Why is it difficult to get As in private school? DC worked really hard, and all assignments are good, still got a B+

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:DC couldn't figure out where points got deducted, thought it's a A.

So one of my kid’s friend will write a paper for English like an hour or two before it is due. The kid gets A’s every time. This is at a big3 that many posters complain about the grading being too hard in English.

Some people are just naturally good at writing. I have a DC who has always excelled at this. No idea where it comes from - they just have it and teachers pointed it out as early as 3rd grade. It's easy for that DC to write well and they understand the analytical component too. Other DC will craft high quality work with same grade, but it takes more effort and it's never got quite the same elegance. It's just one of those skills some people possess. (much like any other skill/knack that a person can have)

This type of advanced writing skill is typically the result of extensive time spent reading -- or being read to -- both fiction and non-fiction -- at a young age.

Yes it is the parents fault.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:DC couldn't figure out where points got deducted, thought it's a A.

So one of my kid’s friend will write a paper for English like an hour or two before it is due. The kid gets A’s every time. This is at a big3 that many posters complain about the grading being too hard in English.

Some people are just naturally good at writing. I have a DC who has always excelled at this. No idea where it comes from - they just have it and teachers pointed it out as early as 3rd grade. It's easy for that DC to write well and they understand the analytical component too. Other DC will craft high quality work with same grade, but it takes more effort and it's never got quite the same elegance. It's just one of those skills some people possess. (much like any other skill/knack that a person can have)

This type of advanced writing skill is typically the result of extensive time spent reading -- or being read to -- both fiction and non-fiction -- at a young age.

Yes it is the parents fault.

Parents have a major role, no?

[Anonymous]

Some private schools like to give out shitty grades. Usually only 1-3 kids would get A, sometimes none. Depending on the classes, some teachers have the policy of never giving out As except for rare cases of extraordinary performance.

Another reasons is the curve. Even when the kids performed well throughout the year (e.g., all advanced work submitted), a kid may still get a B+ after the curve. This is hard to prevent because they all thought they did excellent work. It is what it is. Celebrate it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Have they had a conversation with their teacher to see how they can improve? This is what they will need to do in the workplace so having the conversation now in high school is good practice and will help them learn.

+1

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:And this is why high schools send school profiles to colleges so they can see what the average GPA is for students at that particular school.

I prefer private school grading because there is almost always room for improvement. In public schools, meeting the standard gets you an A so there's no motivation to work harder than that. That's why the GPAs are so much higher in public schools. The students met the standard and got an A but their work is not what many would consider A work. Meeting the standard used to be a B or C years ago.

This is SUCH a cope & a completely delusional take.

It doesn't matter at ALL. You are delusional if you think they take that into consideration. ALL schools care about is inflating their OWN numbers for college board reportings. They will 100 percent always accept the student with a 4.5 GPA from some rando public school over the student with a 3.4 GPA from a rigorous private school. It's ALL about the numbers. Same goes for law school. No one cares how "rigorous" your school is

This is true. I recently spoke with the former admissions director from Brown. They told me that in the past decade they've shifted emphasis away from the SAT and onto GPA for "equity" reasons. Kids at "elite" private high schools are given no breaks because they are perceived as "privileged." Your 3.4 GPA kid at NCS/STA stands no chance against the 4.5 GPA kid from the local public school, even though your kid could probably run circles around them academically.

What about 3.7, 3.8?

Any T50 school requires high school ranking in the top 25%.
Any T30 school requires high school ranking in the top 10%.
Any T10 school requires high school ranking in the top 2%.
If 3.7, 3.8 places a student in the top 50%, you are not looking good.
Nowadays private high schools have insane grade inflation, so 3.7, 3.8 barely gets you in the top 25% (more like top 50%).
Plan your college application accordingly.

Top private schools have grade deflation. There are no retests like public schools and the course work esp for top curriculum is harder than most colleges. Parents are starting to move their kids to easier privates that may not have retests but at least easier curriculum.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My niece is starting 11th grade and has never received less than an A since first grade in any subject at her private school. Maybe your kid just isn't good enough?

When you have a child of your own, come back.

[Anonymous]

Talk to the teachers.
My kid has no issue with A's at top 3.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:And this is why high schools send school profiles to colleges so they can see what the average GPA is for students at that particular school.

I prefer private school grading because there is almost always room for improvement. In public schools, meeting the standard gets you an A so there's no motivation to work harder than that. That's why the GPAs are so much higher in public schools. The students met the standard and got an A but their work is not what many would consider A work. Meeting the standard used to be a B or C years ago.

This is SUCH a cope & a completely delusional take.

