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, 1.25 hours)



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 3942 lbs., what is it worth at  50cts/bushel, deducting 1050 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  6720 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

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