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Word of the Month

Prevarication: (Noun)
Telling a lie, but in a sneaky way. Maybe, a “fancy” kind of lie that skirts the truth.

The guard accepted my prevarications about the urgency to open the vault; she let me in.
Prevarication was expected from students who love to push the envelope.

 

Tip of the Month

Understanding Percent and Percentage

REMEMBER THIS:
A percent is a fraction of something.

Percentage points are what you get when you subtract one percentage from another percentage. Be cautious when comparing percentages because this is where mistakes are made.

When you add or subtract percentages—for example, when you subtract the percentage of children diagnosed with autism in 1981 from the percentage diagnosed in 2021—describe the result using percentage points.

If a local county health department reports that its percentage of children diagnosed with autism increased from 1% in 1981 to 5% in 2021, it’s accurate to say the diagnosis rate rose 4 percentage points over that period.

The rate did not rise 4%. In this scenario, the diagnosis rate jumped 400%.

Because this type of error is common, you are encouraged to double-check percentage-change figures in the document.

Taken from: Percent Change Versus Percentage-Point Change: What’s the Difference? 4 Tips for Avoiding Math Errors.

 

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As always, when in doubt, check it out! Contact the Editorial Help Desk for help (Donna_M_MarksPleasant@mcpsmd.org).

 

 

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