Is a public school A = private school A- (or B+)?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:How do colleges account for this discrepancy of grade inflation? How does this complicate building college lists?

It depends on the private and it depends on the public and i5 depends on the courses taken. Some privates are harder than some public’s and some public’s are harder than some privates. Your assertion is not universal.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I always assumed grade inflation was worse at privates

Absolutely not the case.

Where are your statistics on this? YCBK podcast just had an episode that discussed this issue. They compared private, suburban public, and urban public schools. Private schools had the most grade inflation by far.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:How do colleges account for this discrepancy of grade inflation? How does this complicate building college lists?

No one can possibly answer this question

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:same. parents who are paying 50k are making calls if their kid gets a B.

Exactly. The more expensive the school, the more inclined the school would be to provide the best customer experience.

My family is literally among the top 2% of donors to a local DMV very rigrorous private--we're talking high 7 figures over the years. My child has ADHD but works very hard and does okay. She is immature and sometimes that shows in the classroom, though not in her actual work. But her immaturity does create bias in some teachers, particularly the really arrogant ones. One history teacher, a man in his 70s, who is the most arrogant, ineffective teacher she has ever come across, called her stupid in various forms, in front of the class, consistenly. Things like: If you ask a question that stupid again I will remvoe you from this classroom. In the end, he gave her Cs on almost every paper she handed in, and Bs and B-s on tests, based mostly on the subjective grading part (in other words, she always knew the answers, but he took off so many 1/2 points here and there for style-related things that he didn't like that her entire score would come down). While she spoke with the school resource teacher, DD was insistent we not do anything about it, that this is the way teachers are sometimes and she'll just keep working to do better. Great attitude, right? She worked day and night on her final paper. She needed a B+ or better to get her grade up to a B- for the year. She had another history teacher from a different grade proofread it for her and he said it was exellent. She got a C--he took two points off of very single footnote because she put a comma in the wrong place so they were technically the wrong format. That was the final straw for me and I went to the school. They would not consider reviewing her work. That's all I asked for. For an objective, independent teacher to review the paper, and possibly some of the other work, in comparison to other students because it was clear he was not treating her fairly. They wouldn't budge. She got As in every other history cass and took advanced levels in her junior and senior years. This was unfair grading and definitely not inflated. Trust me, at these privates, it does not matter how much you pay or how much you donate. They will not change grades.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:same. parents who are paying 50k are making calls if their kid gets a B.

Exactly. The more expensive the school, the more inclined the school would be to provide the best customer experience.

My family is literally among the top 2% of donors to a local DMV very rigrorous private--we're talking high 7 figures over the years. My child has ADHD but works very hard and does okay. She is immature and sometimes that shows in the classroom, though not in her actual work. But her immaturity does create bias in some teachers, particularly the really arrogant ones. One history teacher, a man in his 70s, who is the most arrogant, ineffective teacher she has ever come across, called her stupid in various forms, in front of the class, consistenly. Things like: If you ask a question that stupid again I will remvoe you from this classroom. In the end, he gave her Cs on almost every paper she handed in, and Bs and B-s on tests, based mostly on the subjective grading part (in other words, she always knew the answers, but he took off so many 1/2 points here and there for style-related things that he didn't like that her entire score would come down). While she spoke with the school resource teacher, DD was insistent we not do anything about it, that this is the way teachers are sometimes and she'll just keep working to do better. Great attitude, right? She worked day and night on her final paper. She needed a B+ or better to get her grade up to a B- for the year. She had another history teacher from a different grade proofread it for her and he said it was exellent. She got a C--he took two points off of very single footnote because she put a comma in the wrong place so they were technically the wrong format. That was the final straw for me and I went to the school. They would not consider reviewing her work. That's all I asked for. For an objective, independent teacher to review the paper, and possibly some of the other work, in comparison to other students because it was clear he was not treating her fairly. They wouldn't budge. She got As in every other history cass and took advanced levels in her junior and senior years. This was unfair grading and definitely not inflated. Trust me, at these privates, it does not matter how much you pay or how much you donate. They will not change grades.

