Examination Tactics and Minimum Standards

THE ASSOCIATION OF MINE SURVEYORS OF ZIMBABWE 27th CONFERENCE 17TH AUGUST

2012 MINE SURVEYORS ARE A KEY TO

DEVELOPING THE MINING INDUSTRYExamination Tactics

and Minimum Standards

Abstract: tactics useful in answering examination questions with particular

reference to the ZGMSCC

AMSZ Conference 16 & 17 August 2012, Kariba

Isaac Sinosi, Secretary AMSZ

INTRODUCTION(So you want to pass?)

What is an examination?To ascertain the level of understanding an

individual has on any topic.Basically there are three types of examinations: Oral – Blasting Licence, Mine Manager’s

Diploma and CRAP. Written – GMSCC Project – Trial Survey.


ENTRY REQUIREMENTS Candidate to be at least 20 years old. Chief Surveyor’s/TSM’s recommendation. Five O Levels. Three years practical mining survey experience

acceptable to the board. National Diploma/HND in Mine Surveying - an

added advantage. Zimbabwe School of Mines crash course - an

advantage. Trial survey.


PREPARATION(If you want to chop down a tree spend 90% of the time

sharpening your tools.)

Spot study – causes waffling and not answering question not prepared for. Adequate preparation ensures good understanding of the subject so that

questions can be answered confidently. Study extensively on subjects intended to be covered. Practice answering past exam papers. Do not study for particular questions but prepare for the whole subject. Practice using bulletin 7. Attempt a minimum of 6 past examination papers before attempting the

examination. Interact with other candidates well before examination date. Interact with holders of GMSCC.


TIME BUDGET(Time flies)

Budget your time to match with the marks allocated to the question.

A balance must be obtained between the time and marks allocated to the question.

Too much time spent on question worth 10 points will strangle the time available for other longer questions.

If a question is worth 20% in a 3-hour examination then spend only 20% of 3 hours on that question.

Spending twice or more this time will leave too little time for the other questions or tempts the candidate to go off topic and give information that has little relevance to the question.


SPEED (information over time)

In any examination speed does not mean writing very fast rather it is a measure of the amount of useful information put on paper per unit time. Speed is an important element in an examination.

Improve speed through practice. In an essay or narrative type of questions use diagram to improve the

quality of any explanations. Volumes of words can be substituted by a clearly labelled diagram. E.g. a diagram of a kata thermometer can be used to explain the meridian convergence.

Practice drawing diagrams so that when these are called for you can draw them quickly and make your answer vivid.

Guidelines of speed expected: The join and its check – 5 minutes. Polar to rectangular with a check – 5 minutes. Triangulation – solution of triangle and coordination – 10 minutes. Resection by Collins method – 30 minutes.


LAYOUTS Layouts are important in reducing the time spent on any

question. Most calculations have standard layouts which are taught at

ZSM, Bullet 7 and other recommended survey literature. Layouts are meant to reduce amount of writing one has to do

for any question. If followed they are a big investment in time saving.

Use layouts to reduce time spent on lengthy calculations. E.g. the solution of a triangle by the sine rule can be obtained in a much shorter way if the layout overleaf is followed.


LAYOUTS (Contd.)By the Sine Rule: a = b = c = a Sin B & c = a Sin C

Sin A Sin B Sin C Sin A Sin A

A 71.24.30 0.9478148 626.656 (a)B 65.14.21 0.9080640 600.374 (b)C 43.21.09 0.6990708 453.875 (c) 180.00.00

To coordinate C

From A From Bx AB: 268.14.30 x BA: 88.14.30 To C 71.24.30 To C 5.14.21x AC: 339.39.00 ad 600.374 x BC 23.00.09 HD 626.656-0.3477540 0.9375858 + 0.3907713 +0.9204878-208.782 +562.902 + 244.879 +576.829a: + 100.369 -350.474 - 353.292 -364.401 C: -108.413 +212.428 C: - 108.413 -212.428

Mean coords of C - 108.413 + 212.428

This can be done inside 10 minutes but more elaborate layouts will achieve the same results after a longer time.


TRAVERSE LAYOUT WITH 45O CHECK


TRAVERSE LAYOUT WITH 45O CHECK METHOD 2


JOIN CALCULATION


Planning(Failing to plan is like planning to fail)

Read the question carefully and make sure you understand it before attempting to answer.

A list of steps showing how to approach the problem should then follow e.g. in a 3 borehole problem with elevations, the solution would be:

a) Find the elevations of the intersections – establish the highest point, say A.

b) Calculate distances and directions from higher point A to lower points, say B & C.

c) Find minor dips AB and AC. -: tan(major dip) x cos(angle of deflection) d) Solve for direction of strike by Napiers.e) Find dip from both sides.If the above structure is not available, the join BC will most probably be calculated but may not

be used. This plan saves time and guides the solution.


CHECKING(Survey is incomplete until checked)

Check your work at various stages of the calculations. Independent checks are advisable. In a join calculation employ the popular 45o check to avoid

embarrassment when final results do not agree. P R is not full proof check for join calculations, does not check back to the

original source of information. All survey calculations should be checked to avoid detecting errors to late.


ACCURACY(Accuracy is our motto we mever nake mistakes)

A surveyor is expected to produce accurate work. It is folly to ask for approximate values from a candidate if he is going to be awarded a Certificate of Competency.

One cannot be competent if he is not capable of producing accurate work consistent with the accuracy of the data available.

The implication of significant figures has been flouted on a number of occasions. For example:- if coordinates in a question are given to 2 decimal places, the final answer must be given to 2 decimal places. Increasing decimal places does not improve accuracy. This exposes the level of competency any candidate has. At the level of Certificate of Competency, answers that are required must be accurate to the limits of the original data.

Flouting this basic requirement will result in loss of marks. Accuracy does not mean writing down a value to several decimal places; it means giving a value to the number of decimal places consistent with the accuracy of the data given. Not only is time wasted in writing down the extra decimal places but marks are lost for ignoring the accuracy implied.


CONCLUSION Preparation. Read and understand the question. List the main requirements. Proceed methodically following the steps listed in the strategy. Be neat. Be brief and to the point. Start with easier questions. Calculation questions to be done first. Be familiar with your calculator before the examination. Check your work regularly. Allocate your time proportional to the marks.

The mining industry continues to change alongside technology and so do the duties of various practitioners, Mine Surveyors included. To that end a formal training for all the Mine Surveyors, starting with the examiners is recommended to meet the challenges ahead. This will help broaden horizons of future Mine Surveyors so they can readily accept the challenges and advances in their profession.

To that end be pleased to note that training of examiners already started, as I speak right now a curriculum was developed in preparation for the GMSCC syllabus revision.


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Examination Tactics and Minimum Standards

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