What type of scale is used for the quantitative variable of class ranking?

Class ranking is categorized using an ordinal scale because it involves a rank order among individuals or groups. In an ordinal scale, the data points can be ranked in a meaningful way, such as first, second, third, and so forth. However, while the positions indicate relative standing, they do not convey the exact differences in magnitude between ranks. For instance, the difference in performance between the first and second-ranked students may not be the same as the difference between the second and third-ranked students.

In contrast, nominal scales only classify data into distinct categories without implying any order, interval scales represent values on a continuum with equal distances between points but lack a true zero, and ratio scales also have a true zero and allow for comparisons of absolute magnitudes. Since class rankings reflect order but do not provide precise differences in performance, they are best represented by an ordinal scale.