Stupid PPL exam questions

[ErichB 3,643]

You have to wonder whether these questions were written by an  examiner,  appropriately qualified to examine aviation related knowledge, or by the flying school secretary.  

 

I always enjoy your posts Jaime.

[Alpha Floor 237]

But we hate stuff like this. It drives us nuts, when something technical is done poorly like this--especially when it comes to teaching or earning a license in aviation. Accuracy matters, especially in aviation.

 

Couldn't have said it better!

 

Also, on some questions the administrarion does nit-pick the examinee. Hence it's only logical to assume that the examinee will also nit-pick every question. To me it doesn't sound fair on behalf of the examination administration to say, for some questions "don't overthink it, keep it simple" but then for other questions insert quirks...

 

 

You have to wonder whether these questions were written by an examiner, appropriately qualified to examine aviation related knowledge, or by the flying school secretary.

 

Indeed. As I said before, since I can't guarantee these are ACTUAL exam question, they are to be taken with a grain of salt.

 

 

 

I always enjoy your posts Jaime.

 

Thanks a lot Erich!

[KevinAu 441]

You're absolutely right, it is not fair. That's just how life is. I'm a pilot, not an engineer, my approach to any of these questions is to pick an answer, the one that has a mere plurality of correctness, and move on. Yes, they will make some questions that are finely worded and quirky while the next one will be general and vague. But they do this on purpose, to separate those who should get a 100 from those who get a 90. I have friends who are engineers and yes they do get hung up like this on small stuff. It is the natural tendency of a mathematician. And that's a good thing for those who have that kind of a mind doing that kind of work. Problems arise when you take an engineer and place them in an operator's position such as a pilot or vice versa. Although the design and building of an aircraft should be precise, the actual decision making that pilots make while flying is not. We make numerous decisions based on incomplete information. As incomplete as your question on bank angle. If we waited until our information was perfect to choose a-b-c or d, then we would never get anything done. No, in life as in flying, you make a choice on the best available information, and you reevaluate and readjust your decision as necessary as you move forward. The guys in our classes who get hung up on small details like this inevitably get spit wads lodged in the hair on the back of their heads because they annoy the heck out every other normal pilot in class. Instructors inevitably explain to these guys that always question the minutia that it works like this due to PFM. Pure F'ing Magic.

[fnav77 56]

Ah, the joys of theoretical exams.... one thing to remember: RTFQ

[Seria17hri11er 15]

the actual decision making that pilots make while flying is not. We make numerous decisions based on incomplete information. As incomplete as your question on bank angle. If we waited until our information was perfect to choose a-b-c or d, then we would never get anything done. No, in life as in flying, you make a choice on the best available information, and you reevaluate and readjust your decision as necessary as you move forward.

 

Valid point, but I highly doubt questions and answers were written that way to test decision making capability.  If they wanted to test decision making capability on a written test they could do far better than that.  These questions are about physics and what not; there are very definitive answers.

 

And on testing decision making capability, that's best tested in the air by the instructor creating scenarios the trainee must deal with and likewise on the Check Ride.

 

 

 

 

Yes, they will make some questions that are finely worded and quirky while the next one will be general and vague. But they do this on purpose, to separate those who should get a 100 from those who get a 90.

 

 

I fail to see the value gained from this approach.  I don't see any value in "separating those who should get a 100 from those who get a 90."  The whole point of teaching and taking the test, is to ensure they have a very good understanding of flight.

 

I'd be more concerned with students who don't say "these answers for this question are bad.  None of them are quite right."  If they don't say that about some of the questions, then they most likely don't fully comprehend the issue at hand.

 

And I say that based off running into these situations myself.  I've brought questions like this to pilots who had already passed (even my instructor I think), and they failed to comprehend what was wrong with the question/answer.  Upon further questioning, it truly seemed to me, that they did not fully comprehend the physics.  Bothered the hell out of me.  Sometimes does till this day--even though I do not actively fly (cost).

[Dave Morgan 68]

All I can say is...

 

 

Kid's answer in pencil. Examiner's reply in green pen. Kid's going to grow up to be a PPL question-setter.

