In a move meant to recognize the academic accomplishments of students in its introductory classes, the University of Pennsylvania's economics department has decided to discard its difficult system of curving final grades.
The curve, unpopular among Penn's undergraduate population, gave equal proportions grades of As, Bs, and Cs or lower to students in the class.
Action to remove the curve came about as part of the continuous review of the "Principles of Economics" course which has taken place over the years.
"We've changed the course as needed," said Professor Mark R. Rosenzweig, head of the economics department at Penn. "Part of the changing process is thinking about the teaching process."
Rosenzweig said that although the curve was originally meant only to create a more accurate picture of the achievement of students in the class, "one of the things that emerged was an overwhelming feeling that students were competing with each other ... The curve makes you see the person next to you as an enemy."
The decision was made within the department, but was influenced by the fact that many of the students in the course were from the graduate Wharton Business School at Penn, Rosenzweig said.
Many undergraduate students were of the opinion that the graduate students brought a certain degree of urgency to achieving well in the class, and this may have added to its competitive nature, he said.
The decision finally hinged on the feelings of the economics professors that hardworking students were being penalized by being compared to their classmates. "We would want everyone to learn everything perfectly," he said.
Herb Scheutze, a Dartmouth professor of economics who teaches intro classes, agreed.
Scheutze said he does not see the same level of competition in economics classes at the College that was reported at Penn, but he still does not use a curve. "I just don't do it because I'm happy to place students where they deserve to be," he said.
Both Rosenzweig and Scheutze expressed belief that the lack of a curve does not lead to grade inflation, because the students receive a grade which reflects their individual accomplishment.
Scheutze noted that there is no set curriculum for the introduction to economics course at Dartmouth. However, he sees "no major differences between here and other schools, curriculum-wise ... [We have] a pretty good idea of what students should know for the classes."
At Dartmouth, there are no explicit safeguards to ensure that different professors will apply the same grading standards for the same class. But professors teaching different sections of the same course will usually corroborate with each other, and the flexibility allows them to bring their own expertise to the material, said Ken Korey, an associate professor of anthropology at the College.
"It would be a waste not to have professors use their specialties," he said.
Korey called economics -- along with other subjects such as biology and chemistry -- "gatekeeper departments," because they are likely to lead students directly into professional schools of business, law or medicine.
Competition for entrance into these graduate programs is intense, so curves are used to distinguish among very qualified students. Contention over grades in these classes may be more likely to occur, Korey said.
Korey said he does not use curves in his anthropology classes, but that because of the nature of the subject it mostly goes "under the radar." Also, he tries to construct his tests so that the curves involved will be as small as possible, and what results is usually only "a little boundary shift," he said.
Unlike those concerned about the curve of "Principles" class at Penn, Korey said he "never really worried much about it, and as a result I never really told the students ... It never really became an issue," he said.
The general rule mentioned by multiple professors was that where a grading curve is seen to increase interest in the class material, or aid students in the course while having no delitirious effects on their classmates, it should remain in place.
When it begins to cause more stress or confrontation than is reasonable, the curve should be removed, they said. But at all times the work of the students should determine what grades should be given, even if these grades are high for a large percentage of those enrolled in the course.
In the words of Professor Korey, no one is out to start "one man's crusade against grade inflation."
