| Charting : Types of Chart
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There are many different types of chart such as pie charts, bar charts, line charts and
scatter graphs. The most appropriate type of chart to use will depend upon what
the data is that you are using and what you are trying to find out or show.
| Pie Chart |
| Purpose |
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| Used to show how a quantity is divided up between a number of
options. |
| Example Use |
| Show what proportion of people travel to school by each of five different methods e.g. bus, car, walk, bike, other.
|
| Line Chart |
| Purpose |
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| Used to show how a continuous quantity changes over time. |
| Example Use |
| Chart of how the temperature changes throughout the year.
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| Bar Chart |
| Purpose |
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| Used to show how frequently a particular option is selected from a list. |
| Example Use |
| Chart showing how many people choose to shop at each of three different locations.
|
| Scatter Graph |
| Purpose |
 |
| Used to investigate relationships between two sets of data. A
best fit line or curve is often drawn to show a relationship
if one exists. The package may be able to produce this line for you. |
| Example Use |
| Investigate if taller people have bigger feet.
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Most charting packages will produce other types of chart such as stacked bar charts or
3 dimensional pie charts. When choosing the best type of chart to use the most important
point to consider is that the information can be clearly understood.
GCSE ICT Companion 04 - (C) P Meakin 2004