<p>So if an 89.5% is an ‘A’, why is it magically a ‘B’ at 89.4%? The difference is inconsequential. And by that logic, you could keep on going forever. What is the solution to this?</p>
<p>There is no solution. Every system of evaluation is arbitrary.</p>
<p>Don’t get an 89.4</p>
<p>If you define an A as any grade that rounds to at least 90, then it would work (of course, you could say that this is an arbitrary definition). Letter grades are not supposed to be used to put people into distinct, well defined groups (a person who gets an A is not necessarily much more competent at a subject than a person who gets a B).</p>
<p>listen to alwaysleah.</p>
<p>I agree with you, but you have to put the boundary somewhere. it’ll always be an inconsequential difference. no solution which can be conceived by the human brain.</p>
<p>What my biology teacher freshman year did was plot all the percentages. After excluding outliers, whenever there was a distinct gap he would draw a grade line, starting from the top down. This meant some years an A would be a 92, some years an 86.</p>
<p>^that sounds horrible</p>
<p>As unorthodox as it sounds, I find Desafinado’s teacher’s method a very rational one. Grades were being split up in area that truly signified certain degrees of achievement, rather than rewarding the undeserving and leaving the deserving robbed as a result of the current, “concrete” grading system.</p>
<p>This is why my school doesn’t have a 4.0 based system, and only releases grades out of 100. I don’t see why more schools don’t do that!</p>
<p>This is also why I hate curving (unless the curving benefits me, lol).</p>
<p>But I would hate to have, say, a 91 and not know if that was going to be an A. I don’t know if it’s just me, but I tend to spread out my work to have the hightest gpa I can. I usually have 5-6 tests per week and I don’t always have time to study for all of them, so if it’s between a class with a 90 and a class with a 96, then I study for the one with a 90. If I didn’t know the grading curve then it would be difficult. </p>
<p>Fascination I agree lolol</p>
<p>a bell curve is truly the best system, even if it seems unfair. we wouldn’t have grade inflation/deflation if it was executed properly according to a national standard</p>
<p>But there is a difference… </p>
<p>A person with a 89.5 got an A</p>
<p>While a person with a 89.4 got a B</p>
<p>The person with a 89.5 deserves an A because he/she worked for that A and achieved it</p>
<p>The person with a 89.4 does not deserve an A, but a B instead because he/she did not achieve a number that is required for an A.</p>
<p>LOL in our state the lowest A is a 93 so dont complain.</p>
<p>^Okay, but grades are an arbitrary measuring system. Just because you are measured differently doesn’t make your work easier or harder.</p>