State of training and exam standards
Hi shame I missed your survey otherwise I would have submitted for sure. Having been through the mill of the "old" exam process BCAR section L with its combination of multi choice questions (with negative marking) essay questions followed (if successful) by an oral exam it took me approximately 4yrs to gain a multi X license. Lets wind the clock forward to EASA and the current standards. I recently decided to complete the engine and airframe modules in pursuit of a B1 license. As you have stated, questions freely available on the internet made studying a joke, total preparation time for first time pass in all modules probably about six weeks.
In my own estimation, would I now hold and A and C license to the standards applied when I sat my avionics licenses? Absolutely not. Anyone claiming standards have not dropped really does not know what they are talking about.