Grade Scale

In NC, the State Board of Education has a uniform grade scale
approved for use in our high schools - 2 actually - a standard scale and
an augmented scale. These are outlined in SBE policy GCS-L-004; our
grade scales are 7-point scales. 93-100 is an A, 85-92 is a B, etc. 69
and below are failing grades for which students do not earn credit.

Some parents and an administrator have asked that the SBE consider
changing to a 10-point scale, suggesting the following impacts of the
current scale:
o Students are competitively disadvantaged by the 7 point scale
when they are compared to students graded on a 10 point
scale for college admissions purposes since the grade impacts
GPA. Example of the student who earns a 92 in a course.
o The choice of scale necessarily affects the point at which a
student fails a course, potentially affecting student transcripts and
school/district/state graduation rates.
Re: competitive disadvantage:

Preliminary research indicates that there is no generally accepted or
utilized grading scale nationally. Only 10 states have some form of
uniform grading scale at all; the rest leave grade scale choices to the
school districts in their state.

Of those with a uniform grading scale, 2 have a ten point scale while 5
have a seven point scale; the others (Georgia, Hawaii, and Washington,
DC) have a variation of "uniform scale” that does not specify a particular
number with a grade (really just a policy guideline).

This suggests that the potential harm to students is minimal given the
state of grading scales around the country; colleges and universities are
aware of the differences and evaluate students on other criteria in
addition to GPA. (Class rank for instance, which offers a picture of a
student relative to her peers who were graded in the same way.)

Discussion of the issue with UNC system Enrollment Managers earlier
this year suggested little concern about grade scale among admissions
personnel in the UNC system.
Re: course failures and corresponding downstream impacts of course
failures and graduation rates

Preliminary research shows a change would impact students and
possibly graduation rates:
o In 2012-13, 47,530 NC students received a grade between 60 and
69 in a core curriculum course (English, Math, SS, Science)
o In 2012-13, 444, 857 students received a grade in a core
curriculum course (English, Math, SS, Science) that was within
the following ranges - 90-93, 80-84, and 70-76. On a ten point
scale, these students would receive an A, B, or C rather than a B,
C, or D.
Important considerations:



In 2008, Guilford County Schools looked into this issue and contacted
six admissions officers at UNC schools. Three responded; all three
recommended staying with a seven-point scale.
In the same GCS review, one admissions director suggested that a
switch to 10 point would be perceived as a reduction in rigor. Another
suggested that it will lead to larger problems with grade inflation in high
schools across the state.
Many, if not most, colleges and universities recalculate student GPAs
for purposes of admission and scholarship awards. One admissions
director suggested that having both number and letter grades included
on the transcript is the best approach as it allows schools to re-calculate
(for the benefit of our students) if the college policies allow/require that.