Do Public Student Reviews Penalize Tough Grading Professors?
Available for Interview: Kaplan College Trends Analyst
Note to editors: Kaplan is a subsidiary of The Washington Post Company (NYSE: WPO)
Russell Schaffer, russell.schaffer@kaplan.com, 212.453.7538
Carina Wong, carina.wong@kaplan.com, 212.453.7571
New York, NY (March 2, 2010) – While online teacher ratings sites are nothing new – RateMyProfessors, the most widely known of these sites, is more than ten years old – they may be contributing to grade inflation. A new Kaplan Test Prep survey of 1,229 college students and recent college graduates* showed that of those who have visited professor rating sites, nearly half (46%) were influenced to take courses based on the “easy grading reputation of a professor.” This supports previous research conducted by Cornell University which found that students shop for classes where the median grade is higher. In fact, a 2009 analysis on grade inflation by a retired Duke University professor that found the average college GPA rose from 2.93 in 1991 to 3.11 in 2006.
“Our research shows that many of today’s college students are looking at multiple factors when picking out courses: overall teacher quality that will result in a good learning experience, but also instructors who don’t like to award a lot of C’s and D’s,” said Jeff Olson, vice president of research at Kaplan Test Prep. “While it makes sense that students would opt for more lenient graders, it also helps explain the recent prevalence of grade inflation.”
Although grading leniency is a consideration for many, within the RateMyProfessors category options, peer opinion seemed to be the greatest influencer, with “Prior student comments about the professor” as the element most often cited by Kaplan survey respondents (77%) as the factor they most consider in choosing classes. “Overall quality of a professor” was the second most considered factor (70%), and “engaging teaching style of professor” was third (66%), followed by “easy grading reputation.”
Other survey highlights:
- On a scale of 1 – 10, with 0 being “Not at all reliable” and 10 being “Very reliable,” students consider RateMyProfessors to be more reliable than not, with an average ranking of 5.8
- Only 8% of students who visit professor rating sites say that writing a review is the primary reason they log on; 71% says it’s to select classes.
- Just 3% of students say that a professor’s “hotness” factors into their decision of which classes to take.
Pre-Law students place a much higher premium on how engaging an instructor is (73%) than Pre-Med students do (57%).For more information or to arrange an interview on the impact of sites like RateMyProfessors.com on the academic landscape please contact Russell Schaffer at: 212.453.7538 or russell.schaffer@kaplan.com.
*Based on responses from 804 Kaplan students who took the LSAT in December 2009 and 425 Kaplan students who took the MCAT in January 2010.
About Kaplan Test Prep
Kaplan Test Prep (www.kaptest.com), a division of Kaplan, Inc., is a premier provider of educational and career services for individuals, schools and businesses. Established in 1938, Kaplan is the world leader in the test prep industry. With a comprehensive menu of online offerings and a complete array of books, Kaplan offers preparation for more than 90 standardized tests, including entrance exams for secondary school, college and graduate school, as well as English language and professional licensing exams. Kaplan also provides private tutoring and graduate admissions consulting services.
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