The impact of grade inflation on teachers’ evaluation: A quantitative study conducted in the context of five Lebanese universities

Asking students to evaluate teaching faculty by every ending semester in modern education is an established trend. In the higher education circles, it is validated based on a large body of research showing a relationship between these evaluations and students’ achievement. The arising problem is whether this relation is positively associated or not, and the presence of a growing debate pertaining to the many factors influencing this correlation. Most of the cited research shows a link between the attitude of students and their achievement. This research studies the effect of students’ grade point average (GPA), together with the type of university as public or private, and students’ major, on their attitude towards faculty teaching evaluations. The results of the multiple regression show a strong relationship between GPA and students’ attitude towards faculty evaluations, suggesting an ethical duality affecting grade inflation.

International Undergraduates’ Academic Performance During Onset of the Coronavirus Pandemic

How did international undergraduates perform academically during onset of the coronavirus pandemic’s educational disruptions? The present study addressed this question by testing the hypothesis that an American public university’s entire population of international undergraduates who were enrolled throughout academic year 2019–2020 would struggle academically (term grade point averages [GPA] below 2.0) to a greater extent in spring 2020 term (coinciding with the pandemic’s onset) than in fall 2019 and winter 2020 terms (pre-pandemic). Five different analyses of GPAs yielded disconfirmatory, counterintuitive evidence; for example, whereas the hypothesis leads to the prediction that the number and percentage who struggled academically should increase from fall 2019 and winter 2020 terms to spring 2020, the values instead decreased. This report’s results are consistent with these international undergraduates’ resilience and their institution’s beneficial support. Reasons for ruling out alternative explanations (widespread cheating, instructors’ leniency, and grade inflation) are discussed.

Rethinking extra credit: How gamification can reduce grade inflation and strengthen soft skills

Gamification, the use of game-based principles to promote learning (Kapp 2012), allows instructors a pathway through which they can maintain curricular rigor while simultaneously fostering strong work habits and soft skill development. In this paper I describe my own experience of gamifying an online linguistics undergraduate course as I sought to combat engagement challenges such as spotty attendance and assignment procrastination. By implementing a gamified bonus level in the course, I was able to reimagine the traditional notion of extra credit in a way that incentivized self-regulation and engagement without creating a high amount of grade inflation in the process. Unlike traditional extra credit which advantages high-performing students, the bonus level sought to provide equity to the lower-performing students at a regional university with a predominant first-generation population.

Effect of COVID-19 pandemic on grade inflation in higher education in Turkey

This study analyzes the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on grade inflation in higher education. Data were collected from five universities in Turkey, including grades of 152,352 students who attended 2,841 courses conducted by 903 instructors before the COVID-19 pandemic and grades of 149,936 students who attended 2,841 courses conducted by 847 instructors during the COVID-19 pandemic. The results of this study demonstrate that the COVID-19 pandemic causes a marginal increase in grades in higher education when the other factors that might explain the differences are controlled. Grade inflation of 9.21% is the highest ever reported in literature. Compared with a year ago, DD and DC grades decreased 55%; FD and FF grades decreased 31%; and the highest-grade AA increased 41% for courses taken during the pandemic. Additionally, classroom population, academic history of the instructor, class level, field, university entrance scores, and course execution and evaluation (grading) forms of course notes are important determinants. This increase can be explained by the effort of instructors who are accustomed to face-to-face settings. When they suddenly switch to distant education, they might try to grade higher to compensate for the unforeseen negative circumstances.

Pre-graduation grade inflation in medical training in Turkey: a longitudinal study from 2005 to 2020

Background Grade inflation which is known as the awarding of higher grades than students deserve in higher education has been observed since the 1960s. There is comprehensive evidence that document the allegations, prevalence, and severity of grade inflation in higher education in universities around the world for the past 10 years. Methods This study analyzes the change in the ratio of graduates with a “very good (>2.99)” degree in medical education in Turkey within a 15-year-long period in terms of the grade inflation (when all other factors are constant), and factors that affect the overall achievement grades. The analyses were carried out using the grade point average (GPA) of 9,618 students who graduated from the medical schools of 25 Turkish universities, and grades of 288,540 students for 7,597 courses. In doing so, the “real” university random effects estimator modelling considering the differences in universities with correlation, ANOVA, t-test and ANCOVA analyses were carried out. Results The results revealed that there was a marginal increase in grades in medical training before graduation. Twenty-nine percent grade inflation was detected in line with the relevant findings in literature and this figure is one of the highest that has been reported so far. It was also detected that the ratio of graduates with a “very good (>2.99)” degree was 17% in 2005 and it increased to 46% in 2020. Additionally, the class size, academic rank of the instructors, grades, course contents, types of the universities (public & non-profit private), accreditation of the program, and the age of the medical schools were considered as important determinants of the difference in course grades. Conclusion These results show that both the uncontrolled expansion of medical schools in Turkey and the decrease in quality cause a significant increase in grades. Moreover, an important finding is that accreditation slows down the grade inflation. Both the course grades following the accreditation process and the inflation in the graduation grades (grade inflation) slowed down significantly in the accredited medical schools. This finding is an important example for the necessity of accreditation for universities, which is referred to as the “gold standard” to improve the quality of medical education.

