On May 10, 2015, there were 83 million Internet subscribers in Nigeria. The major Internet providers were MTN, Globacom, Airtel,...

1. TRANSLATE the problem information

• Given information:
  • Total Internet subscribers: 97 million
  • Probability of selecting MTN subscriber: 0.43
  • Unknown: p million MTN subscribers

2. INFER the mathematical relationship

• This is a probability problem where we know the probability and total, but need to find the favorable outcomes
• We need to set up: Probability = (MTN subscribers)/(Total subscribers)
• This gives us: \(0.43 = \mathrm{p}/97\)

3. SIMPLIFY to solve for p

• Multiply both sides by 97:

\(\mathrm{p} = 0.43 \times 97\)

• Calculate: \(\mathrm{p} = 41.71\) (use calculator)
• Round to nearest integer: \(\mathrm{p} = 42\)

Answer: 42

Why Students Usually Falter on This Problem

Most Common Error Path:

Weak TRANSLATE skill: Students might misinterpret what p represents or set up the probability equation incorrectly, perhaps writing \(97/\mathrm{p} = 0.43\) instead of \(\mathrm{p}/97 = 0.43\).

This confusion about which quantity goes in the numerator versus denominator leads to \(\mathrm{p} = 97/0.43 \approx 225.6\), which rounds to 226. This causes them to get stuck since 226 isn't a reasonable answer given the context.

Second Most Common Error:

Inadequate SIMPLIFY execution: Students correctly set up \(\mathrm{p}/97 = 0.43\) but make calculation errors when multiplying \(0.43 \times 97\), or they forget the final step of rounding 41.71 to the nearest integer.

This may lead them to report 41.71 or 41 instead of the correct answer of 42, or causes computational confusion that leads to guessing.

The Bottom Line:

This problem tests whether students can correctly translate a probability scenario into mathematical notation and then execute straightforward algebraic solving with proper rounding.