Talk:Grade inflation

what causes it? simple -- students give better course evaluations to professors when professors hand out better grades. give a C or D on the midterm, and you will get punished come evaluation time. and of course the professors care, since their own advancement and salary are influenced by the teaching evaluations. Wolfman 22:09, 7 Nov 2004 (UTC)

Not true. The cause of "grade inflation" is the subsidizing of higher ed via student loans, Pell Grants ang price fixing among the colleges. Because they don't have to compete on the basis of true price/value relationships, the schools compete on the basis of inflated grades. 216.153.214.94 22:45, 7 Nov 2004 (UTC)

Well, Rex. How many courses have you taught? I've been a professor for over a decade, at 3 different major universities. I've spent dozens of hours in faculty meetings about this. I personally know I give higher grades because of it, and almost all of my colleagues admit it too. Your economic logic about competition is utterly incoherent, by the way. First, there is relatively little that administrations can do about grading policies except for moral suasion. No one tells me what grades I can hand out. Second, schools are still in competition with each other, even if overall demand goes up as a consequence of subsidies. To the extent that administrators can set overall grading policy, they have an incentive to allow high grades. Why? Because that's precisely what draws good students. After all, what determines "value" to a student? The likelihood of a good GPA, and thus a good job or entrance to med school is very high on the "value" list. Stanford hands out 40% A's. That's not because of Pell grants. Now I'm sure there are some professors who are immune to these pressures, but I personally don't know any. Wolfman 23:36, 7 Nov 2004 (UTC)

Hmmm... since you just admitted you give unwarranted higher grades for CYA reasons, you just admitted that you have no moral backbone. Surely your example is proof postive of the corruption of higher education. Principly, corruption occurs when there is lack of competition. Thank you for proving my point. 216.153.214.94 03:17, 8 Nov 2004 (UTC)

The only thing immoral would be not teaching well and not caring if students learn. Though ultimately I get judged primarily by my research output, the single thing in my career I am most proud of and most enjoy is working individually with students. I personally think grades are utterly ridiculous. It shouldn't be about the grade on a piece of paper, it should be about learning -- and the two are very imperfectly correlated. I could go on at great length about how corrupt the system is, but I don't think the people involved are. Neither the students who worry more about grades than about learning, nor the professors who nudge grades up slightly to keep students happy. The irony of being lectured on morals of all thing by a hardcore Pharisee rightwinger is mind-boggling. Or was Jesus a Republican? Wolfman 06:44, 8 Nov 2004 (UTC)

Wolfman; there is a Chinese proverb which says "If you sit by the river long enough, you see the bodies of your enemies float by". Likewise, by me waiting long enough, you have revealed yourself to be the biased, anti-Christian bigot that you are. Nice going. 216.153.214.94 06:48, 8 Nov 2004 (UTC)

BTW: What do you teach your students? How to make bigoted comments? 216.153.214.94 06:50, 8 Nov 2004 (UTC)

Wolfman, I would like to say that I am an undergrad myself and I would like to say that given the quality of your opinions and the obvious accompanying intellect, I would be happy to have you as a professor anyday. --kizzle 03:51, Nov 8, 2004 (UTC)

Kizzle says "Teach me Wolfman. Indoctrinate me in the mysterious ways of liberal-bias". 216.153.214.94 06:45, 8 Nov 2004 (UTC)

Rex, what do you do that makes you so high and mighty, a janitor? --kizzle 07:17, Nov 8, 2004 (UTC)

Ha, Ha, Ha. Economic elitism bigotry - another funny one! 216.153.214.94 15:14, 8 Nov 2004 (UTC)