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'Unsolvable' exam question leaves Chinese students flummoxed

bbc.com

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Re: 'Unsolvable' exam question leaves Chinese students flummoxed

#2
That's like a question that might appear as a gag in a SNL final exams skit. I'm for the odd unconventional question that might not follow a premise that was well-established in class per se (used deliberately, and sparingly)...but not a question which can only result in confusion and frustration.

Re: 'Unsolvable' exam question leaves Chinese students flummoxed

#3

That's like a question that might appear as a gag in a SNL final exams skit. I'm for the odd unconventional question that might not follow a premise that was well-established in class per se (used deliberately, and sparingly)...but not a question which can only result in confusion and frustration.

Except that's life.

Here's my answer to that question:

Risky Business(1983):

Miles: Sometimes you gotta say "What the F*ck", make your move.

Re: 'Unsolvable' exam question leaves Chinese students flummoxed

#4
It sounds like the old programming interview questions: "Why are sewer covers round?", etc. They sound like they promote critical thinking, but really they just confuse the applicants. If you want to know how someone thinks, ask them to solve a problem step by step.

Re: 'Unsolvable' exam question leaves Chinese students flummoxed

#5
Growing up in the US, we used to have questions like this on math exams. The correct answer is something to the effect of "Not enough information to solve this problem". Of course we had practice questions where that was the case before the exam, so it wasn't a surprise or anything... but it was standard practice.

Re: 'Unsolvable' exam question leaves Chinese students flummoxed

#8

It sounds like the old programming interview questions: "Why are sewer covers round?", etc. They sound like they promote critical thinking, but really they just confuse the applicants. If you want to know how someone thinks, ask them to solve a problem step by step.

Such questions are usually shibboleths for cultural and social affinity, rather than objective attempts to test critical thinking and logic.

Re: 'Unsolvable' exam question leaves Chinese students flummoxed

#9

It sounds like the old programming interview questions: "Why are sewer covers round?", etc. They sound like they promote critical thinking, but really they just confuse the applicants. If you want to know how someone thinks, ask them to solve a problem step by step.

Asking them to solve a problem step by step is great to learn whether that person is good at explaining the solution step by step. It is not about internal thought process you use to come up with solution.

Re: 'Unsolvable' exam question leaves Chinese students flummoxed

#10

>"The total weight of 26 sheep and 10 goat is 7,700kg, based on the average weight of each animal," said one Weibo commenter. Well that's just not true.

Maybe they meant pounds? Large sheep can weigh around 250lb so it gets closer to the 7700 number
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