The Institute of Education Sciences Measures the High School Dropout

Multiple Choice

The Institute of Education Sciences measures the high school dropout rate as the percentage of 16-through 24-year-olds who are not enrolled in school and have not earned a high school credential. Last year, the high school dropout rate was 8.1%. A polling company recently took a survey of 1,000 people between the ages of 16 and 24 and found that 6.5% of them are high school dropouts. The polling company would like to determine whether the dropout rate has decreased. When testing whether the dropout rate has decreased, the appropriate hypotheses are ________.

A) H₀: p ≤ 0.065, H_A: p > 0.065
B) H₀: ≥ 0.065, H_A: < 0.065
C) H₀: p = 0.081, H_A: p ≠ 0.081
D) H₀: p ≥ 0.081, H_A: p < 0.081