Dive Brief:
- In an update to seven-year-old data about post-secondary grade inflation, researchers have found GPAs at four-year colleges have continued their slow but steady, .1-point-per-decade rise while GPAs at community colleges have stagnated.
- Inside Higher Ed reports A's make up more than 42% of grades at both types of schools, though community colleges have seen fewer A's and more D's and F's in recent years. Continued growth in A's at four-year colleges seems to be associated with fewer B's and C's.
- Researchers expect that a “student-as-consumer” mindset leads faculty to offer higher grades, especially at private and more selective schools where students are paying high tuition for their education and feel more entitled to good grades.
Dive Insight:
While grade inflation seems to be well-documented by the numbers, the extent to which it is a problem is unclear. Inside Higher Ed points to a 2013 study that argues the value of grades has not been eroded in the labor market for recent graduates. The idea of student entitlement to get good grades does cause problems on campuses, however, especially when it comes to faculty evaluations.
Adjunct faculty have complained they are at the mercy of the students they teach and some have admitted to giving better grades to placate students who otherwise might put their positions at risk. As campuses come to rely more heavily on an adjunct workforce, this may play out in the grade inflation data.