The Voices of the New Majority of Professors: The Adjuncts Speak

The results of this phenomenological study reveal the attitudes of adjunct college and university professors in the U.S. toward grade inflation. The 23 participants encompassed a range of ages, experience levels, geographic areas, education levels, and races. Semi-structured interviews with open-ended questions are used to explore 23 adjunct’s lived experiences with grade inflation. Three research questions directed the study: What experiences have adjunct faculty members working in a four-year college or university had with grade inflation? How do adjunct faculty members working in a four-year college or university perceive grade inflation? How do adjunct faculty members working a four-year college or university interpret their experiences with grade inflation? Findings substantiated that adjuncts have definite ideas about how to curb grade inflation, including increased training, increased resources, and use of rubrics. We concluded these results are useful for aiding college administrators in determining what the new majority, or adjuncts, believe should change in the area of grade inflation and future researchers should do further qualitative and quantitative research on grade inflation and adjuncts. Key words: Adjunct, grades, grade inflation, higher education, new majority

Points, Points, and More Points: High School Grade Inflation and Deflation when Homework and Employability Scores are Incorporated

With a strong movement of schools starting to use standards-based grading practices, one of the aims of this study was to learn if traditional grading practices communicate grades that are accurate based on the students’ learning of the course objectives. The purpose of this study was to determine the extent to which employability and homework scores within a traditional points- and percentages-weighted grading model inflates or deflates grades. This study analyzed 795 students’ semester math grades at an urban high school to see if, and to what extent, students’ grades were inflated or deflated due to including homework and employability scores in the grade. Final grades, which included homework and employability points, were compared to each student’s overall summative assessment scores to determine grade inflation or deflation. The study also analyzed how changing grading practices to eliminate homework and employability points would impact the number of students that ultimately passed or failed the course. Results of this study indicated 336 (43.2%) students had their grades inflated or deflated by 5% or more and 97 (12.6%) students had their grades inflated or deflated by 10% or more, which is equivalent to moving up or down a full letter grade. School leaders should consider separately communicating academic and non-academic factors to minimize grade inflation/deflation in order to make decisions based upon grades more justifiable.

Pre-graduation Grade Inflation in Medical Training in Turkey: A Longitudinal Study From 2005 to 2020

Background: Grade inflation in higher education institutions, that is the increase in students’ grades, has been observed since the 1960s. There are comprehensive proofs that document the allegations, prevalence and severity of grade inflation in higher education especially in American universities for the past 10 years. This study analyzes the change in the ratio of those graduated with a “very good (>2.99)” degree from medical education in Turkey within a 15-year-long period, the grade inflation (when all other factors are constant), and factors that affect the course grade. Methods: The analyses were carried out using the grade point average (GPA) of 9.618 students graduated from the medical faculty of 25 universities in Turkey, and 288.540 student grade for 7.597 courses. The study used the “real” university random effects estimator modeling considering the differences in universities with correlation, ANOVA, t-test and ANCOVA analyses. Results and Conclusion: The results revealed that there was a marginal increase in grades in medical training before graduation after checking the effects of factors that might affect the graduation grades. The 29% grade inflation detected is in line with the literature and is one of the highest values that have been reported so far. It was also detected that the ratio of graduates with a “very good (>2.99)” degree was 17% in 2005 and it increased to 46% in 2020. Additionally, the class size, academic degree of the tutor, grade, content of the course, types of the universities (public & non-profit private), accreditation of the program, and the age of the faculty are important determinants of course grades. According to these results, it is clear that both the uncontrolled expansion of medical faculties in Turkey and the decrease in quality cause an increase in grades. One of the most important results obtained is that accreditation slows down the grade inflation. Both the course grades following the accreditation process and the inflation in the graduation grades (grade inflation) slowed down significantly in the accredited faculties. This finding is an important example of the necessity of accreditation, which is referred to as the “golden standard” to improve the quality of medical education.