Norwin students will be receiving a serious uptick in their GPAs from now on.

At a December meeting, the district’s school board approved a new plan from high school principal Dr. Choby outlining some major changes to current grading systems, including a modification in the grading scale and new weighting for some classes.

For decades, Norwin’s threshold for a letter grade A has been 92 percent, and the threshold for a B has been 82 percent, but the new plan will change these marks to 90 and 80. The marks for grades C and D (70 and 60) will stay the same, making the distance between letter grades a uniform 10 points.

Choby said that the new scale had been “brainstormed” for a while before being accepted by the board, and it was largely influenced by the recent slew of colleges removing standardized test requirements.

“Multiple factors went into it,” Choby said. “More colleges being test-optional places a greater weight upon GPA, and compared to our peers that had a standard grading scale, we could have had some of our students at a disadvantage.”

Choby mentioned that under the old system, a student receiving consistent grades of 91 percent would be earning a 3.0 QPA (quality point average), but they would have a 4.0 elsewhere.

“[The 90-80-70-60 system] is the most consistent grading scale across the country and locally,” Choby said. “With more of a global mindset of kids going to college, we wanted to be on a more level playing field.”

Many students had a positive reaction to the change.

“I think it’s a good idea overall,” senior Maria Spada said. “I found out that colleges were counting our 90s as A’s either way. It’s a standard for other schools and colleges already, so why should we be different?”

In addition to the new grading scale, the 2023-24 school year will feature new weighting for college in high school (CHS) classes. Currently, they are treated the same as standard classes, but in accordance with state guidelines, they will now receive the same 10 percent weight as Advanced Placement classes — this will be reflected in students’ GPAs and weighted QPAs.

Choby expressed excitement about the change, citing that it will give students more options for classes that boost their grades. Currently, the district offers 36 CHS courses, 26 of which do not fall under the Advanced Placement umbrella; this means that the new weighting system will nearly quadruple the amount of classes that offer a 10 percent GPA boost.

“When a kid takes a CHS class, it’s more aligned to their college and career pathways than it is just a GPA hunt,” Choby said. “Whereas in the past, they would probably force an AP class.”

Many students are enthusiastic about the change — especially those who feel that CHS classes are difficult enough to warrant a grade boost.

“This should have been done a long time ago,” sophomore Molly Geissler said. “CHS classes are essentially the same as an AP class in the sense that they provide material comparable to college level material.”

However, others are divided about the issue. The CHS classes at Norwin are wide-ranging, with some containing more difficult subjects and class work than others, and not everyone feels as if the weighting is just.

“CHS classes should only have a five percent boost,” junior Cole Kubistek said. “I don’t think some of the CHS classes are AP level and should be graded the same.”

Additionally, some students are worried about the negative effects that such a change could have on students.
One of the major trends in academia in recent years is the phenomenon known as “grade inflation,” where the average grades of students increase, often to the point where most students are earning A’s. According to the website gradeinflation.com, the average GPA at public schools nationwide has increased from around 2.8 in 1983 to nearly 3.1 in 2013, and that number has almost certainly increased in the last decade. In the scope of Norwin High School, higher weighting and lower thresholds for A’s and B’s will likely contribute to this phenomenon as well.

“[This] honestly makes me scared for the future,” junior Casey Rose Colcombe said. “Students who take CHS classes will be earning 75 percent but think they are smarter than they actually are because of the 85 percent they see. Will they get to college and not know how to work hard for good grades?”

Another effect of the change will likely be seen in scheduling. With more options for higher grades — especially options that are perceived as easier — students are more likely to take CHS classes as opposed to Advanced Placement classes.

“I’m not taking AP classes next year,” junior Drew Brown said. “CHS classes will give me the same grade boost, and it’s less work.”

Aside from the students, some teachers are unhappy with the state’s decision, citing the difficulty of AP classes compared to CHS classes.

“Personally, I feel that the rigor of AP is always going to be higher than it is in a college freshman composition course,” said English teacher Mr. Fleckenstein, whose courses include AP English Language and Composition and CHS College Writing, among others. “The prerequisites for AP classes are often much more difficult than they are for CHS classes.”

Nevertheless, these changes will affect every Norwin student in the coming years, whether they perceive them as positive or negative. None of them are expected to be temporary — this will likely be the district’s new normal for years to come.