Inside Higher Ed, Easy A:
Two critics of grade inflation have published a new analysis finding that the most common grade at four-year colleges and universities is the A (43% of all grades) — and that Ds and Fs are few and far between. [Where A Is Ordinary: The Evolution of American College and University Grading, 1940–2009, by Stuart Rojstaczer (Duke) & Christopher Healy (Furman).]
Further, by comparing historical data to contemporary figures, the authors charge that there has been an increase of 28 percentage points since 1960 and 12 percentage points since 1988 in the percentage of As awarded in higher education. The study was published Wednesday [and collects] historical data from 200 four-year colleges and universities and contemporary data from 135.
Grade Distribution by Sector and Region
Sector/Region Average SAT % As % Bs %Cs % Ds % Fs By sector Private, nonprofit university 1245 48.2 35.8 11.4 2.2 2.3 Private, nonprofit college 1192 47.7 36.6 11.3 2.4 1.9 Public flagship university 1172 42.3 34.5 15.5 4.1 3.6 Public satellite university 1056 41.7 32.0 16.0 4.8 5.4 Public commuter university 1017 39.0 31.8 17.5 5.4 6.3 By region Midwest 1135 45.0 34.0 14.0 3.7 3.3 Northeast 1153 45.1 35.7 13.0 3.1 3.1 West 1079 44.6 33.0 14.4 3.7 4.2 South 1102 39.7 33.1 16.7 5.1 5.4 Total 1115 43.0 33.8 14.9 4.1 4.2
