I remember once going for a job interview. One of the questions asked me was, 'if I could wish for anything that would better the world, what would it be?'. I replied that I would wish that everyone would have the equivalent of a 10th grade education. The interviewer was surprised and asked why. I said that i figured that the equivalent of a tenth grade education would give people solid skills in things I figured would give them a chance at providing for themselves and their families - reading, writing, basic math skills, a basic knowledge of what was going on beyond their borders and also within their borders. To me, this in turn helps foster a sense of self-worth - giving one the confidence to not just take anothers word for something. Let's face it - if I'm a subsistence farmer someone who makes rugs or pots, I'm more likely to be able to have a say in what I can charge if I actually know how to count, how to write, and if I can read. Lack of these basic skills places us in a cage - we can'r really feed ourselves rather we are dependent on what those with the power want to feed us.
For this reason I also disagree with SJP's remark that, "Schooling wouldn’t be much good for somebody who was going to spend his entire life as a farmer". Farmers still had to buy their seed and sell their crops.Ignorance is a cage, pure and simple. We may not all need - or want, for that matter, to go to university, but a basic education is not a privilege, it's a necessity.
As far s the whole 1895 exam? I'd do well with the English grammar, history and a few others, and I'd flop with the math. But it's irrelevant. that test was based on what was felt important for that time. no doubt grade eight children from 1895 would not be able to pass an exam created in the 21st century.
