Opinion: MCPS Grade Inflation and its Negative Impact

July 26, 2024 – By Sophia Campbell

MCPS schools have a reputation for academic excellence and are widely regarded for their high-achieving students, stellar statistics, and competitive atmosphere. The region even ranks among the top 250 school districts throughout the United States—a distinction owed to the schools’ impressive volume of pupils who exhibit straight-A report cards and honor roll placements. While there is some merit to this, the county does not always live up to the excellence of its reputation. When academics are standardized, it quickly becomes evident that MCPS students are not performing quite as well as they may seem.

Grades Compared to Standardized Testing

Take Rockville High School as an example. In 2021, the school reported that a staggering 61% of students boasted unweighted GPAs between 3.0 and 4.0. These decimaled digits translate to letter grades ranging between straight Bs and straight As. To assess the validity of such marks, a comparison should be made with student performance on standardized tests, such as the AP exams many take in May. The College Board scores these exams on a scale from 1 to 5, designating a 4 as analogous to a B-grade in the class, and a 5 analogous to an A. Following this metric, if class grades were an accurate reflection of student knowledge, approximately 61% of RHS students should be receiving 4s or 5s on their AP exams. In reality, however, a mere 23% of students received such scores. And Rockville High School is only one example of this bewildering pattern.

So why do MCPS students achieve superb grades while not performing as well on standardized tests? The issue stems from the county’s controversial grading system that augments marks beyond what is deserved in a practice known as grade inflation.

GPA Calculation Details

MCPS students’ GPAs as they appear on transcripts are determined by the semester grade formula. Under this system, a student who receives an A and a B in consecutive quarters will have a semester grade of an A, regardless of percentage values. In other words, a student who received a 79.5% in the first quarter and an 89.5% in the second quarter would have the exact same letter grade on their transcript as someone who received 100% in both quarters—an A.

50% Rule

In addition to this system of grading, the county also employs the 50% rule, a policy that awards students a 50% minimum percentage grade simply for coming to class or for attempting an assignment. Essentially, a student could complete virtually none of their assigned work—or complete it incorrectly—and still receive half credit. Outgoing SMOB Sami Saeed has spoken on this issue, acknowledging that it is “negatively impacting [students’] work ethic” by teaching them “no skills in time management, no skills in work ethic… [and] to do the bare minimum.” Many members of the MCPS Board of Education and candidates for those positions have recognized the pitfalls of this rule, with all candidates participating in the Moderately MOCO BOE forum this year having unanimously put “yes” favor of its elimination. This policy is yet another example of the county’s attempt to artificially boost grades by making it much more difficult for students to fail—even when a lack of effort may merit failure.

On the surface level, these policies may appear beneficial. After all, a large number of students receiving exemplary grades speaks for the quality of education at MCPS schools and makes students appear more academically accomplished. But when sky-high grades are not truthfully representative of student knowledge, this system is actually more detrimental than it is good. And as it turns out, students are concerned too.

Students Lament Policies

As a junior at Winston Churchill High School lamented, “There is not a distinction between top performers in a class anymore, so I am worrying a lot about if my profile stands out to employers and colleges.” By pin holing a broad spectrum of pupils into the loftiest grading classification, it becomes more challenging for selective universities to identify the true standouts among a class of high-achieving applicants. Notably, a former admissions officer at Swarthmore College once avowed that “A’s have become the new C’s” as baffling numbers of students continue to earn top marks. Hence, it is evident that instead of amplifying the quality of students’ college profiles, grade inflation is actually hurting them.

In addition to students’ future prospects, inflation can also be detrimental to pupils navigating their current course load. A student at Walter Johnson High School stated, “For most of my classes, I put in bare minimum work and effort and get [an] A, but then exams come around and I know nothing.” Unwarranted A-grades give students a false sense of security regarding their own wisdom, prompting them to believe they have mastered a subject when they haven’t. As a result, unidentified gaps in knowledge may jeopardize students when it comes time for tests and exams.

Conclusions

These MCPS grading policies must change in order to provide more clarity surrounding student proficiency, identify the true standouts within a class, and ensure that students have an accurate picture of their own knowledge. The semester grade formula should be based on percentage values rather than rounding up to the highest letter grade—and this is only the first step to solving the problem. Grade-inflating policies continue to persist in the form of abundant retake opportunities and lenient rules around deadlines; the semester grade formula and 50% rule are only two of many problematic factors.

Authenticity should be MCPS’s top priority when it comes to how high schoolers are performing. Inflating grades is a detriment to students countywide and is misrepresentative of student performance.

Simplified Example

Here is a simplified graphical sample explanation of possible grades compared to the scores. Notice how there are scores from a large range which get all the same grades.

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