<p>My apologies. That was a bad example to use. Let me try to clarify what I mean.</p>
<p>I do understand what you’re saying. You’re referring to the upward GPA averages of Berkeley. From sub 3.0 to a 3.2. Yes, this would be a slight inflation of grades on Berkeley. But saying that Berkeley is grade inflated in and of itself isn’t true.</p>
<p>What I’m referring to when I say that Berkeley is grade deflated is that the grades (and thus the average GPA) is being pushed down. Even by Berkeley’s standards, grades are deflated in the school, in order to try to reach that average GPA. </p>
<p>If the students at School A really earned an average GPA of a 3.0, but then the grades are curved and raised to a 3.3, that would mean that school has grade inflation. The GPA average we see is an inflation of the grades they actually earned (Because some teachers hand out grades more easily)</p>
<p>If the students at School B earned an average GPA of 3.5 (by their standards not the standards at other schools), yet the curve goes against them and the professor gives out harsher grades because too many people are doing too well, thus making the average GPA at the school a 3.2, well that’s grade deflation. The upward trend is that the deflation is getting less worse (grade inflating throughout the years which is what you were saying), but overall, still with grade deflation. </p>
<p>There are some schools who purposely curve their grades to get higher GPA average while other schools (like berkeley who make the GPA averages lower).</p>
<p>I guess I was getting confused because our definitions of grade inflation and deflation differed (yours a throughout the years term, mine the school as a whole in general). For example, let’s use the economy:</p>
<p>My definition: The economy of the US is suffering inflation. (The US Money is worth very little, much less than what it is supposed to be worth)</p>
<p>Your definition: The economy has been going through inflation for a decade now. (The US dollar is worth less and less each year. BUT, for all we know, the US could be suffering from serious deflation and is just recovering with inflation).</p>
<p>Different definitions, I guess. </p>
<p>And no, this isn’t a prestige thing at all. As I’ve said many times, and I will say it again, there are top schools with grade inflation (my definition as a whole, not yours throughout the years). Getting a high GPA at, let’s say UCLA, is probably harder than getting a high GPA at Brown. They don’t artificially lower your grade in order to weed you out. What you get is what you deserve or better, since they do curve grades higher than you would expect.</p>