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Dear Dr. Alvares:
The measure by which a student is judged is the letter grade, which represents the degree of excellence the student exhibited during the process of learning new information or skills and/or application of this knowledge/skills. The nature of our social and educational environment requires the assignment of grades that identify the student’s level of performance along a continuum. Nowhere is this more important than in a professional educational setting such as a dental school. Once the testing is complete and the numbers are crunched, proverbial problems arise. One of those problems is the issue of what to do with a numeric score that has a decimal point: the problem becomes that of whether to "round" a grade.
The issue and/or need for rounding is due to shortcomings written into the numeric scale of the Grade Conversion Formula typically used in universities. An example of a Grade Conversion Formula we are all familiar with is as follows:
A 90–100
B 80–89
C 70–79
D 65–69
F 64 and below
If one looks at a "letter-junction" of, for example, A to B, we see the numeric jump is from 90 to 89. The problem with this is there is no accounting for a numeric grade such as 89.6. It falls into the "no man’s land" on the numeric scale. A numeric grade of 89.6 is greater than 89, so it falls outside the range of a "B." However it is less than 90, so it also falls outside the range of an "A." This phenomenon is true for the letter-junction for each pair of letter grades.
Thus, academicians have instituted the compassionate art of "rounding the decimal." Educational programs are now forced to litter their academic outlines with labor-intensive and detailed notes as to how exactly the rounding policy will be enforced. At times these policies read as if they were written by lawyers. One quick fix of the above Grade Conversion Formula is as follows:
A 89.5–100
B 79.5–89
C 69.5–79
D 64.5–69
F 64 and below
Unfortunately, this slight variation does not correct the problem. What will happen is a student will come in with a score of, for example, 89.4! As outlined previously, this number is unaccounted for in the numeric scale. It falls into "no man’s land." And what can be worse is a score of 89.45! What then? Are we compassionate? We acknowledge that we accept the principles of rounding. Do we round this up? How do the other students feel? Is this fair? Or do we need to add another statement in the course manual to account for this? Will all this never-ending verbiage stop? The answer is yes.
The solution to this problem lies in the use of the most simple of mathematical signs, "<" (less than) and "
" (greater than or equal to). The insertion of these signs into any numeric scale will end the nightmare of "rounding of the decimal" and all the emotional and potentially legal issues that could occur because students receive a lesser grade than the one they think they deserve. A sample of a Grade Conversion Formula using these signs is as follows:
A 100-90
B <90 and 80
C <80 and 70
D <70 and 65
F <65
With the above numeric scale, no numeric digit is unaccounted for. The numeric scores used as examples above (89.6, 89.4, and 89.45) or any other for that matter are accounted for in this numeric scale. Thus, there is no need to discuss, account for, or allow for rounding, as it is not needed.
I would encourage academicians in all fields to assess the information outlined above and adopt this format for their academic courses if deemed useful. It avoids confusion at a time when emotions run high. A solution for rounding just made grading easier.
Footnotes
Clinical Associate Professor, Department of Periodontology School of Dentistry Medical College of Georgia and Clinical Associate Professor Department of Dentistry Graduate School of Medicine University of Tennessee sterrett{at}bellsouth.net
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