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Lemuel Todd Dr. Mason English 1101 15 June 2013 Less Prepared for College Today Working Thesis: Statistics show that students are not as prepared for college today as they think they are, or as well as they should be. Two of the largest factors in this lack of preparation are grade inflation and the overuse of standardized testing. Section I: Many wonder if todays students are truly prepared for the college experience or not.
1. Statistics show that the students are not ready to perform at the college level. a. According to an article on the National Conference for State Legislation, as much

as 34% of students at public colleges and universities take remedial courses.

b. ACT scores. c. SAT Scores. Section II: Knowing that students are ill-prepared for college, what is the cause? Why do students think they are prepared when they are not? 1. Grade inflation gives the students a false image of high achievement 2. Standardized testing can also inflate their view of their own achievement. Section III: What is grade inflation and what affect can it have on student preparation?

Todd 2 1. Merriam-Webster defines grade inflation as a rise in the average grade assigned to students; especially the assigning of grades higher than previously assigned for given levels of achievement. 2. If grade inflation is occurring, how can it be harmful to students? a. Students may receive high marks in high school, but drop out of college. According to Bryan Goodwin 30 percent of freshmen at U.S. four-year institutions drop out during or after their first year of college. Section IV: So grade inflation does have the potential to negatively affect students, but is it actually occurring? 1. Yes, grade inflation is happening. a. Twenger and Campbell found that 32.8% of students report grades of A or A-minus versus only 18.6% in 1976 (1084). b. While students report higher grade point averages, ACT.org reports findings that the GPA for specific ACT composite scores in 2003 is higher that the GPA for the same composite score in 1991 Section V: The other setback to todays students is standardized testing. 1. According the Center for Public Education, standardized tests are large-scale tests given to students at the same time, under the same conditions, and are scored in the same manner so students scores cannot be attributed to anything other than student performance. 2. The Center for Public Education further considers much of the standardized tests taken by students today to be high stakes.

Todd 3 a. The Center classifies a test a high stakes when it has consequences that are determined by the students performance. 3. There are four appropriate uses of standardized tests, according James Popham of University of California, Los Angeles. They are: a. Informing parents about their childrens relative achievement. b. Informing teachers about their students relative achievement. c. Selecting students for special programs. d. Allocating supplemental resources. Section VI: Very well, now that we have defined what a standardized test is and what the appropriate uses of one are, let us examine how these tests are actually being put to use and the how these uses affect todays students. 1. Many of the standardized testing situations that students face now can be categorized as high stakes tests. a. Students must pass these tests in order to move to the next grade level in some cases, in other cases, there are state requirements of test achievement in order to graduate from high school. 2. What effects can a high stakes testing situation have on students? a. Students may experience higher stress levels. b. Because these are still standardized tests, a student who passes could get an inflated view of his or her own achievement, as discussed earlier with grade inflation.

Todd 4 c. If a student fails, however, that could mean being held back a grade, being put into remedial classes, or not graduating high school on time. Section VII: Conclusion: Now that we have taken a look at some of the factors that are involved in the current education, it is obvious that students, although not entirely through their own fault, are less prepared for college than they should be. Some of that lack of preparation is owed to grade inflation and the overuse of standardized tests that has become the norm starting with the No Child Left Behind program. These issues need to be addressed, but it will take considerable time and complex planning to begin to correct the situation.