As an instructor in a two-year college in my "declining" years ... ...

Nineteenth Century "Little Red Schoolhouse"

One of my fellow instructors at Grays harbor College passed to me an eighth grade exam that she had obtained and asked if I might try some of the questions. Whoops! If I thought I was a dummy about embryonic stem cell research, I soon learned that I was a dummy in grammar, history, arithmetic, orthography (didn't even know what orthography is!) and geography. It was an eighth grade exam given in Salina, Kansas in 1895.

If you want to see (1) how really "smart" you are NOT and (2) how far our educational standards have declined, just go to one of the many web sites that have the exam posted.

The students below are undoubtedly smiling as they watch us stumbling through their 8th grade exam.