Summary Of Grade Inflation By Brent Staples

615 Words2 Pages

Brent Staples presents an essay that explains the current "grade inflation" that is taking place in colleges and universities currently. According to Staples, the problem resides in the competition that goes on between all colleges nowadays, and to keep students from attending classes that aren't as interesting as others, such as humanities. The author uses an economic principle as a metaphor to explain what the problem consists of. He begins by stating that "shabby products" can compete with the "superior" ones, if their price and quality appear to be better and more accessible. This goes down to a point, where inflation is generated and those "superior products" are not "superior" any more, they lose their superiority. With an apprehensive tone, the author expresses his concern about the future if this continues to happen. This is what eventually will happen in schools, well they're "showering" students with A's and great grades only to keep up in statistics or preventing the loss of jobs, since many classes would be greatly avoided. …show more content…

I believe that this term refers to good grades losing their real value. Students are getting degrees with extremely good grades. Some years ago, this didn't happen. Getting an A for any class was so complicated that only cum laude students were worth getting those grades, which gave them a very high and esteemed value. The problem is, as Staples says it, "that students and parents are demanding –and getting- what they think of their money's worth." With this said, the possible solutions to these problem cease to exist more and more, well an average graduate degree can go from fifty, all the way to 200

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