Question

which of the following could be classified as a census?

a survey of a percentage of each states population about voting choices
a survey of each student in a school about school lunch options
a survey of all the children in a supermarket to determine the favorite cereal brands of the general population
a survey of all the women on main street to determine the current movie preferences of all people over age 20

Explanation:

Define a census study

Using the Census Study knowledge point
A census is a study that collects data from every single member of the target population under investigation, rather than just a sample or subset of that population.

Analyze each option against the definition

• Option 1: "a survey of a percentage of each state's population about voting choices"
• Target population: Voters or residents of each state.
• Method: Only surveys a "percentage" (a sample), not the entire population. Thus, this is a sample survey, not a census.

• Option 2: "a survey of each student in a school about school lunch options"
• Target population: The student body of the school.
• Method: Surveys "each student" (every single member of the target population). Thus, this is a census.

• Option 3: "a survey of all the children in a supermarket to determine the favorite cereal brands of the general population"
• Target population: The general population.
• Method: Only surveys children currently in a specific supermarket. This is a convenience sample, not a census of the general population.

• Option 4: "a survey of all the women on Main Street to determine the current movie preferences of all people over age 20"
• Target population: All people over age 20.
• Method: Only surveys women on Main Street. This is a biased sample, not a census of the target population.

Identify the correct choice

The only scenario where data is gathered from every individual in the defined target population is surveying every student in the school to understand the school's lunch preferences.

Answer:

• a survey of a percentage of each state's population about voting choices
• a survey of each student in a school about school lunch options (Correct answer)
• a survey of all the children in a supermarket to determine the favorite cereal brands of the general population
• a survey of all the women on Main Street to determine the current movie preferences of all people over age 20