Do you think teachers like this do not exist in public schools?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm in nyc where there are plenty of private schools that are pretty well known for grade inflation.

Here's an example of grade distribution:

https://resources.finalsite.net/images/v1662473043/packer/jqwg5zprhm5kuweelfde/2022-23SchoolProfileBrochureforCollegeOffice.pdf

I 100% do not assume public schools grade more leniently than private schools. Usually it's the opposite. Public schools kids can actually get a C or a D

This!! You never hear of this with the prep schools, but public’s don’t think twice about giving out what you earned and not a penny more.

No one is paying 50k for their kid to get a D. Parents wound be freaking out

My private s school kid got a D in chemistry and one in pre-calc. That’s what he deserved. I was just happy he passed and didn’t have to take them in summer school. These grades reflected his mastery of the subject. Looking at the report his school sends to colleges, his gpa of 3.3 was right around the middle of his class. An A was very difficult to get in a class there but he got a few in English and history classes. [/quote

How on earth did you kid get a 3.3 with 2 Ds? That's impressive.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:same. parents who are paying 50k are making calls if their kid gets a B.

Exactly. The more expensive the school, the more inclined the school would be to provide the best customer experience.

My family is literally among the top 2% of donors to a local DMV very rigrorous private--we're talking high 7 figures over the years. My child has ADHD but works very hard and does okay. She is immature and sometimes that shows in the classroom, though not in her actual work. But her immaturity does create bias in some teachers, particularly the really arrogant ones. One history teacher, a man in his 70s, who is the most arrogant, ineffective teacher she has ever come across, called her stupid in various forms, in front of the class, consistenly. Things like: If you ask a question that stupid again I will remvoe you from this classroom. In the end, he gave her Cs on almost every paper she handed in, and Bs and B-s on tests, based mostly on the subjective grading part (in other words, she always knew the answers, but he took off so many 1/2 points here and there for style-related things that he didn't like that her entire score would come down). While she spoke with the school resource teacher, DD was insistent we not do anything about it, that this is the way teachers are sometimes and she'll just keep working to do better. Great attitude, right? She worked day and night on her final paper. She needed a B+ or better to get her grade up to a B- for the year. She had another history teacher from a different grade proofread it for her and he said it was exellent. She got a C--he took two points off of very single footnote because she put a comma in the wrong place so they were technically the wrong format. That was the final straw for me and I went to the school. They would not consider reviewing her work. That's all I asked for. For an objective, independent teacher to review the paper, and possibly some of the other work, in comparison to other students because it was clear he was not treating her fairly. They wouldn't budge. She got As in every other history cass and took advanced levels in her junior and senior years. This was unfair grading and definitely not inflated. Trust me, at these privates, it does not matter how much you pay or how much you donate. They will not change grades.

Do you think teachers like this do not exist in public schools?

There's probably more of them. The point is, even the most connected, biggest donors to private school are not able to get grades changed, which is the assertion by many posters here. At publics, and this is absolute fact, that student would have had the chance to re-do the paper and re-take tests until they got an A. This is why more than half of APS students have over 4.0s. They take and retake until the get As.

[Anonymous]

Imagine paying ALL this money for private school and still needing an anonymous message board to tell you that your kids are smarter and better than public school kids.
Ha!!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:same. parents who are paying 50k are making calls if their kid gets a B.

Exactly. The more expensive the school, the more inclined the school would be to provide the best customer experience.

