I usually sit ideally reading the discussions on the list serve not having
the Ph.D. that seems to be prevalent. However, having a little to do with
high stakes testing I do have a comment or two on this question.
First if the question had asked the boat's position relative to the dock it
would have clued the student into the center of mass problem that the Prof.
expected. If we assume little or no friction that is.
Or, secondly, the Prof. could have asked students to discuss why the answer
should not have been 17 meters. Sorry for the grading nightmare but he/she
certainly could have gotten into the students head and understanding.
Lastly, I have noted that most high stakes testing is being done by too few
over used commercial ventures and most lack the teacher input that should be
required. Why? Development of good test construction is a difficult task
and most States find it easier although more expensive in the long run just
to contract the development. If we value high stakes testing and want it to
be improved, work on State Departments of Education to use the model used in
a few states and get them to use the resources in their state classrooms to
develop quality testing programs internally.