Now you get credit for right answers, but no penalty for wrong answers.
This way if you completely guess and there are 5 choices for each question, you will get a 20%.
If wrong answers are penalized you will get a zero if you completely guess.
There used to be a minimum score of 200 on SAT verbal and math and also the Achievement tests. The old joke used to be, “He’s so dumb that he got 300 on his SATs.” All that was required for the 200 was to print your name.
A smart guesser could do significantly better. The correct answer to multiple choice math problems is often surrounded on either side by decoys, an answer way out in left field, and the idiot trap "none of the above". For example if the answers are 23, 25, 27, 294, none, choosing the middle value 25 is the correct answer about half the time.
And I think we can figure out who that was intended to benefit.
47) You come to work in the morning and find that the previous Barista has left you only 1 pound of Organic Free Trade GMO-Free whole coffee beans. If you ordinarily serve 100 Soy Milk Lattes per 4 hour shift. Assuming you sell only Soy Milk Lattes today, and that each Soy Milk Latte use 1.6 ounces of ground coffee beans, in how many minutes can you put up the “CLOSED - NO COFFEE” sign and go smoke weed in the back?
A) 3 minutes.
B) 24 minutes.
C) Did not go to work that day because I had to go to the CVS for Onestep Plan B.
D) 4 hours.
E) 420 4 LIFE!
Actually, I find essays way too subjective for this kind of test. Further, all wrong answers are not created equal. Sometimes, a wrong answer could be correct especially if more facts are considered (depending on the question of course). And guessing gets you no where.
As for those two changes, I think they more adequately reflect the intelligence of the student. If you are guessing, you get a low score anyway and since everyone will be on equal footing that is all that matters.