My family is literally among the top 2% of donors to a local DMV very rigrorous private--we're talking high 7 figures over the years. My child has ADHD but works very hard and does okay. She is immature and sometimes that shows in the classroom, though not in her actual work. But her immaturity does create bias in some teachers, particularly the really arrogant ones. One history teacher, a man in his 70s, who is the most arrogant, ineffective teacher she has ever come across, called her stupid in various forms, in front of the class, consistenly. Things like: If you ask a question that stupid again I will remvoe you from this classroom. In the end, he gave her Cs on almost every paper she handed in, and Bs and B-s on tests, based mostly on the subjective grading part (in other words, she always knew the answers, but he took off so many 1/2 points here and there for style-related things that he didn't like that her entire score would come down). While she spoke with the school resource teacher, DD was insistent we not do anything about it, that this is the way teachers are sometimes and she'll just keep working to do better. Great attitude, right? She worked day and night on her final paper. She needed a B+ or better to get her grade up to a B- for the year. She had another history teacher from a different grade proofread it for her and he said it was exellent. She got a C--he took two points off of very single footnote because she put a comma in the wrong place so they were technically the wrong format. That was the final straw for me and I went to the school. They would not consider reviewing her work. That's all I asked for. For an objective, independent teacher to review the paper, and possibly some of the other work, in comparison to other students because it was clear he was not treating her fairly. They wouldn't budge. She got As in every other history cass and took advanced levels in her junior and senior years. This was unfair grading and definitely not inflated. Trust me, at these privates, it does not matter how much you pay or how much you donate. They will not change grades.

Do you think teachers like this do not exist in public schools?

There's probably more of them. The point is, even the most connected, biggest donors to private school are not able to get grades changed, which is the assertion by many posters here. At publics, and this is absolute fact, that student would have had the chance to re-do the paper and re-take tests until they got an A. This is why more than half of APS students have over 4.0s. They take and retake until the get As.

Facts!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:same. parents who are paying 50k are making calls if their kid gets a B.

Exactly. The more expensive the school, the more inclined the school would be to provide the best customer experience.

My family is literally among the top 2% of donors to a local DMV very rigrorous private--we're talking high 7 figures over the years. My child has ADHD but works very hard and does okay. She is immature and sometimes that shows in the classroom, though not in her actual work. But her immaturity does create bias in some teachers, particularly the really arrogant ones. One history teacher, a man in his 70s, who is the most arrogant, ineffective teacher she has ever come across, called her stupid in various forms, in front of the class, consistenly. Things like: If you ask a question that stupid again I will remvoe you from this classroom. In the end, he gave her Cs on almost every paper she handed in, and Bs and B-s on tests, based mostly on the subjective grading part (in other words, she always knew the answers, but he took off so many 1/2 points here and there for style-related things that he didn't like that her entire score would come down). While she spoke with the school resource teacher, DD was insistent we not do anything about it, that this is the way teachers are sometimes and she'll just keep working to do better. Great attitude, right? She worked day and night on her final paper. She needed a B+ or better to get her grade up to a B- for the year. She had another history teacher from a different grade proofread it for her and he said it was exellent. She got a C--he took two points off of very single footnote because she put a comma in the wrong place so they were technically the wrong format. That was the final straw for me and I went to the school. They would not consider reviewing her work. That's all I asked for. For an objective, independent teacher to review the paper, and possibly some of the other work, in comparison to other students because it was clear he was not treating her fairly. They wouldn't budge. She got As in every other history cass and took advanced levels in her junior and senior years. This was unfair grading and definitely not inflated. Trust me, at these privates, it does not matter how much you pay or how much you donate. They will not change grades.

Do you think teachers like this do not exist in public schools?

There's probably more of them. The point is, even the most connected, biggest donors to private school are not able to get grades changed, which is the assertion by many posters here. At publics, and this is absolute fact, that student would have had the chance to re-do the paper and re-take tests until they got an A. This is why more than half of APS students have over 4.0s. They take and retake until the get As.

Facts!

Not in the magnet my kids attend. Once again, your generalization is no more than that. Different schools, public and private, operate differently. Read the data, not the anecdata.

[Anonymous]

Oh, and stop whining.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:same. parents who are paying 50k are making calls if their kid gets a B.

Exactly. The more expensive the school, the more inclined the school would be to provide the best customer experience.

