Grade Inflation or Grade Increase

Yeritsyan, Anna; Mjelde, James W.; Litzenberg, Kerry K.

doi:10.1017/aae.2022.15

Cited by 10 publications

(14 citation statements)

References 55 publications

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“…McElroy and Mosteller (2006) found students’ circadian rhythm influences learning. Class size has been found to negatively influence grades (Kedagni et al, 2021; Kokkelenberg et al, 2008; Yeritsyan et al, 2022). Jewell et al (2013) postulated instructors in smaller classes can devote more time to individual students.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…A multivariate analysis is performed so the effects of individual variables and their interactions with COVID variables can be examined. The methodology is a mixed effects, hierarchical model, following previous studies on grade inflation (Beenstock & Feldman, 2018; Hernández-Julián & Looney, 2016; Kokkelenberg et al, 2008; Yeritsyan et al, 2022). If a hierarchical structure exists, the assumption made in statistical estimation, that the observations are independent, may be violated.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…HS rank is influenced by both a student’s motivation and ability, similar to other studies HS rank is used as a proxy for ability and motivation (Allen & Robbins, 2010). Both HS rank and SAT scores have been found to positively influence grades (Kobrin et al, 2008; Mattern et al, 2015; Yeritsyan et al, 2022). Studies tend to have found that male students have lower grades than female students (Fortin et al, 2015; Kuh & Hu, 1999; Sonnert & Fox, 2012; Voyer & Voyer, 2014; Yeritsyan et al, 2022).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Increased grades may be caused by grade inflation, which is defined by Kostal et al (2016) as an increase in grades without a corresponding increase in students’ learning. Being an empirical issue (Yeritsyan et al, 2022), grade inflation may vary by institution. Grade inflation has long been an area of concern (Bejar & Blew, 1981; Kamber & Biggs, 2004; Yeritsyan et al, 2022).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Being an empirical issue (Yeritsyan et al, 2022), grade inflation may vary by institution. Grade inflation has long been an area of concern (Bejar & Blew, 1981; Kamber & Biggs, 2004; Yeritsyan et al, 2022). One important use of grades is the evaluation of students by potential employers and graduate schools (Fossati et al, 2020).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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COVID-19 and Grade Inflation: Analysis of Undergraduate GPAs During the Pandemic

Tillinghast,

Mjelde,

Yeritsyan

2023

Sage Open

Self Cite

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The COVID-19 pandemic required adaptation to a new learning environment creating challenges for students and instructors. A reduction in student-teacher contact and the lack of supervision should have led to a decline in students’ academic performance. Nonetheless, studies report increases in grades during the pandemic. Yet, limited information is available regarding the persistence of this impact. This study utilizes a hierarchical mixed effect model to estimate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on university grades. Using unique class-level data containing chronological variables and institutional, instructor, and student characteristics, spanning Fall 2010 to Spring 2021 of 7,852 undergraduate classes, it is shown class average grade point averages (GPAs) in the College of Agriculture at Texas A&M University increased for the three semesters most impacted by COVID-19. Average class GPAs increased by 0.22 points in Spring 2020 because of COVID-19 and then approximately 0.18 points in the subsequent next two semesters. The negative effect of class size decreased during COVID-19, implying online classes have different size effects than traditional classes. Additionally, the positive effect of SAT scores on grades decreased. One implication of this study is that COVID-19 may not only have a direct, significant, impact on GPAs but may also indirectly affect GPAs through altering the effects of variables on GPAs. The causal mechanisms by which the changes occurred are an area for further research. JEL Codes: I21, I29

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 3 more Smart Citations

COVID-19 and Grade Inflation: Analysis of Undergraduate GPAs During the Pandemic

Tillinghast,

Mjelde,

Yeritsyan

2023

Sage Open

Self Cite

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Evidence of grade inflation in bachelor of business administration degrees in Turkey for the period from 2002 to 2022

Karadag,

Dortyol

2024

Humanit Soc Sci Commun

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The study analysed the change in the proportion of business management undergraduate programme graduates in Turkey who received honours (>2.99) over the past two decades. It also investigated the factors that contribute to grade inflation and the distribution of course grades. The research employed various statistical methods, including the random effects estimator, ANOVA, t-test, and ANCOVA, to examine the GPAs and 515,739 student grades from 12,579 courses taken by 46,416 graduates of business management undergraduate programmes at 40 universities between 2002 and 2022. According to our findings, the percentage of undergraduate business management students graduating with honours (>2.99) has increased from 11% in 2002 to 56% in 2022. The most significant increases occurred in 2021 and 2022, which coincided with the COVID-19 pandemic. Our research also revealed grade inflation, with a significant increase of 28% after controlling for variables that may affect graduation grades in Turkish undergraduate business management programmes. The factors that affect course grades include the student’s gender, grade level, language of instruction, instructor title, and course content. According to our findings, it can be concluded that the rapid expansion of undergraduate business management programmes in Turkey has resulted in a decline in qualifications. This, in turn, has led to a rise in grades.

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Grade inflation effects of capacity expansion in higher education: a longitudinal study in undergraduate teacher education programs from 2003 to 2022

Ciftci,

Karadag

2024

Humanit Soc Sci Commun

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This study examined the change in the rate of graduates with high honors (>3.50) in teacher training programs and the factors affecting grade inflation and graduation GPAs over a 20-year period. In the study, the weighted grade point average of 173,232 student-teachers who had graduated from 32 teacher training institutions between 2003 and 2022 was analyzed using the random effects estimator, ANOVA, t test, and ANCOVA. The findings suggest that their grade point averages increased from 2.83 to 3.34 within this period. The highest-grade averages were found in 2012, when the number of teacher training institutions was expanded; as well as in 2021–2022, during the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition, the gender of the students, their university admission scores, the teaching field, the establishment year of the program, and the ratio of students per faculty member were found to be important determinants of graduation GPAs. Based on our results, it can be argued that the rapid growth of teacher training programs in Türkiye has caused a decrease in quality, which has triggered an increase in grade averages. One of the most important findings supporting this idea is that programs with lower university admission scores have more students graduating with honors.

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Grade Inflation or Grade Increase

Cited by 10 publications

References 55 publications

COVID-19 and Grade Inflation: Analysis of Undergraduate GPAs During the Pandemic

COVID-19 and Grade Inflation: Analysis of Undergraduate GPAs During the Pandemic

Evidence of grade inflation in bachelor of business administration degrees in Turkey for the period from 2002 to 2022

Grade inflation effects of capacity expansion in higher education: a longitudinal study in undergraduate teacher education programs from 2003 to 2022

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