245,786 number combinations). A ticket costs ₱24.00
to play the lottery. If you win today, you would win 5 million pesos after taxes.

a.) If you play the lottery today, what would be your expected winnings or
losses?
b.) Based from the result, will you continue playing lottery? If you know
someone who always buy lottery tickets almost every day, what advice can
you give him?

Disclaimer: This Learning Activity Sheet (LAS) is based from the Self-Learning Modules, Learner’s Materials, Textbooks and Teaching Guides
released by DepEd Central Office. Furthermore, utilization of duly acknowledged external resources is purely of non-profit, for educational
use and constitutes fair use. All Rights Reserved.
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 Formative Test

Let us see how far you have learned about our lesson.

Directions: Choose the letter of the best answer. Write the chosen letter on a separate
sheet of paper.

1. Under the curve, the area to the right of the mean is __________.
A. 30% B. 47.7% C. 50% D. 68%

2. If the mean and standard deviation of a continuous random variable that is

normally distributed are 10 and 3, respectively, find an interval that contains
99.7% of the distribution.
A. [7, 19] B. [4, 16] C. [1, 19] D. [1, 16]

3. Suppose that the distribution of data about the number of deaths of COVID 19
positive has a mean of 45 and a standard deviation of 18. How many standard
deviations away from the mean is a value of 81?
A. It is one standard deviation above the mean.
B. It is two standard deviations above the mean.
C. It is one standard deviation below the mean.
D. It is two standard deviations below the mean.

For items 4-5, refer to the following:

A bakeshop owner determines the number of boxes of pandesal that are delivered
each day. He studied the flow of his sales by recording the number of boxes of
pandesal delivered for the entire month. The probability shown below was the result
of his data gathering where x is the number of boxes sold each day with each
corresponding probabilities, P(x).

x 35 36 37 38 39
P(x) 0.10 0.20 0.30 0.30 0.10

4. What is the average number of boxes of pandesal delivered each day?

A. 35.5 B. 37.1 C. 37.6 D. 38.5

5. What is the variance of the distribution?

A. 1.66 B. 1.50 C. 1.29 D. 1.14

Disclaimer: This Learning Activity Sheet (LAS) is based from the Self-Learning Modules, Learner’s Materials, Textbooks and Teaching Guides
released by DepEd Central Office. Furthermore, utilization of duly acknowledged external resources is purely of non-profit, for educational
use and constitutes fair use. All Rights Reserved.
8
 Answer Key

Activity 1
1. FALSE – Normal probability distribution is used to determine the probabilities of a continuous
random variable.
2. FALSE – The tails of a normal curve spread out indefinitely without touching the horizontal
axis.
3. FALSE – The standard normal distribution has a mean 𝝁 = 𝟎 and standard deviation 𝝈 = 𝟏.
4. FALSE – The total area under a normal curve is equal to 1.
5. TRUE

Activity 2
1. a. 𝜇 = 10.7. Thus, the expected additional per quarter is Php 10.17.
b. 𝜎 2 = 408.51 and 𝜎 = 20.21
c. From the results, you will receive additional allowance amounting to Php 10.17 pesos
per quarter. The variance 𝜎 2 = 408.51 and standard deviation 𝜎 = 20.21 indicate how
spread out the amount you will receive per quarter are around the mean.

2. The expected number of computers sold per day is 2.2. Although the number of
computers sold must be a whole number, the mean 𝜇 = 2.2 implies only the theoretical
mean of the number of computers sold per day in the long run . The variance 𝜎 2 = 1.56
and standard deviation 𝜎 = 1.25 measure the variability of the values of the number of
computer sold when there is repeated trials of experiment.

Activity 3

x P(x) x∙P(x)
4,999,976 1 0.953141
= 0.00000019063
5,245,786
−24 5,245,785 −23.999995
= 0.99999980937
5,245,786
Expected winnings or losses 𝜇 = ∑ 𝐱 ∙ 𝐏(𝐱) = −23.05

a.) Hence, if you play the lottery today, you would lose ₱23.05 on average per ticket
purchased.
b.) Answers may vary.
Possible Answer: If I know someone who repeatedly bought lottery tickets, I would tell him
that although he has the chance to win, but the probability of losing is extremely high than
winning. If you can afford to buy tickets without sacrificing your essential needs, then it is
okay to take chances sometimes. But if we just have enough budget for our daily needs,
then better save the money for future use.

References

Belecina, Rene R., Elisa S. Baccay and Efren B. Mateo, Statistics and Probability. Manila,
Philippines: REX Book Store, 2016

Malate, Jose S. Statistics and Probability for Senior High School. Vicarisg Publications and
Trading, Inc, 2017.

PIVOT 4A Learner’s Material. Statistics and Probability. First Edition. Department of Education -
Region 4A CALABARZON
Disclaimer: This Learning Activity Sheet (LAS) is based from the Self-Learning Modules, Learner’s Materials, Textbooks and Teaching Guides
released by DepEd Central Office. Furthermore, utilization of duly acknowledged external resources is purely of non-profit, for educational
use and constitutes fair use. All Rights Reserved.
9