grade inflation
Academic marks creep
Grade inflation is the tendency for academic grades to rise over time without a corresponding increase in student achievement.
What once earned a B now earns an A; what once failed now passes.
The phenomenon affects most levels of education but draws particular attention at universities, where employers and graduate schools rely on grades to distinguish candidates.
With grade inflation, a 3.5 GPA doesn't mean what it used to.
Cumulative academic score
- transcriptsWritten versions of speech
- honorsRecognition for achievement
- dean's listAcademic achievement recognition
- cum laudeAcademic distinction phrase
magna cum laude · summa cum laude · valedictorian · salutatorian · diplomas · credentials · qualifications · credentialism
Reduction in concentration
- devaluationLowering of currency worth
- debasementDiminishing worth or purity
- mediocrityQuality of being average
- rigorStrict, thorough precision
benchmarking · expectations · accountability · comparability · consistency · calibration · threshold · mastery
Mildness in punishment
- subjectivityPersonal viewpoint coloring perception
- biasUnfair inclination or prejudice
- overestimationJudging something too high
- curvingBending in arc
rubric · assessment · marks · feedback · extra credit · participation points · regrading · norming
Assumed right to benefits
- consumerismPreoccupation with acquiring goods
- tuitionPayment for instruction
- tenureProtected employment status
- adjunctSubordinate addition to something
retention · enrollment · parental expectations · helicopter parents · risk aversion · litigiousness
Acts of letting in
- Ivy LeagueElite university athletic conference
- selectivityTendency to choose carefully
- meritocracyAdvancement through demonstrated ability
- scholarshipEducational funding or erudition
ranking · college applications · resume · graduate school · job market · competitive advantage · extracurriculars
Lack of significance
- compressionForcing into smaller space
- reliabilityConsistent, predictable performance
- validityQuality of being sound
GPA
Cumulative academic score
- transcriptsWritten versions of speech
- honorsRecognition for achievement
- dean's listAcademic achievement recognition
cum laude · magna cum laude · summa cum laude · valedictorian · salutatorian · diplomas · credentials · qualifications · credentialism · academic excellence
dilution
Reduction in concentration
- devaluationLowering of currency worth
- debasementDiminishing worth or purity
- mediocrityQuality of being average
rigor · benchmarking · expectations · accountability · comparability · consistency · calibration · threshold · mastery · competency
leniency
Mildness in punishment
- subjectivityPersonal viewpoint coloring perception
- biasUnfair inclination or prejudice
- overestimationJudging something too high
curving · rubric · assessment · marks · feedback · extra credit · participation points · regrading · norming
entitlement
Assumed right to benefits
- consumerismPreoccupation with acquiring goods
- tuitionPayment for instruction
- tenureProtected employment status
adjunct · retention · enrollment · parental expectations · helicopter parents · risk aversion · litigiousness
admissions
Acts of letting in
- Ivy LeagueElite university athletic conference
- selectivityTendency to choose carefully
- meritocracyAdvancement through demonstrated ability
scholarship · ranking · college applications · resume · graduate school · job market · competitive advantage · extracurriculars
meaninglessness
Lack of significance
- compressionForcing into smaller space
- reliabilityConsistent, predictable performance
- validityQuality of being sound
- collegecampus, courses, application, dorms, dorm room
- higher educationuniversity, college, degree, diploma, graduate school
- school problemsdropout rates, overcrowding, school funding, budget cuts, bullying
- education inequalityachievement gap, inequality, opportunity gap, social mobility, class divide
- School Debatesschool choice, school funding, school reform, curriculum reform, standardized testing
- educational failuresdropout, illiteracy, innumeracy, dropout rates, social promotion
grade inflationacademic rigor
Strictness in intellectual pursuits
high standards · academic integrity · educational excellence
grade, upgrade, grading, inflation, grades, graded, degrade, downgrade, grader