Grade inflation and self-esteem promotion are two of the great bugaboos for critics of the public schools. Read Katherine Kersten's latest as a typical example.
Does the move away from naming valedictorians have a bearing on all this? It seems to be part of a larger trend -- a reluctance to single out and acknowledge individuals of outstanding merit.
At school, the process often begins with an "I am special" certificate for every kindergartner. We also sometimes see it in group assignments, where a few kids do most of the work while everyone gets the same grade.
The source of the problem is our society's desire to ensure that everyone feels good about himself or herself. Academic competition -- including the designation of a valedictorian -- is an obstacle here, because it demarcates clear winners and losers.
Kersten, a fan of home schooling, ran out of room before she could get around to offering her solution to this horrible problem, but there's no shortage of people out there who will tell you to get your kids into home school before it's too late.
Of course, "every child a valedictorian" would seem to apply even more in home school, but never mind.
Surely some parents do a fine job teaching their own kids; and some reinforce their self-esteem as instructors by giving their darlings straight A's.
I wondered if grade inflation might be product of something other than public schools, but the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) study that Kersten cites did not look at graduates of home schooling.
Here's a study by the College Board (see page 37 of "Whose Grades Are Inflated?") that did. Nonpublic schools in 1981 had a mean GPA of 2.97, compared to 3.02 in public schools. By 2002, nonpublic school grades had inflated to 3.35, compared to 3.31 in public schools. A further breakdown showed:
The greatest change in mean GPA was among the “Independent” nonpublic schools, with a third of a grade point change between 1988 and 2002. “Religious” schools showed the second greatest increase. It seems clear that higher grades are being awarded in all of secondary education.
Yes, independent schools — which include home schools and charter schools — appear to be the biggest offenders!
