The Distorted Grade Distribution: Inflating Grades Post the 1980s

According to Kuh and Hu's (1999) analysis on a large-scale student database, the average students' self-reported grade point average (GPA) rose significantly from 3.07 in the mid-1980s to 3.34 in the mid-1990s. The closer the curve gets squeezed to the ceiling, the harder it is to make dis...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inJournal of higher education theory and practice Vol. 21; no. 5; pp. 115 - 125
Main Author Peng Lin, Yu
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published West Palm Beach North American Business Press 2021
Subjects
Academic achievement
Academic grading
Grade Inflation
Grade Point Average
Grading
Higher education
Learning
Military draft
SAT assessment
Students
Vietnam War
United States > US
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Summary:According to Kuh and Hu's (1999) analysis on a large-scale student database, the average students' self-reported grade point average (GPA) rose significantly from 3.07 in the mid-1980s to 3.34 in the mid-1990s. The closer the curve gets squeezed to the ceiling, the harder it is to make distinctions on student quality and the less incentive students have to do their best (Lin, 2019). [...]there is substantial research interest on grade inflation. With the general consensus that grade inflation in the pre-1980 years can be attributed to an external factor - the Vietnam War - the aim of this study is to suggest some potentially important aspects of inflationary grading practices post the mide-1980s that previous research has overlooked. [...]the majority of students earned an A or B, with much smaller chance of landing a D or F. This distorted grade distribution is a serious concern and should not be taken lightly.
ISSN:2158-3595
2158-3595
DOI:10.33423/jhetp.v21i5.4273