Educator

Slope and Rate of Change

• The slope of a straight line is the ratio of the change in the y coordinates to the change in the x coordinates of two particular points that lie on the line. This is also known as a rate of change.

• Slope is a measurement of how steep the line is. The larger the absolute value of the slope, the steeper the line.

• Any two points on a line can be used to compute the slope. The same value will be obtained, no matter which two points are chosen.

• The slope can be positive, negative, 0, or undefined.

• A horizontal line has slope 0. A vertical line has undefined slope.

• If a line increases as it moves from left to right, its slope is positive. If it decreases, its slope is negative.