Understanding how to calculate the percentage of a number is a fundamental mathematical skill applicable in various real-life scenarios. It involves determining a specific fraction of a given quantity, expressed as a percentage. For example, if you need 30% of 500 students for a survey, you would calculate this by finding 0.3 (or 3/10) of 500, resulting in 150 students.
Calculating percentages is vital in fields such as finance (interest calculations), retail (discounts), and statistics (data analysis). Historically, the concept of percentages emerged during the Italian Renaissance, where merchants used fractions to represent discounts and profits.
