A hypothesis is what the experimenters expected. A conclusion is what the data actually show. The ACT will write a hypothesis in the intro and a different pattern in the figure. Answer from the figure unless the question asks what they predicted. Experimental design is in experimental design.
Prediction versus result
“Students believed growth would increase” is a hypothesis. “Growth decreased after day 14” is a conclusion if that is what Table 1 shows. New information that tests a hypothesis is in new-information questions.
Conflicting viewpoints is a pile of hypotheses. Each student is a claim, not a result, in conflicting viewpoints. Reading the actual trend is in interpreting trends.
The bottom line
Expected: hypothesis. Measured: conclusion. If they disagree, the figure wins unless the question asked what someone thought.
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