It doesn't matter at ALL. You are delusional if you think they take that into consideration. ALL schools care about is inflating their OWN numbers for college board reportings. They will 100 percent always accept the student with a 4.5 GPA from some rando public school over the student with a 3.4 GPA from a rigorous private school. It's ALL about the numbers. Same goes for law school. No one cares how "rigorous" your school is

This is true. I recently spoke with the former admissions director from Brown. They told me that in the past decade they've shifted emphasis away from the SAT and onto GPA for "equity" reasons. Kids at "elite" private high schools are given no breaks because they are perceived as "privileged." Your 3.4 GPA kid at NCS/STA stands no chance against the 4.5 GPA kid from the local public school, even though your kid could probably run circles around them academically.

What about 3.7, 3.8?

Any T50 school requires high school ranking in the top 25%.
Any T30 school requires high school ranking in the top 10%.
Any T10 school requires high school ranking in the top 2%.
If 3.7, 3.8 places a student in the top 50%, you are not looking good.
Nowadays private high schools have insane grade inflation, so 3.7, 3.8 barely gets you in the top 25% (more like top 50%).
Plan your college application accordingly.

Top private schools have grade deflation. There are no retests like public schools and the course work esp for top curriculum is harder than most colleges. Parents are starting to move their kids to easier privates that may not have retests but at least easier curriculum.

These top privates need to get kids into top colleges. If everybody is getting As, then the top kids can't stand out. The hardworking kids who should be getting As get put into buckets very early in their high school careers and it's very difficult to get moved out of them. These schools identify their very top students very early on, then give them every advantage and opportunity to stand out. Do not kid yourselves if you think this isn't happening.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My niece is starting 11th grade and has never received less than an A since first grade in any subject at her private school. Maybe your kid just isn't good enough?

When you have a child of your own, come back.

Depends on the school and also the track. Yes it is possible to get all As if you do not have full load of AP/Advanced. Also your niece may be lying. I know zero kids from The close who are taking top courses without some Bs

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:And this is why high schools send school profiles to colleges so they can see what the average GPA is for students at that particular school.

I prefer private school grading because there is almost always room for improvement. In public schools, meeting the standard gets you an A so there's no motivation to work harder than that. That's why the GPAs are so much higher in public schools. The students met the standard and got an A but their work is not what many would consider A work. Meeting the standard used to be a B or C years ago.

This is SUCH a cope & a completely delusional take.

It doesn't matter at ALL. You are delusional if you think they take that into consideration. ALL schools care about is inflating their OWN numbers for college board reportings. They will 100 percent always accept the student with a 4.5 GPA from some rando public school over the student with a 3.4 GPA from a rigorous private school. It's ALL about the numbers. Same goes for law school. No one cares how "rigorous" your school is

This is true. I recently spoke with the former admissions director from Brown. They told me that in the past decade they've shifted emphasis away from the SAT and onto GPA for "equity" reasons. Kids at "elite" private high schools are given no breaks because they are perceived as "privileged." Your 3.4 GPA kid at NCS/STA stands no chance against the 4.5 GPA kid from the local public school, even though your kid could probably run circles around them academically.

What about 3.7, 3.8?

Any T50 school requires high school ranking in the top 25%.
Any T30 school requires high school ranking in the top 10%.
Any T10 school requires high school ranking in the top 2%.
If 3.7, 3.8 places a student in the top 50%, you are not looking good.
Nowadays private high schools have insane grade inflation, so 3.7, 3.8 barely gets you in the top 25% (more like top 50%).
Plan your college application accordingly.

Top private schools have grade deflation. There are no retests like public schools and the course work esp for top curriculum is harder than most colleges. Parents are starting to move their kids to easier privates that may not have retests but at least easier curriculum.

The hardworking kids who should be getting As get put into buckets very early in their high school careers and it's very difficult to get moved out of them. These schools identify their very top students very early on, then give them every advantage and opportunity to stand out. Do not kid yourselves if you think this isn't happening.

This!!

If your kid is not considered top, the faculty meet before the grades are out.
They will artificially pull your grade to B+ in order to make the top student stand out, even if you work is A work that year.
There is nothing you can do about it unless you are identified as the top student.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:And this is why high schools send school profiles to colleges so they can see what the average GPA is for students at that particular school.

I prefer private school grading because there is almost always room for improvement. In public schools, meeting the standard gets you an A so there's no motivation to work harder than that. That's why the GPAs are so much higher in public schools. The students met the standard and got an A but their work is not what many would consider A work. Meeting the standard used to be a B or C years ago.

This is SUCH a cope & a completely delusional take.

It doesn't matter at ALL. You are delusional if you think they take that into consideration. ALL schools care about is inflating their OWN numbers for college board reportings. They will 100 percent always accept the student with a 4.5 GPA from some rando public school over the student with a 3.4 GPA from a rigorous private school. It's ALL about the numbers. Same goes for law school. No one cares how "rigorous" your school is

This is true. I recently spoke with the former admissions director from Brown. They told me that in the past decade they've shifted emphasis away from the SAT and onto GPA for "equity" reasons. Kids at "elite" private high schools are given no breaks because they are perceived as "privileged." Your 3.4 GPA kid at NCS/STA stands no chance against the 4.5 GPA kid from the local public school, even though your kid could probably run circles around them academically.

