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About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (Nov. 12, 1982)
Sl)c iN'clu jjork Simcs Best Sellers Always Discounted 20% This Week's #13 NON-FICTION KEEPING FAITH, Memoirs of a President by Jimmy Carter Keeping Faith gives my impressions of life in the White House the crises that confronted me. the people who worked intimately with or against me. the advice I received and accepted or rejected -the drama of the Oval Office from my own highly personal point of view -Jimmy Carter $18.00 List Price $22.50 Check the New York Times Best Seller list weekly Hard cover list only Cash register sales only Upstairs in General Books uo BOOKSTORE 13th & Kincaid Mon-Fri 7 30-5 30 Sat 10 00-3 00 General Books 686-3510 Cultural Forum Presents _ Psychotherapist SINGER —emu Also author of Boundries of the Soul: The practice of Jung’s Psychology. Will speak on: The Many Levels of Man/Woman Relationships” November 12, 8 P.M. EMU Ballroom Students $1.00 General Public $2.00 Tickets at the door Dream workshop, Saturday, November 13th Details at Lecture Teach a SEARCH Course for BUCKS or CREDIT I (anybody can) IF YOU HAVE SPECIAL KNOWLEDGE •SHARE IT* SEARCH - EMU M 111 - 686*4305 Page 12 Stopping the grade spiral Profs debate how to pop ballooning grade averages This is the final part of a two-part look at grade inflation — why it is decreasing and how it has prompted changes in grading systems The question that usually arises in any discussion of grade inflation is — what can be done to stop it? University faculty members questioned had no hard-and fast answers, but they do know what doesn't work. John Gage, director of composition for the English UCfJdi imci ii, oayo oumc u imma imum percentage for each letter grade, but he says this isn’t a solution "The result is that everyone ignores it and it makes them more adamant about their own ideas,” Gage says. Alan Kimball, honors college director, says when he worked at Stanford University, the ad ministration recommended professors give 15 percent A s, 35 percent B’s and 50 percent C's and below He says these are good guidelines to follow, but they do not take into account in dividual cases where higher percentages are justified Some departments have experienced less grade inflation because their standards are easier to define. Theodore Palmer, head of the math ematics department, says inflated grades in math classes that are prerequisites for other classes will hurt students in the long run. "If you give a student in Math 201 a passing grade when he doesn’t deserve it, you're not doing him any favor because he won't be prepared for 202,” says Palmer It's easier to be objective in a math course because there is seldom any question whether a student has solved a problem correctly, he adds Gage sees little grade inflation in the compo sition department for similar reasons really important graae “I don't worry about the difference between a B and a C. I'm concerned with preserving the integrity of the A,” says James Klonoski, political science professor. "The ques tion I ask is — Is A work today what A work was 20 years ago?' — and I think it is.” Davie criticizes the stan dard curve allowing only the top 10 percent to achieve an A. "I like to think an A is so special, but not so special that there O! IWUIVJ V-/ lily WV ' V v/w ■ > ... • ' ’ —■' ■ 3 ~ Kimball says there are two ways to grade on a curve. One way is to do the grading and then discover what the natural curve of the class is, and the other way is to impose a curve by man ipulating the class into a standard grade distribu tion. Professors can only justify imposing a curve in a very large class where they have to grade anonymously, says Kimball. Large classes lend themselves to standard curve gradation, Orbell adds. One result of grade inflation is GPA's are no longer taken seriously Gage says students sometimes inflate their own grades by manipulat ing their transcripts Students sometimes only take courses they know they can do well in to ensure their GPA will be high. Gage, who is a member of the committee for Phi Beta Kappa, says GPA's are no longer a major factor in selection for Phi Beta Kappa The com mittee looks instead at the course roster for an indication of depth and variety Kimball agrees GPA's are not an accurate tool for comparison of student achievement "How do you compare the student who took physics and got a C to the one who didn't take it?” he asks ^UMifJUdiuuii mail uuiuio mcci uiouuoj grading standards as part of their training, he says These meetings are necessary to ensure that sections in composition, a University-wide requirement, reflect similiar standards In the social sciences and humanities objec tivity is more difficult, says William Davie phil osophy professor In a course like philosophy, ‘ you're not really expected to get the stuff wrong Instead, how well the material is understood makes the differ ence in which letter grade is assigned Some professors say they’re confused about the whole grading system "I don't understand the grading system, I never have I only understand three kinds of performance,” says Kimball He de scribes these as superior, satisfac tory and unacceptable or A-C-F in letter grades Some professors view the A as the only the University ought to run on a pass/no pass system, but most professors still believe grading is an important incentive for students "If you want excellence, you have to recognize it and reward it,'' Orbell says By Leslie Knight The Incidental Fee Committee approved a vote ot confidence Thursday for committee chairer IFC votes confidence in Hill Bari Hill aitnougn ne ana vice chairer Betzy Fry voted against it XI// SUNDAY NIGHT SPECIAL! $1.00 Off with U of O I D Prices start at $3 35 OPEN AT 5 P M. W. FIRST AVE. 484-1919 i ne commmee aiso appruveu an amendment to the con lidence vote saying no commit tee member can make a state ment for the committee for publication or broadcast with out prior authorization from a majority of the IFC Without prior authorization. the members must say their remarks are their own opinion, the amendment adds The vote of confidence came as a result of Hill's request to fellow IFC member Jeff Nudel man that a vote be held because of reported dissension within the committee The committee approved the vote of confidence 5-2 with Hill and Fry dissenting The amendment was passed on a 4-3 vote, with Holmes, Shrauger, Ritterband-Mason and Braun supporting it Friday, November 12,1982
