Proportion of Pupils Speaking 3 Languages Out of Total Number of Pupils

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The discussion revolves around calculating the proportion of pupils who speak three languages out of a total of 29 pupils. The initial method presented incorrectly divides the total number of pupils by those who speak three languages, leading to an erroneous interpretation of the question. The correct approach is to find the ratio of pupils speaking three languages to the total number of pupils, resulting in a proportion of approximately 0.1 or 10%. The confusion stems from misunderstanding the concept of proportion versus division of total counts. Clarifying the methodology reveals that the correct answer reflects the actual percentage of multilingual pupils in the class.
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I have attached a screenshot of the question. The methodology and answer that makes sense to me is the following:

29 (Total number of pupils) / 3 (Number of pupils who speak 3 languages) = 9.7 (1 d.p)

The answer given:
3 / 29 = 0.1 (1 d.p)

Have a misunderstood the question here? Any help is greatly appreciated.
 

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Your method gives you how many times a class of 29 pupils can be divided up into sets of 3 pupils. That wasn't the question.

Your answer gives 900+ percent. How do you get more than 100% of the class? Obviously you can't. The answer given in the figure is correct.
 
Matt said:
29 (Total number of pupils) / 3 (Number of pupils who speak 3 languages) = 9.7 (1 d.p)
Look at a simpler case.
Four balls: red, green blue and yellow.
What proportion are red?
It wouldn't be total / red because that would give you 4.
 
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