SPANISH school pupils aged 15 have 'poor' problem-solving skills, with the average teenager unable to work a vacuum cleaner or buy a train ticket.
Most were able to calculate the shortest route between two places on a map where the distance for each section was given in metres or kilometres and in minutes or hours, taking into account time of day, weather conditions and other factors, for three people who are setting off from different places.
They were able to successfully buy the cheapest public transport ticket, but had problems when it came to buying multiple tickets for the same journey in the event of problems such as missing a connection or having to pay a surcharge.
Also, many of them found it difficult to work an MP3 player, an automatic non-hand-held hoover, or the thermostat on an air-conditioning or heating unit.
When asked to design a table plan for a birthday party with certain requisites about who should sit together and who should not, the average 15-year-old was confused.
Concerning the automatic vacuum cleaner, students were asked to pinpoint the direction the apparatus would take if it encountered obstacles in its path, and answer a series of 'true or false' questions about adjusting the volume level and changing the song on an MP3 player.
They also had to buy a train ticket on an automatic touch-screen machine, which included choosing between the regional line or metro, the type of tariff, and whether or not the ticket was valid for one day or several.
Also, the teenagers had to follow the instructions for an air-conditioning and heating unit, and show whether they knew how these affected temperature and humidity and how to vary the controls.
Read more at thinkSPAIN.com