WOW!! DO YOU KNOW THIS?

    Eighth Grade Education.....THIS IS FASCINATING   

What it took to get an 8th grade education in 1895...

Remember when grandparents and great-grandparents stated that they only had an 8th grade education?      Well, check this out.  Could any of us have passed the 8th grade in 1895?

This is the eighth-grade final exam from 1895 in Salina, Kansas, USA. It was taken from the original document on file at the Smokey Valley Genealogical Society and Library in Salina, KS, and reprinted by the Salina Journal.

8th Grade Final  Exam: Salina, KS -1895
Grammar (Time, one hour)

1. Give nine rules for the use of capital  letters.
2. Name the parts of speech and define those that have no  modifications.
3. Define verse, stanza and paragraph
4. What are the  principal parts of a verb? Give principal parts of "lie," "play," and "run."  
5. Define case; illustrate each case.
6 What is punctuation? Give rules  for principal marks of punctuation.
7 - 10. Write a composition of about  150 words and show therein that you understand the practical use of the rules  of grammar.

Arithmetic (Time,1  hour 15 minutes)

1. Name  and define the Fundamental Rules of Arithmetic.
2. A wagon box is 2 ft.  deep, 10 feet long, and 3 ft. wide. How many bushels of wheat will it hold?  
3. If a load of wheat weighs 3,942 lbs., what is it worth at 50cts/bushel,  deducting 1,050 lbs. for tare?
4. District No 33 has a valuation of  $35,000. What is the necessary levy to carry on a school seven months at $50  per month, and have $104 for incidentals?
5. Find the cost of 6,720 lbs.  coal at $6.00 per ton.
6. Find the interest of $512.60 for 8 months and 18  days at 7 percent.
7. What is the cost of 40 boards 12 inches wide and 16  ft. long at $20 per meter?
8. Find bank discount on $300 for 90 days (no  grace) at 10 percent.
9. What is the cost of a square farm at $15 per  acre, the distance of which is 640 rods?
10. Write a Bank Check, a  Promissory Note, and a Receipt

U.S. History (Time,  45 minutes)

1. Give the  epochs into which U.S. History is divided
2. Give an account of the  discovery of America by Columbus
3. Relate the causes and results of the  Revolutionary War.
4. Show the territorial growth of the United States .  
5. Tell what you can of the history of Kansas .
6. Describe three of  the most prominent battles of the Rebellion.
7. Who were the following:  Morse, Whitney, Fulton , Bell , Lincoln , Penn, and Howe?
8. Name event s  connected with the following dates: 1607, 1620, 1800, 1849, 1865.  

Orthography (Time,  one hour) [Do we even know what this is??]

1. What is meant by the following: alphabet,  phonetic, orthography, etymology, syllabication
2. What are elementary  sounds? How classified?
3. What are the following, and give examples of  each: trigraph, subvocals, diphthong, cognate letters, linguals
4. Give  four substitutes for caret 'u.' (HUH?)
5. Give two rules for spelling  words with final 'e.' Name two exceptions under each rule.
6. Give two  uses of silent letters in spelling. Illustrate each.
7. Define the  following prefixes and use in connection with a word: bi, dis, mis, pre, semi,  post, non, inter, mono, sup.
8. Mark diacritically and divide into  syllables the following, and name the sign that indicates the sound: card,  ball, mercy, sir, odd, cell, rise, blood, fare, last.
9 Use the following  correctly in sentences: cite, site, sight, fane, fain, feign, vane , vain,  vein, raze, r aise, rays.
10. Write 10 words frequently mispronounced and  indicate pronunciation by use of diacritical marks and by syllabication.  

Geography (Time, one  hour)

1 What is climate?  Upon what does climate depend?
2. How do you account for the extremes of  climate in Kansas ?
3. Of what use are rivers? Of what use is the  ocean?
4. Describe the mountains of North America
5. Name and describe  the following: Monrovia , Odessa , Denver , Manitoba , Hecla , Yukon , St.  Helena, Juan Fernandez, Aspinwall and Orinoco ..
6. Name and locate the  principal trade centers of the U.S.
7. Name all the republics of Europe and  give the capital of each.
8. Why is the Atlantic Coast colder than the  Pacific in the same latitude?
9 Describe the process by which the water of  the ocean returns to the sources of rivers. 10. Describe the movements of the  earth. Give the inclination of the earth.

Notice  that the exam took FIVE HOURS to complete.

Gives the  saying "he only had an 8th grade education" a whole new meaning, doesn't it?!  

Also shows you how poor our education system has become!  and,  NO! I don't have the answers!