Fifteen years ago, economics professor Uwe Reinhardt and a colleague of his proposed a revolutionary grading system. Viewing grades as a form of currency, the economists argued that, as the percentage of A's and B's awarded had risen, the value of these top grades had depreciated. They suggested that students receive two grades — a current one for their transcripts and one adjusted for inflation for their own knowledge.
"We were 'Princeton-ed,' " Reinhardt joked, meaning the two were thanked for their novel ideas, but told that the University's grading system was working just fine.
The Univer-sity changed its opinion four years ago, commencing a series of measures to curb rising grades. The initiative — the product of the Faculty Committee on Examinations and Standing, chaired by Dean of the College Nancy Malkiel — includes annual reports on grade distributions, a Guide to Good Grading Practices and a stricter policy on awarding A-pluses.
The University's campaign has sparked a debate among faculty and students, who have differing opinions on the origins and effects of grade inflation, and the administration's efforts to halt rising grades.
History department chair Robert Tignor said he views anti-grade inflation initiatives as overrated.
"The University's position is that grades have become so inflated that they've become virtually meaningless," said Tignor. "I'm not as troubled by grade inflation as some people are."
For the veteran historian, the present grading scale spanning from A's to C's — where D's and F's are virtually obsolete — is sufficient to evaluate student performance.
"You don't have to get an F to know that your work isn't that great," said Tignor.
Tignor sees the rise in grades in the past decades as a sign that the University is attracting better-qualified students.
"Princeton has become a national institution and not just an East Coast institution for upperclass kids," he explained. "They're ambitious kids and they work hard."
Civil and environmental engineering professor David Billington has also witnessed a steady increase in the quality of work Princeton students produce.
"Students are very well-motivated, even more so than in the past," argued Bil-lington, who has seen thousands of undergraduates pass through his en-gineering courses and laboratories in his 43 years at Princeton.
To test such an assertion, Malkiel said that the University compared SAT scores of recent entering classes with those in years past. The administration did not detect evidence of currently higher scores, which presumably would indicate higher qualified students.
"The quality of the student body is certainly improving, but not every student does his or her best work in every course all the time," she said.
Reinhardt proposes a different theory to explain grade inflation. Professors don't always do their best work in grading, he says.
Pressed for time, some instructors skip reading their students' papers and give out high grades to minimize student complaints and the need to justify grades. Reinhardt says he has proof — a collection of "A" papers with no written comments.
"There is not a faculty member who would read a paper and not have an itch in their finger to write something," Reinhardt asserted. "Part of grade inflation came from professors unwilling to come to terms with the work."
Reinhardt's solution follows the age-old adage that quality is more important than quantity. Assign fewer papers, yet demand higher standards. And match students' efforts with detailed comments and critical suggestions for improvement.
Reinhardt also favors additional measures to crack down on grade inflation.
"Grades should be publicized by the professor's name, so we can determine who is the professor who is inflating grades — what is his first name?" he suggested.
To be fair, Reinhardt consented that many professors are indeed meticulous graders.
Electrical engineering professor Sigurd Wagner is a clear example of a careful grader, who follows an intricate, multi-layered system of student evaluation. To earn high marks in Wagner's courses, students must master written tests, quizzes, homework, classroom presentations, and occasionally, oral exams.
"Very rarely do students come in to challenge grades. Maybe once every three years," he said. "I'm fairly confident under these conditions that I give a grade with 'meat' in it. Students can follow quite well how the grade is building up over the term," he added.
In light of his distinct grading method, Wagner said he still studies the University's materials on grade inflation and good grading practices.
"The worst thing to believe is that you don't need to change anything," he said. "If I see a compelling argument, I will do something."
While grade inflation might appear to benefit students by artificially boosting their GPA's, Reinhardt and others caution that lenient or haphazard grading practices compromise higher education.
"I'm shocked how many seniors start to write their thesis and do not know how to write. Why? The answer is that they get no feedback on their papers," Reinhardt said.
Economics professor Beth Bogan agrees that, ultimately, grade inflation hurts — not helps — students.
"Grades are signals to students as to what they are good at," Bogan said.
When some departments give higher grades than others, across the board, students may not be able to accurately gauge their strengths and weaknesses.
Bogan said that the University's initiative has raised professors' consciousness about grading and urged them to "think carefully" when evaluating students.
"It's not always being nice to give somebody a good grade because it's giving them false signals," she said.
For many professors, painstaking grading procedures are nothing new, and are not a direct result of the University's formal campaign.
Yet in light of the new requirement that professors submit in writing their reasons for awarding an A-plus, some have altered their distribution of this top grade.
To accommodate the new policy, Bogan has tightly capped her A-plus reserves. In past years, she gave out A-pluses to her top ten students. Now, she has cut that number to one or two.
"[If the University] is worried about grade compression, pushing away from the A-plus makes for greater grade compression," she said.
Students, too, have their own thoughts on the grade inflation debate.
When the University first began its efforts to revamp its grading system, the USG firmly opposed some proposed measures such as "contextual" grading, where transcripts report both the student's grade and the mean grade in the class, Malkiel said.
Since then, the USG has not formally spoken out on grade inflation.
"I think that the actions that have already been taken to help control grading disparities are a step in the right direction and hope that their continued implementation will lead to the fairest grading practices possible," USG academics chair Traci Strickland '02 said in an e-mail.
Yet many fear that the University's efforts might adversely affect Princeton students if the rest of the Ivy League and other selective schools do not adopt similar measures to curtail rising grades. If other universities award more A's and B's than Princeton does, their students might look more qualified to graduate and professional school admissions committees and employers.
"Grades are a form of currency. These grades open doors or they don't," Reinhardt explains. "Princeton unilaterally cannot say we're going to take the entire curve down."
Bogan agrees.
"I want to make sure that Princeton students are put in the best light possible for graduate school. Harvard's inflated grades make them look better," said Bogan, referring to Harvard's increasing rates of honors awarded. Last spring, 91 percent of Harvard graduates received honors, according to a recent Boston Globe article.
Malkiel, however, assures students and professors that the University's measures are in line with steps other universities have taken to address grade inflation.
"We've tried to encourage our colleagues in the Ivy League and similar schools to work on this at the same time," she said.
"This is not a Princeton-specific issue."
Read More
David Zielenziger ’74, former ‘Prince’ chairman and lifelong journalist, passes away at 72
Kian PetlinFriends and colleagues remember former ‘Prince’ chairman David Zielenziger ’74, who passed away peacefully on May 20.
Friends and colleagues remember former ‘Prince’ chairman David Zielenziger ’74 who passed away peacefully on May 20.
Remembering Dorothea von Moltke, Labyrinth co-founder and local community builder
Lucia BrownDorothea von Moltke, widely considered the heart of Labyrinth Books, was remembered by friends and loved ones for her passions for language, literature, and local activism.
Dorothea von Moltke, widely considered the heart of Labyrinth Books, was remembered by friends and loved ones for her passions for language, literature, and local activism.
Cloister Inn to pause operations for the next 2–3 years, citing “hefty renovations”
Justus WilhoitCloister Inn, one of Princeton’s eating clubs, will pause operations for the next two to three years, due to “hefty renovations” to the club’s house.
Cloister Inn, one of Princeton’s eating clubs, will pause operations for the next two to three years, due to “hefty renovations” to the club’s house.