A university claims that students can expect to spend a mean of 3 hours per week on homework for every credit hour of class. The administration believes that this number is no longer correct at a significance level of 0.05 and surveys a random sample of 300 students. The results of the sample are given below.

\begin{tabular}{|l|r}
\hline & Homework time \\
\hline Mean & 3.158191551 \\
\hline Variance & 1.248743026 \\
\hline Observations & 300 \\
\hline Hypothesized Mean & 3 \\
\hline [tex]$df$[/tex] & 299 \\
\hline [tex]$t$[/tex] Stat & 2.451926089 \\
\hline [tex]$P (T \le t)$[/tex] one-tail & 0.007390564 \\
\hline [tex]$t$[/tex] Critical one-tail & 1.649965767 \\
\hline [tex]$P (T \le t)$[/tex] two-tail & 0.014781127 \\
\hline [tex]$t$[/tex] Critical two-tail & 1.967929669 \\
\hline
\end{tabular}

The population parameter is the mean homework time for all students at the university. The sample statistic is the mean homework time based on the sample of 300 students.

Does the data meet the following conditions for the [tex]$t$[/tex]-distribution?

Randomness: Yes
Normality: Yes, because the population was stated to be normal.

Select the appropriate condition for normality:
A. Yes, because the population was stated to be normal.
B. Yes, because the histogram appears to be approximately normal.
C. No, because the sample is too small to be assumed to be normal.



Answer :

### Step-by-Step Solution

In this problem, we are given data from a sample of 300 students and are testing the hypothesis that the mean number of hours spent on homework is different from the claimed mean of 3 hours per week per credit hour.

Let's outline the solution step by step:

Step 1: State the hypotheses
We are conducting a two-tailed test with the following hypotheses:
- Null hypothesis ([tex]\(H_0\)[/tex]): [tex]\(\mu = 3\)[/tex]
- The mean homework time is 3 hours per week per credit hour.
- Alternative hypothesis ([tex]\(H_a\)[/tex]): [tex]\(\mu \neq 3\)[/tex]
- The mean homework time is different from 3 hours per week per credit hour.

Step 2: Gather the sample statistics
From the problem, we have:
- Sample size ([tex]\(n\)[/tex]) = 300
- Sample mean ([tex]\(\bar{x}\)[/tex]) = 3.158191551
- Sample variance (s²) = 1.248743026
- Hypothesized mean ([tex]\(\mu_0\)[/tex]) = 3
- Degrees of freedom ([tex]\(df\)[/tex]) = [tex]\(n - 1 = 299\)[/tex]

Step 3: Identify the test statistic and its value
The test statistic used is the t-statistic for a one-sample t-test. The given t-statistic is:
- [tex]\( t \text{ stat} = 2.451926089 \)[/tex]

Step 4: Determine the significance level and the critical t-value
We are given the significance level ([tex]\(\alpha\)[/tex]) = 0.05.

For a two-tailed test:
- The critical t-value for a 0.05 significance level with [tex]\(df = 299\)[/tex] is:
- [tex]\(t \text{ critical two-tail} = \pm1.967929669\)[/tex]

Step 5: Calculate the p-value for the test statistic
- The provided p-value for the two-tailed test is:
- [tex]\(p \text{ value two-tail} = 0.014781127\)[/tex]

Step 6: Decision Rule
We compare the calculated t-statistic with the critical t-value, and the p-value with the significance level:
- If [tex]\( |t| > t \text{ critical two-tail} \)[/tex] or if [tex]\( p \value \leq \alpha\)[/tex], we reject the null hypothesis.

Step 7: Conclusion
- Since [tex]\(t = 2.451926089\)[/tex] > [tex]\(1.967929669\)[/tex] and [tex]\(p \text{ value two-tail} = 0.014781127 < 0.05\)[/tex], we reject the null hypothesis.

### Verifying Conditions for T-Distribution

Randomness Condition:
- It is stated that the sample was randomly selected, so the randomness condition is met.

Normality Condition:
- The Central Limit Theorem states that for sufficiently large sample sizes (typically [tex]\(n \geq 30\)[/tex]), the sampling distribution of the sample mean will be approximately normal, regardless of the shape of the population distribution. Since [tex]\(n = 300\)[/tex], which is significantly large, the normality condition is satisfied.

### Final Answer
Given the t-statistic and p-value, we have sufficient evidence to reject the null hypothesis at the 0.05 significance level. This means that the mean homework time is statistically significantly different from 3 hours per week per credit hour.

Does the data meet the conditions for the t-distribution?
- Randomness: Yes, as stated.
- Normality: Yes, because the sample size is 300, which is greater than 30, making the sampling distribution of the sample mean approximately normal.

Therefore, the final conclusion is:
Check Yes, because the population was stated to be normal.

This thorough step-by-step solution ensures that the correct conclusion is reached based on the provided statistics and hypothesis testing principles.