6 mistakes learners make with the mode, each one named and explained.
The mode is the value that appears most often, not how often it appeared.
You find a value that appears more than once and stop, without checking whether another appears more often.
The definition is remembered as the one that repeats rather than the one that repeats most.
Question. 5, 8, 8, 2, 5, 8, 1
A common answer. 5, because it appears twice
The answer. 8, which appears three times
Why. Two of them repeat, so the counts have to be compared.
Count every value before choosing. The first repeat is not automatically the mode.
You find the most common value correctly and then write down its count rather than itself.
The counting is the work, so the number you finish counting on feels like the answer.
Question. 4, 8, 8, 10, 15
A common answer. 2, because 8 appeared twice
The answer. 8
Why. The mode is the value that appeared most, not the number of times it did.
The mode is always one of the values in the data. A count usually is not.
You pick the biggest number in the set as the mode.
Most is in the definition, and most sounds like biggest.
Question. 4, 8, 8, 10, 15
A common answer. 15, the largest
The answer. 8
Why. Most often means most frequently, not largest.
Count how many times each value appears. The mode never depends on size.
You add and divide, and offer that as the mode.
All three averages are called averages, so any of them answers the word.
Question. 4, 8, 8, 10, 15
A common answer. 9, the mean
The answer. 8, the mode
Why. The mode has to be a value that actually appears in the set.
If your mode is not in the list, it is not a mode.
You order the list, take the middle, and give that as the mode.
Ordering the data is the habit built by median questions, and it carries over.
Question. 4, 7, 7, 8, 10, 12, 12, 12, 15
A common answer. 10, the middle value
The answer. 12, which appears three times
Why. The middle of the list and the most common value are different questions.
Mode is a counting question. Tally the values and the answer is the tallest tally.
You pick the smallest number in the set as the mode.
When the definition has not stuck, an extreme value is the easiest thing to point at.
Question. 5, 8, 8, 2, 5, 8, 1
A common answer. 1, the smallest
The answer. 8, the most frequent
Why. 1 appears once, which makes it the least common value, not the most.
The mode is about frequency only. Neither end of the range is relevant.
WAJD spots these patterns in your child's answers and names the one behind their wrong answers, instead of just marking them wrong.