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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Here is what we saw in HS.    Example below for illustrative purposes for 1 course and 2 students.

Student 1 who is very bright and excels in the course:
MP 1   99% = A
MP 2   98.2% = A

Semester 1 grade which appears on the transcript = A

MP3  98.9%  = A
MP 4  99.1%  = A

Semester 2 grade which appears on the transcript = A

Now, let's review a 2nd student, who is in the same exact class, yet this person is not exceling in the course and so their parents intervene with help, paid tutoring, and extra work...to get their college bound student into the B+ and even A- range.

MP 1  84.5% = B
MP 2   90.1% = A

Take the higher of the two marking period grades and award an A for Semester 1 on the transcript

MP 3   91.2% = A
MP 4   83% = B

Take the higher of the two marking period grades and award an A for Semester 2.

So, we have 2 students applying to the same college.   They look very similar, with Semester grades of As for the course.
Yet, in reality, one is a very high earning A student and the second is a solid B student, with a sprinkle of A-.

And, if these is an Honors Course, it's scored the same as an AP grade!  Think about the difference between the AP student who got all A's and student#2.   Now multiply this calc. over years and years of courses.   Your strong, even low, B student just has to break the 90% threshold for 2 marking periods a year to capture the A.

In my opinion, this is grade inflation. [/quote]

Yes that is ridiculous.  Senester grade should be average of each marking period. And schools should use + and minuses [/quote]

It is an average, but there are no pluses and minuses. So A and a B gets rounded up to an A. An A and C would be a B. 
It is absolutely ridiculous and as the poster above noted, it really hurts the smart kids who are getting 95s and above each semester. [/quote]

BY averages, I meant Use the 93% A and the 98% A and the 86%B---use the actual Numerical grade to calculate the average.  Because yes averaging letter grades is not very accurate.  
Yes, that still means someone with a 93% earns an A as well as the person with the 99%.  But I call that being smart---my own kid learned in MS that once you have an easy A in a class you focus more of your energies on the class where you are leaning between an A- and an A in hope of getting that A.  That's called making choices, time management and we all want our kids to learn that.  Sometimes there isn't enough time in the day to get 99% in all classes (and it's not needed)[/quote]

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