Integrated Writing on Grade Inflation

The points made in the lecture counter arguments made by points of the reading passage. The author concludes that grade inflation is virtually irreversible and justified. The lecture refutes the argument by claiming that there are no grounds for grade inflation, and it should be eliminated.

First, the lecture states that students should learn genuinely. When students get low marks, they will work harder rather than lose confidence. Besides, the lecture also says that if students are given high scores indiscriminately, it will be difficult to identify those truly excellent students. This undermines the reading’s claim that high grades motivate students to learn confidently, while low grades make students frustrated and lose confidence and motivation.

Second, the lecture argues that the evaluation of teachers can be moved to an earlier stage, so that teachers can give scores without fear of being unfairly rated. This challenges the reading’s statement that teachers will feel pressured for fear of students’ complaining and low evaluation, which may put professor’s position at risk.

Third, the lecture says that student’s transcript can be offered to the employer along with the average grades of the class and the distribution of grades in the school, so that the employer can tell how far the student’s grades deviate from others and then make decisions objectively. This is contrary to the argument in the passage that low marks place students at disadvantage of being treated unfairly in the job market, while high marks ensure fair competition in job hunting.