I was channel flipping one day over our spring break a few weeks ago. All of a sudden, something on television caught my eye: The news had a teaser about a bunch of college students being crazy at the Oasis Hotel beach in Cancun. I knew that they were filming from the beach at the Oasis in Cancun because I went there during February break (Man, do I wish I was still there!). At a first glance, I thought to myself, "Oh gosh. It's going to be one of those documentaries where the anchors talk about how irresponsible college students are during spring break excursions because they drink and party too much, and that whole shebang." But, I was wrong. When the anchor teased the story, he proclaimed, "College students have time to do this (go on spring break excursions and partying) and still manage to get good grades."What the anchor said left me in a state of curiosity, so I managed to stay glued to the news. The story ended up being about grade inflation. He said that during the 1970s, in college, only seven percent of students received A's and twenty-five percent received C's. Apparently now the reverse occurs: Twenty-five percent of college students receive A's and only seven percent receive C's. This significant improvement in academic performance is not attributed tstudents working harder than they did 20 or 30 years ago. In fact, it is quite the opposite. Now, students do not work as hard and have more time to party (or go on spring break excursions), and still manage to get good grades. Grade inflation is what gives students the time to work less and party more.

Grade inflation has become a huge problem at several prestigious higher institutions, or so college administrators claim. University administrators and professors say they feel guilty if they give students the grades they actually deserve. Some even go so far as to say that it is unacceptable to give students anything less than highly respectable grades. But, for all the talk of grade inflation that has been going on (and even students admit that their professors were very generous with their grades), I have sentiments that are exactly the antithesis. From my personal experience with grades at Brandeis, there has been grade deflation rather than inflation (No, I am not going to give the specific names of courses or professors from which I received unjust grades, but you get the idea).

For example, in one class, I received literally all A's on the assignments (and even some A+'s), attended every class, participated, and then I ended up with an A- in the course. That grade did not make sense. And, the professor did not just deflate my grades in that course. This happened to several other students in the class as well.

What bothers me even more is that some other students at Brandeis go gallivanting around on how they did not do so well on the midterm, final exams and other assignments, and they end up getting an A in the course when they even admit that they didn't deserve it.

I am also bothered that the anchor claims students do not even work hard to receive exceptional grades. For me, that is inherently false. I am aware that there are those few amazing people that do not haveto do any of the reading and still receive exceptional marks. But there are also people that are not as naturally smart, and do not do as well all the time during the semester, or do not do all the reading, but still end up with highly exceptional grades. What does this say about the reputation of professors if they give students grades that they do not deserve? Especially at Brandeis, which has the reputation of being as an academically rigorous school? More than half of the student body here should not be getting GPAs over 3.5, as the statistics reveal. I think that the administration has noticed that approximately 50 percent of the people earn 3.5 GPA's, that there was just a meeting yesterday, open to the entire community, to contemplate making 3.67 the GPA a student needs to achieve Dean's List Recognition, as opposed to leaving Dean's List Recognition for students who earn GPA's of 3.5 or higher. Altough I know no conlsusion has yet to come aboutwhether or not the standards to achieve Dean's List Recogniton, I do not think that being on the Dean's List really means that much in the long run. I think it's more important that you earned your grades and worked hard for them.

I do work hard for my grades, and that is why grade inflation upsets me off so much. Not once have I ever felt that my grades have been inflated. I have always earned the grades I deserved, and sometimes I feel I've even earned lower than I deserved.
Grade inflation needs to stop, because if you think about it, it is a means of cheating. The professors are cheating the students out of working hard if the students know that they will end up with a distinguished grade whether or not they put in the proper academic effort.