My teaching are the same but my young students are getting worse. For example, when I give them this example...5000lb forklift, 24" load center, 48" forks, and a truck pulls in with a 60" pallet, how much weight can be on the pallet for you to pick it up safely with your forklift? When they don't get the answer, I ask them what is the load center of the incoming pallet, and they say 30", so what is the load center rating of the forklift, and they say 24", so what do we do then? They say subtract the rated load center of the forklift from the load center incoming pallet...then pause. Out come the smartphones so they calculate 30-24.

Is their any hope for these kids who do not know how to subtract 30-24 without the use of a calculator or smartphone?

G-D help us all! lol

I still teach the 1"=100lb rule since there are no other immediate options, and it is the easiest means to collect a very near result.

And since I am not there to babysit them each and everyday, who knows what goes on there when I am not there. As long as I do not get a call from the Ministry of Labour asking me to substantiate why I deemed someone competent, then I have no worries. And fortunately, in the last 15 years, I have never received a call