Final answer :
The absolute change is 231 students, and the relative change is 9.8%. The correct answer is A.
Step-by-step explanation:
Let's calculate both the absolute change and the relative change in the number of students at the school during this 10-year period, and then round the percentage (relative change) to the nearest tenth of a percent.
**Absolute Change:**
To find the absolute change in the number of students, we subtract the original number of students from the new number of students.
So, `students_10_years_later` - `initial_students` = `2,585` - `2,354` = `231` students
This means the absolute change is an increase of 231 students over 10 years.
**Relative Change:**
Relative change is the change expressed as a percentage of the original amount. To calculate this, we need to divide the absolute change by the original number of students and then multiply by 100 to convert it to a percentage.
So, `(absolute_change / initial_students) * 100` yields the percentage increase.
Using the calculated absolute change of 231 students and the initial count of 2,354 students:
`relative_change` = `(231 / 2,354) * 100` ≈ `9.8%`
We are asked to round the relative change to the nearest tenth of a percent. The calculated relative change is already at the nearest tenth, which is 9.8%.
Now we can pick the correct option based on our calculations. The absolute change is 231 students, and the relative change is 9.8%. Therefore, the correct answer is:
**1) The absolute change is 231 students and the relative change is 9.8%.** The correct answer is A.