They are freshman, i.e. untrained minds. Me, I probably would have failed that question at the time, too. Such a question wouldn't have been on a test, however, as test questions always involved a lot of math.
I remember one inglorious physics midterm exam that over half of the students flunked. The prof had some angry words for the class.
> In 8th grade?
Sure, if you'd laid the groundwork in class.