| Those
six little words (actually four of them are little, two are
big words) that nobody wants to hear “you have erred in your
procedure”, are words that can ruin your whole day.
Then of course you have to stand there and listen to
an explanation of what you did wrong.
This is sort of like adding insult to injury.
As much as you don’t like to hear these words, your
Proctor does not like to say these words.
Sometimes it’s just plain unavoidable.
Usually an explanation from the Proctor is all it takes.
Most of the time you hear the explanation and think
about it, then smack yourself in the forehead and say #&%$@#&*%$*@&%^
I can’t believe I did that! However, occasionally the explanation
will leave you scratching your head and talking to yourself.
In
circumstances like this, you don’t have to walk away talking
to yourself, you can actually ask for a better explanation.
Proctors are very well trained, but as you know nobody’s perfect.
You have the right to an on-site appeal anytime you
feel the Proctor has made an error.
You can go to the Proctor-in-Charge and plead your
case. If you’re
disputing that you did what the Proctor says you did, that
will be a very tough case to make.
However if you are disputing that what you did was
not a cause for failure, you may be able to make your case.
As Proctors, we must view your actions in the light
of whether or not they may have caused erroneous results.
It does not matter whether they affected your test
results, rather it’s whether or not they could have affected
your test results. Your
Proctor must be able to make the case that your actions could
have led to erroneous test results.
If you believe that the case has not been made, you
have every right to appeal that decision to the on-site Proctor-in-Charge.
If you’re unhappy with that decision you may also appeal
in writing to the Program Administrator.
Typically, these types of disputes will be handled
by the on-site Proctor-in-Charge to everyone’s satisfaction.
Sometimes
it’s difficult to know what constitutes an error and what
does not. Some
parts of the test procedure are totally arbitrary and could
not affect the outcome of the test one way or another.
Other parts of the test are critical and definitely
can affect the outcome of the test.
If you’re not sure, it’s best to follow the procedures
exactly as written. A good example of test procedures
that have an arbitrary order is the pressure vacuum breaker
test. These three
steps can be done in any order, and will not affect the outcome
of the test in any way:
Step a. Remove
air inlet valve canopy.
Step
b. Bleed water
through both test cocks to eliminate foreign material.
Step
c. Install appropriate fittings to test cocks.
A
good example of the test procedure that can affect the outcome
of the test would be Steps h.and i. of the reduced pressure
principle test procedures (relief valve opening point test).
Step h. completes the procedure for bleeding the air
out of the hose and gauge.
The next step asks you to close the number two shutoff
valve and then note the apparent pressure drop across the
number one check. In
both of these steps, the order is critical.
In step h., if you close the low side first and then
the high side, you will fail your exam. The explanation from
your Proctor would go something like this:
Prior to the
relief valve opening point test any time you have the high
side flowing water without the low side flowing water you
run the risk of discharging the relief valve prematurely.
Closing the low side first would allow the high side
to be running all by itself; this constitutes a critical error.
In
step i., if you were to make a note of the apparent pressure
drop across the first check prior to closing the number two
shut off valve this too would be considered a critical error.
The explanation would be that until
number two shutoff valve is closed you could still have flow
through the assembly; thus any reading obtained would not
be accurate as an apparent pressure drop .
The apparent pressure drop is critical because it is
used as a reference point two and sometimes three more times
during the test.
These
are just a couple of examples of things that would be considered
errors and the explanations you would receive.
There are many others, as well as many things that
can be done out of sequence that would not be considered errors.
If you’re not sure, the best thing to do is ask before
you start your exam.
Good
luck on your next exam and as usual, happy testing.
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