Well... maybe that's why so many people only had an 8th grade education. They failed the exams and couldn't go on to 9th grade.<div>Just sayin'... and only a little bit tongue-in-cheek! <div class="gmail_quote"> On Tue, Dec 4, 2012 at 5:46 PM, Jon Page <<a href="mailto:jonpage@comcast.net" target="_blank">jonpage@comcast.net</a>> wrote: <blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin:0 0 0 .8ex;border-left:1px #ccc solid;padding-left:1ex"> <div bgcolor="#FFFFFF" text="#000000"> <div> <div> <div style="margin:0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;font-size:12pt;font-family:'Times New Roman',serif">Subject: Fwd: Re: 8TH GRADE EDUCATION in 1895</div> </div> <div> <div style="margin:0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;font-size:12pt;font-family:'Times New Roman',serif"> </div> </div> </div> <div> <div style="margin:0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;font-size:12pt;font-family:'Times New Roman',serif"> </div> </div> <div> <div style="margin:0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;font-size:12pt;font-family:'Times New Roman',serif"> 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? Imagine this..</div> </div> <div style="margin:0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;font-size:12pt;font-family:'Times New Roman',serif"> </div> 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, 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 metre? > > > > 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 events 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, raise, 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. </div> </blockquote></div> </div>