Statistics Canada
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Student worksheet
Canadian reading habits
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Part A
Using Statistics Canada's "Percentage of Canadians who read" table, answer the questions below. (10 marks)
- What is the table title?
- What are the table headers?
- What is the unit of measure?
- What is the reference year?
- What research sources would you use to get more information on this topic?
- Describe in words one difference in reading behaviour between the genders. (e.g., females were more likely to read a book than males in the last year).
- Describe in words statistical information on one of the products read by Canadians. (e.g., a higher proportion of males read a newspaper daily than females).
Part B
Complete this table by converting the data collected in class into percentages. (30 marks)
| Total | Male | Female | |
|---|---|---|---|
| % | |||
| Percentage of Canadians who read a newspaper | |||
| Daily | |||
| At least 3 times a week | |||
| At least once a month | |||
| Less than once a month | |||
| Percentage of Canadians who read a magazine | |||
| At least once a week | |||
| At least once a month | |||
| 5 or more times, but not every month | |||
| 1 to 4 times a year | |||
| Percentage of Canadians who read books | |||
| At least a book a week | |||
| At least a book a month | |||
| At least a book every 3 months | |||
| At least a book every 6 months | |||
| At least a book a year | |||
Part C
Answer one of the questions below. (10 marks)
- You are a school librarian, what would you do to encourage students to read more newspapers, magazines or books? (pick one)
- You are a survey manager responsible for the next survey on reading behaviours, what literary products might you wish to add? Write a definition for the product(s), survey questions and the demographic characteristics you want this information for (age, sex etc.)?
- What column could you add to the table to improve your confidence in the data? Explain how the information would increase your confidence.
-
- The Vice-Principal has given permission for the students council to operate a small bookstand in the cafeteria during lunch. Based on classroom results, would you recommend that the council open a bookstand? Why? or why not?
- Which products would you suggest and how much space would you recommend for each?