My family is literally among the top 2% of donors to a local DMV very rigrorous private--we're talking high 7 figures over the years. My child has ADHD but works very hard and does okay. She is immature and sometimes that shows in the classroom, though not in her actual work. But her immaturity does create bias in some teachers, particularly the really arrogant ones. One history teacher, a man in his 70s, who is the most arrogant, ineffective teacher she has ever come across, called her stupid in various forms, in front of the class, consistenly. Things like: If you ask a question that stupid again I will remvoe you from this classroom. In the end, he gave her Cs on almost every paper she handed in, and Bs and B-s on tests, based mostly on the subjective grading part (in other words, she always knew the answers, but he took off so many 1/2 points here and there for style-related things that he didn't like that her entire score would come down). While she spoke with the school resource teacher, DD was insistent we not do anything about it, that this is the way teachers are sometimes and she'll just keep working to do better. Great attitude, right? She worked day and night on her final paper. She needed a B+ or better to get her grade up to a B- for the year. She had another history teacher from a different grade proofread it for her and he said it was exellent. She got a C--he took two points off of very single footnote because she put a comma in the wrong place so they were technically the wrong format. That was the final straw for me and I went to the school. They would not consider reviewing her work. That's all I asked for. For an objective, independent teacher to review the paper, and possibly some of the other work, in comparison to other students because it was clear he was not treating her fairly. They wouldn't budge. She got As in every other history cass and took advanced levels in her junior and senior years. This was unfair grading and definitely not inflated. Trust me, at these privates, it does not matter how much you pay or how much you donate. They will not change grades.

Do you think teachers like this do not exist in public schools?

There's probably more of them. The point is, even the most connected, biggest donors to private school are not able to get grades changed, which is the assertion by many posters here. At publics, and this is absolute fact, that student would have had the chance to re-do the paper and re-take tests until they got an A. This is why more than half of APS students have over 4.0s. They take and retake until the get As.

When you’re complaining about GPAs above 4.0, the problem isn’t the retake policy. The problem is the existence of AP, IB, and dual enrollment courses. In those courses, a B is a 4.0.

Come out and say what you really believe: that because your private school dropped APs, public school students should be legally prohibited from taking them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:same. parents who are paying 50k are making calls if their kid gets a B.

Exactly. The more expensive the school, the more inclined the school would be to provide the best customer experience.

My family is literally among the top 2% of donors to a local DMV very rigrorous private--we're talking high 7 figures over the years. My child has ADHD but works very hard and does okay. She is immature and sometimes that shows in the classroom, though not in her actual work. But her immaturity does create bias in some teachers, particularly the really arrogant ones. One history teacher, a man in his 70s, who is the most arrogant, ineffective teacher she has ever come across, called her stupid in various forms, in front of the class, consistenly. Things like: If you ask a question that stupid again I will remvoe you from this classroom. In the end, he gave her Cs on almost every paper she handed in, and Bs and B-s on tests, based mostly on the subjective grading part (in other words, she always knew the answers, but he took off so many 1/2 points here and there for style-related things that he didn't like that her entire score would come down). While she spoke with the school resource teacher, DD was insistent we not do anything about it, that this is the way teachers are sometimes and she'll just keep working to do better. Great attitude, right? She worked day and night on her final paper. She needed a B+ or better to get her grade up to a B- for the year. She had another history teacher from a different grade proofread it for her and he said it was exellent. She got a C--he took two points off of very single footnote because she put a comma in the wrong place so they were technically the wrong format. That was the final straw for me and I went to the school. They would not consider reviewing her work. That's all I asked for. For an objective, independent teacher to review the paper, and possibly some of the other work, in comparison to other students because it was clear he was not treating her fairly. They wouldn't budge. She got As in every other history cass and took advanced levels in her junior and senior years. This was unfair grading and definitely not inflated. Trust me, at these privates, it does not matter how much you pay or how much you donate. They will not change grades.

Do you think teachers like this do not exist in public schools?

There's probably more of them. The point is, even the most connected, biggest donors to private school are not able to get grades changed, which is the assertion by many posters here. At publics, and this is absolute fact, that student would have had the chance to re-do the paper and re-take tests until they got an A. This is why more than half of APS students have over 4.0s. They take and retake until the get As.

