Typically, 5.7% of students in one district do not graduate. If there are 15,000 students, how many won't graduate?

Question

jamesj · Answer

So if 100% did not graduate, how much would that be?

anonymous · Answer

idk

jamesj · Answer

100% of something is all of something.

Hence, if 100% of 15,000 did not graduate, how much is that?

anonymous · Answer

all of them???

jamesj · Answer

100% of 15,000 = 15,000.

Alternatively,
$$ \frac{100}{100} \times 15,000 = 1 \times 15,000 = 15,000 $$

So far so good?

anonymous · Answer

thats the answer??

jamesj · Answer

Nope.  We want 5.7% of 15,000.

So one or two more steps and we'll get there.

In general, x% of 15,000 is
$$ \frac{x}{100} \times 15,000 $$

For example, what is 10% of 15,000?  Well, using the formula we just wrote down, it must be
$$ \frac{10}{100} \times 15,000 $$
Now, what is that equal to?

anonymous · Answer

14,145???

jamesj · Answer

No,
$$ \frac{10}{100} \times 15,000 = \frac{1}{10} \times 15,000 $$
 by dividing top and bottom by 10. So far so good? 

Is so, what is 
$$ \frac{1}{10} \times 15,000 $$
?

anonymous · Answer

I really dont get it

jamesj · Answer

x% of 15,000 is a way of expressing how much of 15,000 we have.

100% of 15,000 is all of 15,000.  That is, 100% of 15,000 = 15,000
0%     of 15,000 on the other hand is zero. That is 0% of 15,000 = 0.

Therefore,
5.7% of 15,000
is asking for a portion of fraction of 15,000.  

To answer the question exactly, we need to know what x% of 15,000 means for any value of x.

By definition x% of 15,000 is
$$ \frac{x}{100} \times 15,000 $$

jamesj · Answer

This is the definition of what x% of a quantity means.  In your question 5.7% of 15,000 means precisely,
$$ \frac{5.7}{100} \times 15,000 $$
Can you calculate that?