Grading Blogs

Letter grades and percentage grades are an integral part of the American education system. These types of grades are used to inform students, parents, schools, and potential colleges or employers of the abilities of individuals and groups. Unfortunately, there is great uncertainty about what letter grades, percentage grades, or point system grades really tell us about the academic achievement of students. In this section of the website, I will post blogs about the history of grading systems used in the US, problems with prevailing grading systems, and some potential solutions for addressing the problems. The bad news is that it is very difficult to know what a letter grade or percentage grade means at any level of education in the US. The good news is that there are alternatives and there are also ways to improve the clarity of the meaning of percentage or letter grades at all levels.