Part 1

Variable A: Number of school lunch eligible students in the school

Variable B: Amount of funding received by the school for federal and state education-related programs

Correlation: Positive Correlation

Reason: The higher the number of school lunch eligible students, the higher the rate of subsidy

Variable A: Impact of subsidy received

Variable B: Age of students at school

Correlation: Negative correlation

Reason: The subsidy had a greater degree of response in elementary schools than it did in high schools

Variable A: Number of classrooms connected to the internet

Variable B: Student performance as measured by standardized test scores

Correlation: Minimal correlation

Reason: The study came to the conclusion that "despite the noticeable increase in classroom Internet connections, the authors find very little evidence that the program has any impact on student achievement, as measured by test scores in a variety of subjects" (Golsbee and Gurayan 2005).

Variable A: teachers' comfort level with the internet

Variable B: ability of teachers to use internet effectively with their students

Correlation: Positive correlation

Reason: the study found that the teachers' inability to work with computers explained... In essence, the relation between two variables could be positive, negative, or minimal. Correlation, in basic terms, seeks to gauge the nature of association between two variables (Sullivan, 2007). The relevance of correlation when inferring the correct results from available data cannot, therefore, be overstated. In basic terms, positive correlation (or direct correlation) exists in instances where an increase in variable A leads to an increase in variable B. Positive correlation can also be said to be present or evident in instances where a decrease in variable A also leads to a decrease in variable B. Positive correlation could be inferred between employee motivation (variable A) and performance at the workplace (variable B). In this case, better employee motivation (via increased salaries and wages, enhanced benefits, appreciation awards, etc.) is likely to lead to enhanced worker performance at the workplace. Another example is whereby a decrease in return on investment (ROI) over…