It’s 2040, and You Are the Prime Minister

A test from 2011 taken by 12 year old boys vying to join a select group of students at Eton College known as King’s Scholars has recently appeared upon the discussion table of British blogosphere. For those unfamiliar with this legendary British institution: Eton College is a boarding school for boys 13 to 18 founded by King Henry VI back in 1440. The chemist Robert Boyle, the author Alduos Huxley, the economist John Maynard Keynes are just a few of notables that went here. It is one of the best schools in the world.

70 of these students get to be in a separate boarding house reserved for King’s Scholars with scholarships from the original foundation, hence the name. To get the prestigious King’s scholarship, boys take this challenging test that tests not only math and logic but language and culture as well.

The question that has gotten the British blogosphere abuzz is the third part of the first question:

The year is 2040. There have been riots in the streets of London after Britain has run out of petrol because of an oil crisis in the Middle East. Protesters have attacked public buildings. Several policemen have died. Consequently, the Government has deployed the Army to curb the protests. After two days the protests have been stopped but twenty-five protesters have been killed by the Army. You are the Prime Minister. Write the script for a speech to be broadcast to the nation in which you explain why employing the Army against violent protesters was the only option available to you and one which was both necessary and moral.

A bit much isn’t it? Perhaps even surreal? Smells of Machiavelianism? Well, the text that precedes this question is an excerpt from Machiavelli’s The Prince. Also, did I mention that 19 prime ministers (including the current one) of England were / are Etonians? It’s not that I am against teaching boys to think out of their skin, but this just seems (for lack of a better word) too creepy.

The rest the test is quite interesting. Question 2 is quite creative; it asks you to decode a made up language. Question 3 is another open ended question about education based on Nietzsche. And question 4 consists of a bunch of math and logic puzzles, like: If today is Friday, what is the day that follows the day that comes after the day that precedes the day before yesterday?