What about 3.7, 3.8?

Any T50 school requires high school ranking in the top 25%.
Any T30 school requires high school ranking in the top 10%.
Any T10 school requires high school ranking in the top 2%.
If 3.7, 3.8 places a student in the top 50%, you are not looking good.
Nowadays private high schools have insane grade inflation, so 3.7, 3.8 barely gets you in the top 25% (more like top 50%).
Plan your college application accordingly.

However, when private schools give no gpa or ranking data to colleges - they don’t know who is in top 25%, 10%, 2% (and aren’t likely to assume you are if school has grade deflation)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:And this is why high schools send school profiles to colleges so they can see what the average GPA is for students at that particular school.

I prefer private school grading because there is almost always room for improvement. In public schools, meeting the standard gets you an A so there's no motivation to work harder than that. That's why the GPAs are so much higher in public schools. The students met the standard and got an A but their work is not what many would consider A work. Meeting the standard used to be a B or C years ago.

This is SUCH a cope & a completely delusional take.

It doesn't matter at ALL. You are delusional if you think they take that into consideration. ALL schools care about is inflating their OWN numbers for college board reportings. They will 100 percent always accept the student with a 4.5 GPA from some rando public school over the student with a 3.4 GPA from a rigorous private school. It's ALL about the numbers. Same goes for law school. No one cares how "rigorous" your school is

This is true. I recently spoke with the former admissions director from Brown. They told me that in the past decade they've shifted emphasis away from the SAT and onto GPA for "equity" reasons. Kids at "elite" private high schools are given no breaks because they are perceived as "privileged." Your 3.4 GPA kid at NCS/STA stands no chance against the 4.5 GPA kid from the local public school, even though your kid could probably run circles around them academically.

What about 3.7, 3.8?

Any T50 school requires high school ranking in the top 25%.
Any T30 school requires high school ranking in the top 10%.
Any T10 school requires high school ranking in the top 2%.
If 3.7, 3.8 places a student in the top 50%, you are not looking good.
Nowadays private high schools have insane grade inflation, so 3.7, 3.8 barely gets you in the top 25% (more like top 50%).
Plan your college application accordingly.

However, when private schools give no gpa or ranking data to colleges - they don’t know who is in top 25%, 10%, 2% (and aren’t likely to assume you are if school has grade deflation)

They don't give out ranking directly, but it's all implicitly conveyed in the recommendation letter. Who goes to ivies, who goes to T20, who goes to T50, etc.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:And this is why high schools send school profiles to colleges so they can see what the average GPA is for students at that particular school.

I prefer private school grading because there is almost always room for improvement. In public schools, meeting the standard gets you an A so there's no motivation to work harder than that. That's why the GPAs are so much higher in public schools. The students met the standard and got an A but their work is not what many would consider A work. Meeting the standard used to be a B or C years ago.

This is SUCH a cope & a completely delusional take.

It doesn't matter at ALL. You are delusional if you think they take that into consideration. ALL schools care about is inflating their OWN numbers for college board reportings. They will 100 percent always accept the student with a 4.5 GPA from some rando public school over the student with a 3.4 GPA from a rigorous private school. It's ALL about the numbers. Same goes for law school. No one cares how "rigorous" your school is

This is true. I recently spoke with the former admissions director from Brown. They told me that in the past decade they've shifted emphasis away from the SAT and onto GPA for "equity" reasons. Kids at "elite" private high schools are given no breaks because they are perceived as "privileged." Your 3.4 GPA kid at NCS/STA stands no chance against the 4.5 GPA kid from the local public school, even though your kid could probably run circles around them academically.

What about 3.7, 3.8?

Any T50 school requires high school ranking in the top 25%.
Any T30 school requires high school ranking in the top 10%.
Any T10 school requires high school ranking in the top 2%.
If 3.7, 3.8 places a student in the top 50%, you are not looking good.
Nowadays private high schools have insane grade inflation, so 3.7, 3.8 barely gets you in the top 25% (more like top 50%).
Plan your college application accordingly.

However, when private schools give no gpa or ranking data to colleges - they don’t know who is in top 25%, 10%, 2% (and aren’t likely to assume you are if school has grade deflation)

They don't give out ranking directly, but it's all implicitly conveyed in the recommendation letter. Who goes to ivies, who goes to T20, who goes to T50, etc.

huh. Well if this is true then it's done by academics and not in a "who's who" kind of way. We have a top student and we're nobodies. Our kid gets aid. We're white.
The school is recommending that he apply to top 10 schools.