[KevinAu 441]

Valid point, but I highly doubt questions and answers were written that way to test decision making capability.  If they wanted to test decision making capability on a written test they could do far better than that.  These questions are about physics and what not; there are very definitive answers.

 

And on testing decision making capability, that's best tested in the air by the instructor creating scenarios the trainee must deal with and likewise on the Check Ride.

 

I fail to see the value gained from this approach.  I don't see any value in "separating those who should get a 100 from those who get a 90."  The whole point of teaching and taking the test, is to ensure they have a very good understanding of flight.

 

I'd be more concerned with students who don't say "these answers for this question are bad.  None of them are quite right."  If they don't say that about some of the questions, then they most likely don't fully comprehend the issue at hand.

 

And I say that based off running into these situations myself.  I've brought questions like this to pilots who had already passed (even my instructor I think), and they failed to comprehend what was wrong with the question/answer.  Upon further questioning, it truly seemed to me, that they did not fully comprehend the physics.  Bothered the hell out of me.  Sometimes does till this day--even though I do not actively fly (cost).

It doesn't matter that you don't see any value to it. It only matters what the person making the test that you have to pass thinks. That little bit about how they write the tests was told to me by someone at my former airline's training department. That's all. Take it for what it's worth.

 

Seriously? Did you really expect a pilot to understand the physics? Pilots just fly them. They don't design them. Your typical exmilitary airline pilot grew up a high school football jock. They weren't high school science or computer geeks.

[Alpha Floor 237]

 

 

Problems arise when you take an engineer and place them in an operator's position such as a pilot or vice versa.

 

Kevin, thanks for your words, liked your message!

 

Just want to say that I, for one, hope to be an engineer AND a pilot one day. I think the two should not be incompatible!

 

 

 

Seriously? Did you really expect a pilot to understand the physics?

 

No! That's the physicist's job! (I can argue that not even the engineer understands the real physics, but that's another story, hehe). 

 

I think the general "rant" comes from the fact that questions could be worded in a precise manner and answers could be accurate, without the need of the pilot becoming a physicists in order to understand them. That's all I'm saying

 

I agree with Nick in that I don't think these questions are vague on purpose to test the examinee's decision making capabilities. That's far out of the reach of "just a PPL exam", in my honest opinion.

 

 

Kid's answer in pencil. Examiner's reply in green pen. Kid's going to grow up to be a PPL question-setter.

 

haha, great one! I've done MIT exams on none carried such a "mean" intention on part of the teacher, haha.

[Seria17hri11er 15]

It doesn't matter that you don't see any value to it. 

 

 

Sigh.  I was politely trying to say; there is no value to it.  Not simply that it's just that I can't see it.

 

 

It only matters what the person making the test that you have to pass thinks. 

 

 

Yes and no.  The vast majority of pilots fly the public.  In the U.S. they follow the FAAs rules.  The FAA is part of the government obviously and answerable to the public.  If the public is not happy about something we can ideally petition the government to change something about the way the FAA tests pilots.  However, I am not stating that that the public is unhappy. Just saying.

 

 

 

That little bit about how they write the tests was told to me by someone at my former airline's training department. That's all. Take it for what it's worth.

 

 

Well there is part of the problem.  You seem to be approaching it from a company (airline) aspect.  And they certainly want to rank and file pilots, so they like the test to be how it is.  That is understandable due to promotions and assignments etc.  Makes sense.

 

I am not approaching it from that perspective.  Right off the bat I stated "when I was getting my PPL."  So that is what I am talking about.  No value to that sort of test doodoo for someone working on obtaining the PPL--and I'd go further and say MEL, IFR rating etc.  Now once they are employed as a commercial pilot, things are a different story.

 

 

Seriously? Did you really expect a pilot to understand the physics? Pilots just fly them. They don't design them. Your typical exmilitary airline pilot grew up a high school football jock. They weren't high school science or computer geeks.

 

What Alpha Floor said.

Also, it kind of seems like your trying to support the status quo.  Which is pretty typical when someone highlights a flaw in a test or system for an elite license/certification.

[KevinAu 441]

I neither support nor am against the 'status quo'. It just seems to me there are more important things to worry about, like making sure your fms route matches your atc clearance.