Quantitative Literacy Practice Exam 2026 – Comprehensive Preparation Guide

A box plot, also known as a whisker plot, is constructed by representing the five-number summary of a dataset, which includes the minimum value, the first quartile (Q1), the median (Q2), the third quartile (Q3), and the maximum value. This method provides a visual summary of the central tendency and variability of the data while also highlighting potential outliers.

The minimum and maximum values indicate the range of the data, while the quartiles give insight into the distribution of the data points. The median line within the box shows where the middle of the data lies, and the lengths of the box (between Q1 and Q3) can show how spread out the data is, which is essential for understanding the overall distribution.

While other options suggest alternative concepts or methodologies, they do not align with the specific components and structure involved in creating a box plot. For example, plotting the mean and standard deviation focuses on different statistical measures, while the total number of values may indicate size, but doesn’t convey distribution. Ordering mean values, regardless of whether it's from largest to smallest, is also unrelated to the process of constructing a box plot.