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Saturday, February 8th, 2025

An 1895 8th Grade Final Exam: I Couldn’t Pass It. Could You?

Author:     Martin Peretz
Source:     The New Republic
Publication Date:     November 27, 2010
 Link: An 1895 8th Grade Final Exam: I Couldn’t Pass It. Could You?
Stephan:  

I got two emails this week from Trump supporters telling me that I am lying to my readers when I say that Trump and the Republicans are destroying the quality of education. That, in fact, “President Trump and the Republicans at the state level are just eliminating all the DEI nonsense and leftist propaganda. Actually, they are improving education to make sure our kids are the best educated in the world.”  Okay, let’s deal with some facts. Here is the graduation exam used by public school teachers in a rural Salina Kansas one-room schoolhouse in 1895. You have a college degree, maybe a Masters or Doctorate, take a run at it and see how you can do. Know any 8th graders, ask them to take the exam. Do you see why there once was a time when American public education was considered the gold standard?

Rural Kansas one-room schoolhouse Credit: WordPress

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, 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 do, lie, lay 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, […]

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1 Comment

  1. Natalie Hunt on Sunday, February 9, 2025 at 6:25 am

    This isn’t that hard. I would have to study a bit but I already know the answers to much of this. The math looks hard but it’s simple if you think for a minute.