The mean of a set of scores is the

• A. Average Score of the Tests
• B. Median Score
• C. Mode
• D. Range

Answer: (A)

Mean is the average value of a set of numbers. You find it by adding all the scores and dividing by how many scores there are. That makes it the typical or central value describing the data, which is why it matches the idea of the average score of the tests. The other terms describe different ideas: the median is the middle score when the data are ordered, the mode is the score that occurs most often, and the range is the difference between the highest and lowest scores. For example, with scores 60, 70, and 100, the mean is about 76.7, the median is 70, and the range is 40. This shows why the mean represents the average, distinct from the middle value, the most frequent value, or the spread.