New winner - employment math test

I have a simple test I give to job applicants to see if they can at least do 4th grade math. I gave a copy of the test to a friend of mine to use. They do some pretty simple steel plate work, burnouts and such. They were finding a large percentage of the guys they hired couldn't read a tape measure.

I posted a copy of one of the funnier, or sad, tests a job applicant had filled out in the "Aptitude Test" thread. But this one gets the prize. Look at the thought process on #8. If you just saw the answer you would have no clue how he arrived there. Most of they applicants form the local trade school I have interviewed have failed this test. My kids are in grade school and I see what they are doing in math and completely understand how we got here. And we are in the best public school district in the county!

This Country seems to have an overabundance of very stupid people. I hear this form friends all over and not just for shop labor positions but college grads. It can't be good when the average intelligence of a society drops off a cliff as we seem to be doing.

I'm getting wore down and am trying to convince my wife to move to a remote area. I want to downsize to a couple of small machines where I can UPS everything. That way I can minimize the contact I have to have with these people.

There is no doubt that a large portion of this country has arrived at what was depicted in the movie Idiocracy.

My 8 year old would destroy that applicant in a math competition.

Wow. I don't even know what to say.


The right angle one has my jaw dropped

Half the people in the world have a below average IQ.

As I get older I become more convinced folks are mostly born with all the thinking power they're ever going to have, an no amount of schooling can add to it. Nonetheless, the alternative of providing no schooling is way worse.

Did he get the job?

The problem for the applicant was the units of measurement were in the wrong format.
If they were questions about ounces, 1/2 ounces, 1/4 ounces, how much time off for good behavior on a 2 1/2 year jail sentence,and so on, he would have done better.

Looks like this guy is over qualified to work at McDonalds.

No doubt the world is getting dumber. +1 on living in remote areas. I already do.

Josh

You sure that guy was not trolling you so he can collect some sort of welfare for not being employed despite "honestly trying" and showing up for interviews ?

It certainly would be my first impression...

I would be willing to bet that a large percentage of public school teachers would fail your exam.
I taught my kids how to add large sums of numbers quickly. Nothing that a lot of people have done themselves.My oldest boy when he was in grade school told me that his teacher said he added everything wrong and was lucky to get the correct answer.Michael told this numbskull his dad taught him this method. She told him I needed remedial course in math.I had Michael removed from her class, then the next teacher was a nun that was not familiar with my method but liked it and said it was an excellent way to add large numbers .
A small example below.
836
421
747
28
77
Add the left column first ,800+400+700+=1900 then add the second column from the left, 30+20+40+20+70=180
add the remaining single digits,6+1+7+8+7=29
add 1900+189+29=2109

I'm sure this is not a revolutionary method, might be to teachers.
mike

I grew tired of phonies and guys who could talk during an interview. Early on I hired a few winners and paid the price. I came up with a similar test mostly basic shop questions and a few basic math questions. Nothing tough, every question was something you would expect a guy who would even consider applying to know. I would let them know in advance we had a basic shop test they would need to take when they showed up. Our brake room at the time was right off the entrance to the shop I would introduce myself and sit them down there. I would go over the formal application to be filled out, hand them the test sheet and tell them I would return shortly. Six out of ten guys would be gone when I returned to see how they were doing.
This is a hard business to hire for especially these days, people need work and will try to bluff the way in and I really feel for them at times, but I can't allow myself to get burned. I have a small operation and want to keep it that way so any guy working here needs to know his stuff. Being so small it's impossible for me to compete with bigger places with benefits and profit sharing plans....... I don't even have a decent brake room these days for people to get away from the noise and relax for ten Min.
So what am I going to get ? I get job hoppers and guys with troubles and attitudes looking for a new start. It's so true one bad apple can cause trouble so I am very careful who comes to work here, my guys care about me and I take good care of them as best I can. I offer holidays, personal days and a good hourly wage. That's all I can do right now.
I have decided to look for guys with good mechanical skills and a desire to learn. I will take a guy who has never worked in a shop and give it a go if he has good references and has done similar jobs working with his hands. Of course having some shop experience is what I want. Years back I took a kid who was working on cars changing tires and doing oil changes. Within a year he was setting up and bugging the crap out of me to start programing. He had good skills and a desire to learn, never missed a day, never said no when asked to stay late, took home machine manuals and couldn't learn fast enough for himself. After awhile he hit the wall here and went as far as he could.
I lost him to another shop, he got a real good job in a manufacturing company with a product. I knew it would happen and as bad as I felt about him going I was happy for him. I could have thrown a big raise at him but I wanted him to go for it and do well for himself. He stayed on part time but soon life got busy and it was more than he had time for. He was doing it for me.

These are the kind of guys I want and I have three right now. We do well and appreciate each other.

Ron

Screwmachine said:

Half the people in the world have a below average IQ.

Click to expand...

Well now... It may even be a little worse than that.

For example, if 99% have an IQ of 50, and 1% have an IQ of 150, that means a whole lot more than half are below average...

wonder what they would do with pie are square
that's the stupidity of the education system, any one who doesn't have a degree in education knows nothing.
nah you have to be able to count to work at McDonalds

Screwmachine said:

Half the people in the world have a below average IQ.

Click to expand...

Perhaps a Wanted ad in the Lake Lake Wobegon paper is the way to go?

I hear all the children are above-average.

The guy could have been trolling, BOTOH I was in a corner store the other week and the till had broken down, and had to watch in disbelief as the kid added 21 twice on a calculator, then looked up in amazement that I'd given him the same answer before he started pressing buttons

Or if you REALLY want to confuse folk - ping a straight line with a chalk line, they'll look at you like you landed from Mars.

72bwhite said:

wonder what they would do with pie are square
that's the stupidity of the education system, any one who doesn't have a degree in education knows nothing.
nah you have to be able to count to work at McDonalds

Click to expand...

Not where I live. A cousin of mine was at the local McDonalds and the power went out. The girl said she could still fill the order. She had a receipt book and filled out the order. She handed it to him and asked if he could add if up for her. In his disbelief he asked her if she was in school and where and what grade. She was a senior where my kids go. Oh - once he added it up he also had to figure his change. They are going to give her a public Education High School Diploma.

So was this Beavis or Butthead?

#8 reminds me of what I tell people when they ask how tall I am (I am on the taller side). I say, "Oh, about 5' 17".

The Dude

Can you imagine having to pay this fool $15/hr if min wage was raised? You should have kicked him in the nuts with a steel toe and saved us tax payers from his children.

The zombie apocalypse has officially arrived.

This almost makes me sad to see an example of such poor math knowledge. Or I believe he was blowing the test. Either way, it is a sad society.

They say we could never be able to support our own country in need of war or emergency industrialy. Simple fact are there are no factorys left to do the work. Even worse than that no one intelegent enough to do it.


I have always been amazed when a simple trig problem requires a computer loaded with some kind of software.

I could always napkin sketch and figure the trig information with a 15.00 dollar calculator and 9 times out of ten set it on the computer guys desk before or close to when he got his answers.

Dinasours............thats what they call us.

I wonder what the local trade schools charge for that education? That test is priceless.