Final answer:
The weighted average for the student's scores is calculated by multiplying each score by its weight, totaling these products, and then dividing by the maximum points possible, resulting in a final weighted average of 76.36.
Step-by-step explanation:
To compute the weighted average for the student's scores in the biology class, we multiply each score by its respective weight, sum all these products, and then divide by the total number of points possible. The formula to calculate the weighted average (WA) is:
WA = (Lab Score × Lab Weight) + (Test 1 Score × Test 1 Weight) + (Test 2 Score × Test 2 Weight) + (Final Exam Score × Final Exam Weight)
Given:
- Lab Score = 98, Lab Weight = 21%
- Test 1 Score = 99, Test 1 Weight = 20.5%
- Test 2 Score = 60, Test 2 Weight = 20.5%
- Final Exam Score = 61, Final Exam Weight = 38%
WA = (98 × 0.21) + (99 × 0.205) + (60 × 0.205) + (61 × 0.38)
WA = 20.58 + 20.295 + 12.3 + 23.18
WA = 76.355
Therefore, the weighted average for the student's final grade is 76.36 (rounded to two decimal places).