We all view arguments through a lens of personal experience and knowledge. In a critical
response essay, you use this lens to respond to an argument (often through agreement,
disagreement, or partial agreement with claims) by considering and applying your own
experiences and observations about grade inflation to test the author’s claims.
Note: I know that many of you have never taken a college course before and that the articles by
Rojstaczer and Primack focus on grade inflation at four-year research universities, but you can
still draw on your experiences with and observations of being graded in your K-12 education or
via homeschooling. Though it is possible that you have observed grade inflation at the college
level (whether in your own classes or by observing your peers or siblings), what’s important here
is that you think about what you have been told about grades, what you believe about grades,
what you think grades should mean, what you think grades do mean, and why grade inflation
may or may not mean that today’s students are being short-changed at universities. Therefore,
even if you’ve never experienced grade inflation first-hand, you can still consider what the
consequences might be (for professors, students, for eventual employers) if professors routinely
give higher grades than students truly deserve OR if professors demand less work (and less
challenging work) than students were expected to complete decades ago. You might also
consider whether the author you’ve chosen really explains whether grade inflation means that
students are learning less today or are less intellectually engaged than they were decades ago. If
today’s college students spend less time studying than they did a few decades ago, are students
necessarily learning and applying themselves less? Why or why not?

Response essay on grade inflation gone wild by Stuart Rojstaczer

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Response essay on grade inflation gone wild by Stuart Rojstaczer

From the article, it is apparent that higher education levels in the United States have decreased substantially. The college students have been acquiring high grades in many institutions as compared to the past, which should not be the case. Schools are currently offering easy A’s to even those who don’t deserve them, hence leading to decreased quality of education in the institutions (Rojstaczer, 2009). Students in the current times are spending more time partying than studying, which has led to more productivity. Nevertheless, in the grading system, there are still more A’s than before, a factor that makes many question the system, including the author. This shows that there is a high probability that any of the students who are passing are not worthy of the results, hence more mediocre graduates than the previous students.

According to Stuart Rojstaczerit, it is evident that education is getting extremely expensive and has not been paid off in most cases. Some of the lecturers have also been compromised. They are involved in the case of cheating and favoring students with regards to rewarding them their marks. These cases have consequently resulted in numerous cases of educational scandals and cheating, which have ultimately have affected the credibility of education. It is also evident that education is costly and not even paying off. I agree with the writer that as a result of poor education, America lags behind other countries around the world and hurts our economy.

However, there are solutions available. Different schools such as Princeton have begun to rehearse on good grade checks where classes are giving the students their deserving grades (Rojstaczer, 2009). This is a critical point from the author, which can be integrated by other students. Grade checks can be implemented through two main steps. First, there is a need for schools to admit that a problem exists. Secondly, there is a need for grade guidelines to get enforced. I agree with the author that other schools ought to perform this, but it would require some work. If done so, higher education would be restored, and excellence amongst our youths would arise again in the United States.

The author is of the opinion that students who do not prepare for class. I am of the view of the hour 10 hours, which is of the spent studying 40 years ago. He is also right students are spending more and more money on an education that seems to deliver less and less content. Stuart Rojstaczerit is also right that by the learners having a few learning, they tend to have too much boredom, which makes them have few learning hours and, as a result, perform poorly in their lessons. They instead of learning have ended up drinking and having much more social lives than concentration on their academics, more than the past students. However, instead of them performing poorly, their grades tend to be improving, which, according to the author, doesn’t make any sense concerning their grading.

Many of the universities in the country, including Princeton, Wellesley, and Reed universities, have had an effort to keep grade inflation in check is not impossible. There is a need to admit that there is a problem, and then they must implement policies or guidelines that truly restore excellence. Many universities also need to realize that they are failing in their research exercises, which makes their students unknowledgeable with their field of studies, hence failing to attain excellence as compared to their predecessors on higher learning institutions. There is a need for institutions to ensure that there is a well-planned process that will ensure that there is quality education provided to the students, which will enable them to become better students in the employment sector.

I agree with Stuart Rojstaczer on ensuring that institutions learn from the previous education systems on the grading systems. Colleges and universities need to make sure that that they roll up their seeks, where they should bring downgrades as compared to now and encourage real learning among all students. Rewarding too high grades will be lying about the capabilities of the students compared to ensuring that they achieve excellence. This is through ensuring that each student works towards exhaustively learning about his field, without either specific or using scrupulous ways to attain grades.

From the article, it is apparent that lecturers need to develop a system that will enhance credibility amongst the students in the course of their learning. Consequently, this will ensure that each student each; learning institution works hard towards attaining the best grades and succeeding in his/her career field. Failure to do so will lead to reduced quality of education in the future, a factor that will affect their future chances in the job market. Mentorship from past students will also be vital in empowering the current students in performing better in their specific fields.

References

Rojstaczer, S. (2009). Grade inflation gone wild. Retrieved from csmonitor.com/Commentary/Opinion/2009/0324/p09s02-coop.html