Redundant Exercises in Exams

Having just walked out of my first exam this semester, I decided to write my semi-annual exam bash/rant. The exam I just had is on microeconomics, which involves quite a bit of maths. For me, who also take courses in engineering, the maths are quite easy. In fact it is so easy I question the need to waste time on them in an exam.

Take a simple example, solving a pair of simultaneous equations. We all know how to do it since year 9 or 10 and it is (usually) simple. However that doesn't mean it can be done very quickly, especially in a time critical situation such as an exam. This particular exam should be testing my knowledge on economic theory and how to apply mathematical tools (e.g., solving simultaneous equations) to get the information we sought. If I apply the correct theories I should get to a point where I can say, "OK, we have two unknowns and two equations, so we can solve for them." The test should end here because it had verified I understand the economic theories and know how to get at the answers.

But the test doesn't end there because I need to write down the actual numbers for full mark. Can anyone tell me why I need to justify to the examiner I can solve a pair of simultaneous equations in this context? To me this is just a pointless exercise that has nothing to do with economics.

I would, however, like to point out that things would be different if the question does not ask for a number, but rather an expression of the quantity we are after. Then it would be useful and interesting to fully solve for the expression because from that expression we can tell how the value will change in relation to the known parameters.

It is unfortunate that all too often exams contain numerical rather than analytical questions. Coupled with odd parameters (a=0.423 instead of a=2), you wouldn't know you made a mistake since your answer, whether right or not, is just a number. On the other hand, a mistake can be spotted more easily in an expression if you know how the variables should interact with each other.

If I want to solve mathematical problems numerically, I won't be studying economics.