Our administration didn't give us a rationale :p

Article from January about the +/- system
 

Plus-minus system needs technology
Current system could not handle changes


Lauren Grimm
Intern
January 30, 2003

NT is waiting on new technology to implement a plus-minus grading system.
The university's systems are not up-to-date, so officials are installing new technology, which they plan to have completed in spring 2004.

The installation of the system will cost about $1 million and first year support for the technology will cost $931,762.

Without the update, the proposed grading system cannot be feasibly implemented.

The new student information system will be applied in stages, Dr. David Kesterson, provost and vice president of academic affairs, said.

"We are very, very busy bringing up this new system that could possibly support plus-minus grading if that's what's decided," Dr. Jonelle Harris, associate vice president of student development, said.

The current student information system does not provide the technology necessary for the new grading system.

The student information system includes student records, accounting and financial aid units.

"Our current system is a system we purchased in the 1980s and it's a matter of needing new technology," Harris said.

"We can do more, over time and with new technology, specifically for students."

Once the new student information system is complete, discussion of a possible new plus-minus grading system for students will resume.

The Student Government Association requested the change for the grading system on April 5, 2000 with the intention to help distinguish more clearly the differences in students' academic efforts.

The NT Faculty Senate approved the implementation of the grading system on March 28, 2001 on the grounds that discussions will occur again after the new student information system is put into place.

The provost and the president must again review the possible grading system change at that time. Faculty, staff and students are divided on the issue of a plus-minus grading system, he said.

"I think there are different opinions for the plus-minus system," Harris said.

"I think there is a large group of people that think it reflects student performances better because it's more granular."

NT will be one of the few universities in Texas to use the system if implemented. The majority of Texas universities use a letter grade system, however, but a B+ and a B-, for example, are both recorded as a B and both count as a 3.0.

"Most schools don't use the plus-minus system," said Ben Dearman, assistant registrar.

"However, the plus-minus system is more symbolic of students' performances."

Dearman said University of Texas at Dallas and Texas Tech are two Texas schools currently using a plus-minus system.


*edited to add, the FACULTY SENATE approved the new system..
*also.. isn't ONE MILLION bucks a big price tag?!?! :eek:

Don't fix it if it ain't broke.

It boggles the mind how this could happen amidst budget cuts, etc..

At my husbands college they didn't use the plus/minus system or letter grades. Everything was percentages.

Not entirely sure since I wasn't here when the discussion over the change was made, but part of it was a concern over grade inflation, as well as I read that a lot of Professors, particularly in the more subjective areas of grading wanted to make greater distinctions in quality of work.

In reality the way it's set up, you can find professors who ignore the +/- and use the old system when they report grades...those professors are awesome to find.

They had a plus minus grading system at my school. Sometimes it worked to my advantage, but sometimes not. I just figured every school had plus minus so I never thought about it.

Wow, I've never heard of that... how does that work? or the (+/-) thing for that matter... we simply had A,B,C,D,F ... most profs would break it down on the tens (90,80, 70,60, 50) but sometimes you could find a nice teacher who would slide it down 5 points.

I've also never heard of a GPA going over 4.0... that must get really confusing in transfers..

Basically, an AB is a grade that covers both an A- and a B+. The scale varies from class to class but usually it's something like this:

A 93-100
AB 88-92
B 83-87
BC 78-82
C 70-77
D 60-69
F 0-59

I've never heard of any school other than Wisconsin that uses this system.

GPA-wise it breaks down pretty much like you'd expect:

A 4.0
AB 3.5
B 3.0
BC 2.5
C 2.0

etc.

If it's to show distinction between different levels of quality it's not going to be a valid measure until all or at least the vast majority of schools are doing the same thing. From what I see here there are many systems and the only thing I can see coming from them is making your GPA less competitive in the job market.

Which is why I hate it...Since it's going to hamper me when applying to Med school.

Thanks!! :D ... Lucky (or unlucky!) for me, my undergrad program within Human Kinetics had (and still has) an average of 82%!! Ouch! Definitely affected my class standing with such a high average in such a small class(read: about 25 or so grads/year). My standing ~ we just won't go there! ;)

Oh yeah! ~ Off the topic, I wanted to add two more quick things:

1) a VERY belated welcome to GC from a fellow Canuck! and
2) CONGRATULATIONS on your Alpha Phi membership! FYI: Alpha Phi, Gamma Phi Beta & AGD are all part of the illustrious Syracuse Triad!! YAY US!! :D

Fraternally,

Jen
AGD alumna - DZ chapter '97
UBC

Marquette, like the UW, uses A, AB, B, BC, C, etc. I love it. I got screwed so many times at Plattevile where I was .2% away from an A. Most scholarship students have to maintain a B (3.0) average.

Undergrad: no pluses/minuses. Just ABC/No Credit (like a fail, but it doesn't show up on your transcript). My undergrad didn't calculate GPA.

Grad: Pass Fail: HP/P/LP/F. Most colleges of fine arts/architecture do it this way.

I really wouldn't worry about how to calculate your GPA when applying to graduate schools. I know I had to calculate it differently for each school I was applying to, based on number of credits and which courses they were.

although all i know is the plus/minus system, now that i know different, I HATE IT!

B minuses ruined my GPA and my rank! (both were crappy)

to think, i allllllmost went to a school with no grades (Hampshire College)