AN 'A' JUST isn't worth what it used to be. Often it's worth more. Grades exist to provide an objective measure of student performance in the classroom. But grading methods differ widely across both University professors and schools. Thus, evaluating a student on the basis of their transcript can be highly problematic. It would be virtually impossible to standardize grades even within a particular subject in a particular school. Thus, instead of attempting to make each 'A' equal to every other, we should put individual grades in their own context. The University and every other post-secondary institution should make the median grade for each course taught publicly available.
Ideally, grades could meaningfully stand alone. One would think that an 'A' in one class signified a better performance than a 'B' in another. But in reality, grades are only important if measured comparatively. Classes vary in difficulty, and teachers differ in stringency. Only by looking at the grading of the identical coursework, best represented by the median grade, does the individual grade have meaning.
Ed Ayers, Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, called making median grades available a "good idea" and said he saw no reason why this policy could not be implemented. While the University has not experienced any inflation over the past ten years, Dean Ayers noted posting median grades would reassure outsiders of the value of an 'A' from the University.
In quantitative classes, where grades are based on numeric test scores, this problem is largely dealt with using mathematical curves. The median grade is implicit and made available to students. But for many University courses, there is no predetermined median, or it's merely a vague guideline. A sole 'B+' in a field of 'B's deserves to be valued more than an 'A-' when the class average was an 'A.'
Instituting a strict curve to be followed is the surest way of combating the negative implications of grade inflation. However, in more subjective courses, such as history or English, this solution would restrict professors too much and not allow for the fact that upper level courses should be harder than introductory ones. At the same time it needs to be obvious to both the individual and an outsider what that distinction is. Median grades are the best and easiest way to indicate overall class performance and thus gauge level of difficulty.
Including the median grade on a transcript will not only benefit people within the University community. Perhaps the most important advantage of this system will be for use in graduate school and job applications. Graduate school admissions officers realize that not all grading policies were created equal. They immediately know that a 3.0 from Swarthmore, acknowledged as keeping a tight rein on grade inflation, carries much more weight than the same GPA from Stanford, which has a reputation of being lenient in awarding 'A's. However, when it comes to individual courses and even entire universities where the grading policy is less distinctive, admissions departments and employers can be left largely in the dark. A GPA, when not supplemented by the course breakdown in the transcript, will be immensely more useful when accompanied by median grades. Unlike the LSAT, GMAT or any other standardized test, GPAs require intense interpretation. Admissions offices often rely on professor recommendations to assess course difficulty. Imagine how much easier the process would be if that assessment could be made much more objective.
Access to median grades will also change the way students select courses. Primarily, students should be inspired to take more challenging courses, knowing that their effort will be recognized on paper. Additionally, the University should make median grades for all previously-taught courses available. This information is pertinent to course selection. Students will immediately have some indication of what kind of course load they are taking on. If a student was looking for an easy 'A', they could search classes with high medians.Those looking to distinguish themselves in a challenging environment could choose course in which a previous group of students fared less well.It would also help the administration monitor "gut" classes.
Median grades should be included on all unofficial and official transcripts for the purpose of graduate school, employers and scholarship applications. For a student's personal reference, the same should be included on ISIS and in PACE reports. Median grades for past classes should be available, perhaps through an online device comparable the Course Offering Directory. With grades already computerized, the benefits of presenting median grades will easily outweigh the effort of making them available.
We can never fully escape the subjectivity of the grading system, but we can make every effort for grades to be as legitimate an evaluative device as possible.
(Kimberly Liu's column appears Mondays in The Cavalier Daily. She can be reached at kliu@cavalierdaily.com.)
Read More
BURSTEIN: Federal workforce cuts target Virginia — and Youngkin’s response falls short
By Carly Burstein | 6 days agoForcing employees to choose between uprooting their families or losing their livelihoods is not just callous — it is economically reckless.
HUYNH: Virginia’s proposed ‘whippets’ law is laughable
By Viet Huynh | May 1, 2025As people continue to be harmed by nitrous oxide abuse, Virginians will see this new law as the ineffective, ultimately harmful policy that it is.
EDITORIAL: We can demand more of our university presidents
By Editorial Board | May 1, 2025We hope for greater transparency because for the principles of solidarity in this statement to be enacted and effective, stakeholders must be treated as partners in resistance.
