<p>“Exactly; if everyone in the class gets an A, then the A doesn’t actually mean anything - whereas it should mean “Student performed OVER and ABOVE class expectations”. Not, “Student completed all the work satisfactorily” which is what it often means now a days.”</p>
<p>IMHO, the best way to describe it simply, in one word, is “inflation.”</p>
<p>“As for me, I’m a straight A student, 4.0, never worked for my grade in my life. Going to Princeton next year. Do I expect to get a 4.0? Definitely not. The thing I look forward to most about college is working my butt off to get an A, and only getting a B - and being HAPPY with that B. School is about so much more than grades. You shouldn’t have to get an A to feel good; you should be content with the fact that you /learned/ something.”</p>
<p>I am the same way; even without doing my homework, in honors classes I can usually pull off B’s, B+'s, and A’s on quizzes and tests. </p>
<p>IMHO, the above is a much better indicator of intelligence than grades; it’s a double-edged sword in that you might not pull off a 4.0, but it proves some level of intelligence, and sure requires less work. That being said, I am now actually starting to do my homework, as it will raise me to that next level that I should have been at for the entirety of my high school career. (I’m a sophomore in high school atm).</p>