Princeton U. is experimenting with a norm-referenced standard as a means to combat grade inflation:
For students at Princeton University, final exams are even more stressful this year: The Ivy League school decided to make it harder to earn an A. The crackdown on high grades, part of a national battle against grade inflation at elite schools, has increased anxiety, and in some cases, made friendly students wonder whether they should offer study help to their competitors, er, classmates...
In a move students protested last year, Princeton became the first elite college to cap the number of A's that can be awarded. Previously, there was no official limit to the number of A's handed out, and nearly half the grades in an average Princeton class have been A-pluses, A's or A-minuses. Now, each department can give A's to no more than 35 percent of its students each semester.
Princeton's effort is being monitored closely by other hallowed halls, and some expect to see a ripple effect in coming years.
At other Ivy League schools, the percentages of A's in undergraduates courses ranges from 44 percent to 55 percent, according to Princeton's Web site. At Harvard University, 91 percent of seniors graduated with some kind of honors in 2001.
At that point, do the honors really mean anything? The Princeton plan does have its downside (especially in classes and departments with small numbers of students), but I agree that something needs to be done about the easy A. The proposal doesn't just limit the number of A's, but also provides guidelines for professors about what constitutes A-level work. And for those who worry that this system will frighten students away from "challenging" courses, I wonder if any student who avoids hard work just because the A isn't guaranteed needs to be in those classes anyway.
Posted by kswygert at January 24, 2005 09:40 AM