Hellooo. I have a question, and it might be the dumbest question ever that only I am confused about.
So, tests like the SAT and ACT are supposedly scored based on how many questions you get right, right? Does that mean that theoretically, if I ONLY answered questions I know the answer to 100% and left everything else BLANK i could get a 36/1600? Of course not, right? But then would that mean that unanswered questions would be counted as wrong? If so, why do they put such an emphasis on “we only count the questions you answer right, so don’t bother guessing!”
Please someone answer me bc it’s been weighing me down LOL
“we only count the questions you answer right, so don’t bother guessing!”
This is actually the exact opposite. You have zero penalty for guessing. In order to get a perfect 1600, one must answer every single question correct. Its just like any other test where you get a certain amount right out of the total getting your score.
Think of it as if you have a 100 question test at school and each question is worth one point with a hundred being the highest you can get. Your score is thus based on number of correct answers. Failure to answer a question means you will lose that point. What will not happen is to actually get an additonal deduction for a wrong answer, which the SAT actually used to do, i.e., answering a question wrong resulted not just in losing the points applicable to the question but in an additonal deduction of 1/4 point.
That warning about not guessing actually had a real meaning when the SAT used to deduct additonal points for wrong answers but has little meaning today since it has ceased doing that deduction.
You can miss several questions on the ACT and still get a 36. It depends on the section and the particular curve of a given sitting. In some cases, you can even miss one and still get a section score of 36. Having 4 sections is more forgiving as well, as two sections of 35 plus two of 36 = 36 composite.
SAT math generally needs no wrong answers for an 800, while reading sometimes you can miss one and still get an 800. Note that SAT subject tests still do administer the 1/4 point deduction for a wrong answer.