Explore different survey examples

Throughout this learning activity, you can record your thoughts digitally, orally, or in print.

Survey example one

Explore the following data from a recent survey about whether Canadians like their butter tarts with raisins or without raisins.

• without raisins - 44%
• with raisins - 36%
• unsure - 20%

What do you notice about the data? Record your response.

Survey example two

Imagine that a person is mowing their lawn and then buys lemonade from a lemonade stand. It turns out that the person organizing the stand is conducting a survey. The survey asks our lawn mower, “Are you enjoying the lemonade?”

How do you think the person that is mowing the lawn will respond?

Person Mowing Lawn

This is an image of a person mowing lawn, working in the heat, and thinking about lemonade.

Lemonade Stand

An image of a person (child) standing at a lemonade stand and handing out a cup of lemonade.

Previous Next

Consider the survey questions asked in Survey Example One and Survey Example Two.

• A social media survey asked Canadians whether they like their butter tarts with raisins or without: Do you prefer your butter tarts with or without raisins?

Vs

• A person running a lemonade stand asked an individual: “Are you enjoying my lemonade?”

What is the difference between the two questions? Record your response using a method of your choice.

Sampling versus census

When conducting a survey, it can be easier to survey a sample of people rather than an entire population. This is because the size of the sample is always less than the total size of the population.

A population is the total set of subjects (e.g., individuals, objects, species) that fit a particular description. For example, salmon in Lake Ontario. Taking a sample, or sampling, is defined as gathering information from a subset which is a smaller group of a population.

• What are the disadvantages of sampling or surveying only a sample of people?
• What are the disadvantages of sampling over census?

Please note, a census surveys or gathers information from the whole population. Record your ideas using a method of your choice.

Now that you have explored some of the disadvantages with taking a sample, let’s explore a sample taken by a school’s principal.

A principal’s survey

The principal of an elementary school surveyed Kindergarten to Grade 6 students. The purpose of the survey is to determine some of the students’ interests to decide what new clubs or teams to start. The principal wanted the results to represent the interests of the entire student population. It is a large school, so the principal selected to survey a random sample of students.

Explore the data collected in the table below:

How do you think the Kindergarten to Grade 3 students will feel about the results? How do you think the Grades 4 to 6 students will feel about the results? Explain your thinking and record it using a method of your choice.

Do you think the data represents the interests of the students in Kindergarten to grade 3? Why or why not?

Sampling Techniques

There are different sampling methods the principal could have used. We will explore three methods: simple random sampling, systematic random sampling, and stratified random sampling.

Press the following tabs to access the diverse sampling methods that can be used to collect data.

Simple random sampling

Simple random sampling is a technique in which a smaller group (a subset) is selected from the entire population so that each subject in a population has an equal chance of being selected. selected.

Systematic random sampling

Systematic random sampling is a sampling technique in which the sample is taken in a systematic way once the starting point and interval selection have been randomly chosen. For example, the 2^nd name on the class list and the number 3 are randomly selected. This means that starting with the 2^nd name, every third student on the class list is selected for the sample. The sampling begins with the 2^nd name on the class list and rotates through until it gets back to the starting point.

Stratified sampling

Stratified sampling is a method of random sampling.

In stratified sampling, a population is subdivided into smaller subgroups based on common criteria. Then a random sample is taken from each subgroup. The smaller subgroups are known as strata.

This ensures that each subgroup is represented in the sample.

Based on what you have learned about sampling methods, what sampling method should the principal have selected?

Let’s reflect on the principal’s survey

The purpose of the principal’s survey was to learn more about the students’ interests to organize more clubs and teams. However, the sample taken didn’t represent the whole student population (Kindergarten to Grade 6 students).

More responses were gathered from primary students than from junior students.

As a result, the data collected is more representative of the primary students’ interests. This means, the results of the survey are not from a representative sample. So, the results do not represent the interests of the population studied.

When a sample is not representative of the entire population studied, the sample is biased.

The term bias is defined as: An emphasis on characteristics that are not typical of an entire population. That may result in misleading conclusions.

How can sampling techniques change public opinion?

Task 1: Comparing samples

Student Success

Think-Pair-Share

Let’s explore the ways sampling techniques can be used to sway public opinion to achieve specific goals. Explore the Effect of Sampling Techniques on Public Opinion table below. Think about the similarities between the examples in column A, and the similarities between the examples in column B.

Record your ideas using a method of your choice.

Column A	Column B
A scientist compares the heart rates of bears as they each travel 100m. The scientist measures the heart rates of five bears from one area.	Bus drivers are trying to improve a school-board’s bus service. They survey only students who walk to school.
The decision to determine a theme for a school spirit day for Grades 6-8 is made by randomly selecting ten students from each of the classes.	A survey to determine if more bike lanes are needed for a city is being conducted and only cyclists are selected to respond.
A park planner is trying to decide if a garden or basketball court should be created within a new park. The planner randomly selects 20 members of a basketball club and 20 members of a gardening club.	A recreation facility wants to create more after school programs for all age groups. Only Kindergarten to Grade 2 students are asked.
To determine the best place to put a water fountain in an office every employee was provided with a survey. After all the surveys were collected, every third survey was tallied.	A survey is taken to determine what foods Grade 6-8 school students enjoy. Five students from every Grade 8 class were surveyed.

Press the ‘Activity’ button to access Effect of Sampling Techniques on Public Opinion. 

Activity(Open PDF in a new window)

Note to teachers: See your teacher guide for collaboration tools, ideas and suggestions.

Next, examine each of the following situations. Determine whether the situation belongs to Column A or Column B.

Explore the following questions. Select the correct answer, then press “Check Answer” to see how you did.

Task 2: Reliable or unreliable?

Explore the following document Reliable or Unreliable. Examine the document's questions and decide if they will lead to reliable or unreliable survey results. You can record your thoughts by completing the document “Reliable or Unreliable” in your notebook or using the following fillable activity document.

Time for you to decide…

A group of students want their school to take part in an upcoming rally in support of making a positive change in the world. The students want to design a survey to determine students’ interest in the rally. Record your ideas using a method of your choice.

• Who should the students survey? Determine whether the students should survey the whole population or a sample.
• If it is not possible to survey everyone in the population, how can the students ensure that the sample is a representative sample of the population studied?
• Are there subgroups from the population that the students want to hear from?