I agree there are harsh graders everywhere and this is just how it goes. But your assertion about public school retakes across the board is just nutty.

My kid’s school (Fairfax county) had one retake available for a major test or assessment. Do you know the highest grade you could get on the retake? 80%. For a kid who is getting those high grades that your private school kid is competing with (the 4.0+ kids?). That is completely irrelevant. My kid never took a retake because it was never a good idea. A 75-80 was the grade she was disappointed with and the highest she would have received would be a 75-80. Much of the class is made up of quizzes and assignments. No retakes on any of those. And then the automatic 50% for any assignment. Again completely irrelevant for my kid. You are looking at policies that the public school has put into place to keep options open for the kids who are most in danger of dropping out and saying they somehow confer an advantage across the board. This is just not true. A 3.8 at Potomac may be similar to a 4.4 at McLean. But it was not easy to get either GPA and it’s wrong of you to suggest the McLean kid would not have been able to rise to the top at Potomac too.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:no grades are weighted at stuy.
46% of kids qualify for free/reduced lunch
mid 50% SAT is 1490 - 1560
and there's no grade inflation, kids get Cs and Ds. having a low 90s average is considered good (they use actual numbers, a 93 isn't a 4.0, it's a 93).

https://stuy.enschool.org/ourpages/auto/2013/3/7/37096823/Class%20of%202023%20profile%20FINAL_compressed.pdf?rnd=1663685856736

In Stuy, to be competitive for Ivy level schools (not Cornell) you need a GPA above 96. Having a low 90 average will not keep you competitive without strong EC.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:same. parents who are paying 50k are making calls if their kid gets a B.

Exactly. The more expensive the school, the more inclined the school would be to provide the best customer experience.

My family is literally among the top 2% of donors to a local DMV very rigrorous private--we're talking high 7 figures over the years. My child has ADHD but works very hard and does okay. She is immature and sometimes that shows in the classroom, though not in her actual work. But her immaturity does create bias in some teachers, particularly the really arrogant ones. One history teacher, a man in his 70s, who is the most arrogant, ineffective teacher she has ever come across, called her stupid in various forms, in front of the class, consistenly. Things like: If you ask a question that stupid again I will remvoe you from this classroom. In the end, he gave her Cs on almost every paper she handed in, and Bs and B-s on tests, based mostly on the subjective grading part (in other words, she always knew the answers, but he took off so many 1/2 points here and there for style-related things that he didn't like that her entire score would come down). While she spoke with the school resource teacher, DD was insistent we not do anything about it, that this is the way teachers are sometimes and she'll just keep working to do better. Great attitude, right? She worked day and night on her final paper. She needed a B+ or better to get her grade up to a B- for the year. She had another history teacher from a different grade proofread it for her and he said it was exellent. She got a C--he took two points off of very single footnote because she put a comma in the wrong place so they were technically the wrong format. That was the final straw for me and I went to the school. They would not consider reviewing her work. That's all I asked for. For an objective, independent teacher to review the paper, and possibly some of the other work, in comparison to other students because it was clear he was not treating her fairly. They wouldn't budge. She got As in every other history cass and took advanced levels in her junior and senior years. This was unfair grading and definitely not inflated. Trust me, at these privates, it does not matter how much you pay or how much you donate. They will not change grades.

Do you think teachers like this do not exist in public schools?

There's probably more of them. The point is, even the most connected, biggest donors to private school are not able to get grades changed, which is the assertion by many posters here. At publics, and this is absolute fact, that student would have had the chance to re-do the paper and re-take tests until they got an A. This is why more than half of APS students have over 4.0s. They take and retake until the get As.

When you’re complaining about GPAs above 4.0, the problem isn’t the retake policy. The problem is the existence of AP, IB, and dual enrollment courses. In those courses, a B is a 4.0.

Come out and say what you really believe: that because your private school dropped APs, public school students should be legally prohibited from taking them.

Private school parent here who thinks the opposite-and my kids have taken all the AP exams they could. I think they are still valuable even though the school doesn’t and would advocate bringing back official AP classes too, esp in math and science.