I got a call from my college-freshman son recently. He is getting discouraged because he's working very hard in his classes, but the wacky curving system his professors are using is bringing his grades down. I'm talking about that grading technique where the prof forces the grade distribution into a normal-curve pattern. That way, the prof tries to give just a few high grades. (And the pattern tries to insure that over half, theoretically 68% or so, of the students receive C's.)

I was taught by an excellent Statistics professor that such a curving policy is ridiculous. She gave the most inane example she'd actually heard about. It seems that a professor (true story) gave a test. Some students made 100's, some made 98's, and some made 96's. Well, of course, she just couldn't give them all A's, could she? So, she gave the students who made 100's A's, the students who made 98's C's, and the students who made 96's F's.

My son was telling me that out of a class of 30 students, one of his profs announced that 4 had made A's. Of course, he was the 5th student in line, and he got a B. (I think I have this story straight.) At any rate, he is concerned, because his professor for his major is also big on curving, and as he gets into the more advanced classes, there will be fewer students.

I was a college prof for over 20 years, and I never curved grades. If all the students got A's (90% or above), then I was happy to give them.

I realize some of the more elite schools have been criticized for grade inflation in recent years--and my son is going to a school that merits being called "elite"--but it's sad that the profs feel led to force the grades they give down.

Obviously, this thread is partly a "rant," but I am wondering about the experiences of students in other places. Please respond and let me know when you were in school or if you are in school now. I'm thinking about writing a paper on the topic. Thank you very much!