Fixing grade degradation in education

Arnold Kling proposes a solution for education's grade degradation which has seen the preponderence of A's rise through the years, with less C's and D's.

A Means A solves the problem of credibility and comparability of grades in courses taught at different institutions of higher education. The innovation is to separate the grading process from other aspects of higher education. For any college-level course, A Means A will devise an appropriate exam and use independent professionals to grade the exam, according to transparent, standard criteria.

A Means A, a bit more fleshed out, Arnold Kling | EconLog | Library of Economics and Liberty
Tue, 9 Aug 2011 04:06:07 UTC

 

While it is an idea to solve the problem, the whole education system is broken. Drop-out rates have soared along with prices, even while critical thinking and English are in short supply. In that light, fixing the grading system is like re-arranging the deck chairs on the Titanic.

As an employer I am not particularly interested in looking at grades. I will look at courses if the perspective employee shows them to me, but I am much more interested in understanding the person's emotional and ethical IQ, which are a much better gauge of success.