Eighth Grade Education

There is a debate going on in Arizona right now about whether or not our high school seniors should have to pass the AIMS test to graduate. It seems the test is too difficult for our students and we need to ease them into society with less education than other places deem necessary. I think our school system may be failing our students - no pun intended.

Do you remember your parents or grandparents stating that they 'only had an 8th grade education'?

Here is a sampling of questions (the first two questions of approximately 10 in each category) from an eighth-grade final exam in 1895. It was taken from the original document on file at the Smokey Valley Genealogical Society and Library in Salina, Kansas, and reprinted by the Salina Journal.

How well would you do?

8th Grade Final Exam: Salina, KS - 1895

Grammar
1. Give nine rules for the use of capital letters.
2. Name the parts of speech and define those that have no modifications.

Arithmetic
1. Name and define the Fundamental Rules of Arithmetic.
2. A wagon box is 2 feet deep, 10 feet long and 3 feet wide. How many bushels of wheat will it hold?

U. S. History
1. Give the epochs into which U.S. History is divided.
2. Give an account of the discovery of America by Columbus.

Orthography
1. What is meant by the following: alphabet, phonetic, orthography, etymology, syllabication.
2. What are elementary sounds? How classified?

Geography
1. What is climate? Upon what does climate depend?
2. How do you account for the extremes of climate in Kansas?