ACT Scores Are Down!!! But GPA Is Up? Why Are Students Getting "Smarter" Yet Unable to Demonstrate their Knowledge? Is Standards Based Grading to Blame? Increased Cheating? Phones in Schools?

The Best Paragraph I've Read:

Dating back to 2020, when the pandemic upended American education overnight, many schools have adopted a more lenient approach to grading. Some eliminated zeros or removed penalties for late work. Many teachers report “giving grace” to struggling students. Others say they have felt pressure from administrators to limit failure rates. Higher grades have come even as students’ test scores and attendance rates have dropped. A study in Washington state found that in the 2021-22 school year, high-school grades were at or above levels seen before the pandemic. A national analysis of the class of 2022 found that among students who took the ACT, high-school grades had risen, even as ACT scores had dipped. 

This paragraph comes from the Wall Street Journal. The article is titled: "Test Scores Down, GPAs Up: The New Angst Over Grade Inflation." The article is written by Matt Barnum. You can read the full article here:

https://www.wsj.com/us-news/education/grade-inflation-education-test-scores-40196419

Zac & Don discuss grade inflation. They wonder how it happened. They discuss the theory behind Standards Based Grading. They also wonder how big of an issue is grade inflation compared to lower ACT Scores.