We're surrounded by parents who feel that their kids should apply to Ivies but they don't have the grades. The school is not going to write "best kid ever, needs to go to Harvard, Cornell, etc" if the kid has a 3.6.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:And this is why high schools send school profiles to colleges so they can see what the average GPA is for students at that particular school.

I prefer private school grading because there is almost always room for improvement. In public schools, meeting the standard gets you an A so there's no motivation to work harder than that. That's why the GPAs are so much higher in public schools. The students met the standard and got an A but their work is not what many would consider A work. Meeting the standard used to be a B or C years ago.

This is SUCH a cope & a completely delusional take.

It doesn't matter at ALL. You are delusional if you think they take that into consideration. ALL schools care about is inflating their OWN numbers for college board reportings. They will 100 percent always accept the student with a 4.5 GPA from some rando public school over the student with a 3.4 GPA from a rigorous private school. It's ALL about the numbers. Same goes for law school. No one cares how "rigorous" your school is

This is true. I recently spoke with the former admissions director from Brown. They told me that in the past decade they've shifted emphasis away from the SAT and onto GPA for "equity" reasons. Kids at "elite" private high schools are given no breaks because they are perceived as "privileged." Your 3.4 GPA kid at NCS/STA stands no chance against the 4.5 GPA kid from the local public school, even though your kid could probably run circles around them academically.

What about 3.7, 3.8?

Any T50 school requires high school ranking in the top 25%.
Any T30 school requires high school ranking in the top 10%.
Any T10 school requires high school ranking in the top 2%.
If 3.7, 3.8 places a student in the top 50%, you are not looking good.
Nowadays private high schools have insane grade inflation, so 3.7, 3.8 barely gets you in the top 25% (more like top 50%).
Plan your college application accordingly.

However, when private schools give no gpa or ranking data to colleges - they don’t know who is in top 25%, 10%, 2% (and aren’t likely to assume you are if school has grade deflation)

They don't give out ranking directly, but it's all implicitly conveyed in the recommendation letter. Who goes to ivies, who goes to T20, who goes to T50, etc.

Maybe this was done more for the hooked families at our school because the college counselors barely paid attention to unhooked kids or families. It showed that did not know the students at all.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:And this is why high schools send school profiles to colleges so they can see what the average GPA is for students at that particular school.

I prefer private school grading because there is almost always room for improvement. In public schools, meeting the standard gets you an A so there's no motivation to work harder than that. That's why the GPAs are so much higher in public schools. The students met the standard and got an A but their work is not what many would consider A work. Meeting the standard used to be a B or C years ago.

This is SUCH a cope & a completely delusional take.

It doesn't matter at ALL. You are delusional if you think they take that into consideration. ALL schools care about is inflating their OWN numbers for college board reportings. They will 100 percent always accept the student with a 4.5 GPA from some rando public school over the student with a 3.4 GPA from a rigorous private school. It's ALL about the numbers. Same goes for law school. No one cares how "rigorous" your school is

This is true. I recently spoke with the former admissions director from Brown. They told me that in the past decade they've shifted emphasis away from the SAT and onto GPA for "equity" reasons. Kids at "elite" private high schools are given no breaks because they are perceived as "privileged." Your 3.4 GPA kid at NCS/STA stands no chance against the 4.5 GPA kid from the local public school, even though your kid could probably run circles around them academically.

What about 3.7, 3.8?

Any T50 school requires high school ranking in the top 25%.
Any T30 school requires high school ranking in the top 10%.
Any T10 school requires high school ranking in the top 2%.
If 3.7, 3.8 places a student in the top 50%, you are not looking good.
Nowadays private high schools have insane grade inflation, so 3.7, 3.8 barely gets you in the top 25% (more like top 50%).
Plan your college application accordingly.

Top private schools have grade deflation. There are no retests like public schools and the course work esp for top curriculum is harder than most colleges. Parents are starting to move their kids to easier privates that may not have retests but at least easier curriculum.

The hardworking kids who should be getting As get put into buckets very early in their high school careers and it's very difficult to get moved out of them. These schools identify their very top students very early on, then give them every advantage and opportunity to stand out. Do not kid yourselves if you think this isn't happening.

This!!

If your kid is not considered top, the faculty meet before the grades are out.
They will artificially pull your grade to B+ in order to make the top student stand out, even if you work is A work that year.
There is nothing you can do about it unless you are identified as the top student.

Second this.

They gave every advantage possible to kids the school think will raise their ivy league acceptance rate.
Nowadays, these are kids who are FG, LI, URM, etc.
It's done in the grading stage, so that there is no legal issues.
We had seen kids who went to ivies this way but had to transfer out due to failing grades in colleges.
Of course this severely impacts the high school. Guess what, the ivies will stop taking kids from this school if they perform poorly for a couple of years consecutively.