Lenahan questions basis for grade deflation

As if students needed another reason to dislike the University's grade deflation policy, USG president Alex Lenahan '07 is now suggesting that there may not have been inflated grades to begin with.

In a 775-word email sent to students Wednesday night, Lenahan claimed that the academic caliber of students admitted during the 1990s rose at an even greater rate than that at which grades were inflated.

To support this assertion, Lenahan referenced a 1998 article in the Princeton Alumni Weekly (PAW) concerning the increase in so-called "academic 1's and 2's" accepted to the University between the classes of 1993 and 2002. Traditionally, applicants to Princeton have been assigned an academic rating between one and five, with one being the highest and five being the lowest.

A full report, upon which the PAW article was based, found that the percentage of academic 1's and 2's per class rose from 51.2 percent to 72.2 percent between the classes of 1993 and 2002.

"Academic 1's and 2's (the academically most qualified applicants) are the most rapidly growing part of Princeton's applicant pool, and yields" — the number of students who accept an offer to matriculate — "on academic 1's and 2's have been increasing significantly," PAW reported.

Contrasting this 21 percent rise in the number of academic 1's with the 11 percent increase in the percentage of A's and A-minuses awarded between the 1990s and the 2003-2004 year, Lenahan concludes that "the academic quality of Princeton students may have in fact gone up faster than the percentage of A's and A-'s given out."

"This information calls into question whether the concept of grade inflation was ever valid to begin with."

Lenahan's claims raise the issue of whether West College is calling for the grading of student work on a relative or absolute basis. If grades are absolute — compared to a fixed standard, in other words — a higher percentage of academic 1's on campus would seem to lead to a rise in the absolute number of A's awarded.

If grades are relative, however, the presence of more academically-gifted students wouldn't matter one way or the other, because students are being graded compared to each other — one student versus all others. Even among a pool of gifted students, small distinctions in the quality of work could plausibly be made.

Since the grading policy's inception, Dean of the College Nancy Malkiel has taken pains to stress that no professor should fail to give an A to a student who deserves it, implicitly rejecting the notion of relative grading.

"Faculty should grade students according to the quality of their work," Malkiel told The Daily Princetonian in April 2004. "We're just trying to make the grades more accurately reflect this."

But if the faculty is supposed to grade on an absolute basis, not on a relative basis, Lenahan and others are effectively arguing that the grading policy is misguided: As the academic quality of Princeton students has risen, so should their grades.

Get the best of the ‘Prince’ delivered straight to your inbox. Subscribe now »

"It seems unfair to me to actively decrease the average grade when the average quality of the Princeton student has increased," USG vice president Rob Biederman '08 said in an interview.

"Princeton's faculty consists of some of the brightest people, and I'm sure they're bright enough to distinguish between what is an A and an A-minus."

The University's report — which was authored by a group consisting of former President Harold Shapiro GS '64, former Dean of Admission Fred Hargadon, Malkiel and nine senior faculty members — only looked as far as the Class of 2002. But Lenahan has confirmed and the 'Prince' has previously reported that since that time, the percentage of 1's and 2's per class has still been increasing, though at a slower rate.

Though it is unknown whether the overall percentage of academic 1's and 2's given to applicants has increased over time, Lenahan said that the Admission Office told him that "they had kept the same standards."

While some students admitted that they did not read Lenahan's lengthy email, many who did said they found his arguments compelling.

"He's got a good point," Class of 2007 president Jim Williamson said. "Given the fact that we've gotten better students and that we've improved the pedagogy and technology used in instruction, it doesn't surprise me that grades have been going up."

"I have yet to see proof that [grade deflation] has been beneficial to students," he added.

"Grade deflation is trying to solve a problem that doesn't exist," Aimee Gasior '09 said. "I was never aware of [the system of assigning ranks]. I was never a fan of the policy to begin with. [This report] strengthens my dislike of it."

But some students — including the USG's academics chair — were not convinced that the academic 1's and 2's information warranted a reversal of University policy.

"The data are definitely valid, but I don't think that grade inflation would be justified by the numbers of 1's and 2's having increased," USG academics chair Caitlin Sullivan '07 said. "Princeton is in a position of strength that it has the ability to select from such a strong applicant pool, but it doesn't justify excessively inflated grades."

In a recent survey conducted by the USG, a clear majority of students said they thought the grading policy has had a negative effect on scholastic life.

"I'm against grade deflation; I don't think it adds to the academic environment," Class of 2008 secretary Meaghan Petersack said. "This is a legitimate, well-done analysis, and I'm curious to see how the administration responds to it."