would have made As under new grade scale

A total of 1,467 more high school students would have received As during the 2007-2008 school year had a proposed 10-point grading scale been in place.

That figure was tallied during research done by the Vicksburg Warren School District.

“I still don’t like it,” said Superintendent Dr. James Price. “But, when you look at this, I just don’t see how you can penalize that many people by not changing.”

Currently, the district follows a scale where numerical averages in courses are: 93-100 is an A; 85-92 is a B; 75-84 is a C; 70-74 is a D; and 69 and below is an F, or failing grade. With the proposed 10-point scale, a grade of 90-100 would be an A; 80-89, B; 70-79, C; 60-69, D; and 59 and below, F.

A member vote at Thursday’s monthly VWSD Board of Trustees meeting will determine if the 9,000-student district will follow 46 others in the state, along with Florida and Alabama, in switching from a 7-point grading scale to a 10-point scale.

The proposal, which Price has said he believes is a necessary change to keep the district’s students competitive in scholarships, has drawn mixed reactions since it was first mentioned by the Mississippi High School Activities Association in late spring. Now, students are chiming in.

“I think this change is for slackers,” said Vicksburg High School junior Chelsey Liddell. “This scale won’t really affect the people who make all As, who deserve the scholarships. Making the scale lower only makes people look smarter than they are and allows people into college who may not be prepared intellectually.”

A 2007 graduate of Vicksburg High School, Ann Ashton Jones said she is glad the grading change did not happen while she was in school.

“I feel like the 10-point scale wouldn’t be beneficial,” said Jones. “It would allow students who didn’t work as hard to be unfairly placed on the same level as the students who really applied themselves in order to get the old A (93-100). Basically, I don’t feel that the material in high school is at a difficulty level that would require an 10-point scale.”

Others disagree.

“I like it in that it gives people more opportunities,” said Warren Central sophomore Matt Waddle.

Mark Sills, a freshman at VHS, said, “I really think it’s a good idea. It helps you prepare for college because that’s how grades are done there.”

Drew Smith, a 2004 graduate of VHS, agreed with Sills, adding he wished the change had been put in place when he was in high school.

“It would’ve made a difference for me, probably,” said Smith. “I had a lot of classes that I finished with just a little bit less that a 93 average. Those would’ve been As in college. I think the whole purpose is to get you ready for college.”

The grade study done by the district showed putting the 10-point scale into place would not only dramatically raise the number of As but also raise the number of Bs by 1,080 and would lower the number of Ds and Fs by 1,774 and 692 —  respectively. The number of Cs showed little change.

The data is based on the grades achieved by VHS and Warren Central students during the 2007-2008 school year.

“I thought it was dumbing down, but this would not raise the lower end nearly as much as it will raise the upper end,” said Price. “I had no idea it would impact that many people who already had high grades.”

School board members had varying reactions to the data.

“We’ve got to keep up with the rest of the world,” said District 3 trustee, Betty Tolliver, who is up for re-election and will appear on ballots Nov. 4 with James Stirgus Jr. “I think we ought to come in line with colleges. We have a lot of smart children come through, and everybody does not function the same. We are not asking people to lower their standards; we just have to stay competitive.”

District 2 Trustee Zelmarine Murphy, the longest serving of the five school board members, had no comment on the numbers, saying she had expressed her opinion during the board’s September meeting.

In the Sept. 25 session, Murphy said, “As an educator, I have a heavy problem with this. But I understand we would be keeping our students from receiving awards and accolades. We’d be lowering our standards, so it is important that the teachers should not. Our kids still have to stand in the marketplace with everyone else.”

Calls made to board president Jerry Boland and trustees Jan Daigre of District 4, and Tommy Shelton of District 5 were not returned.

“In principle, I don’t like it at all,” said Price. “But I can’t base this on principle. I have to do what is best for our children — all of our children — especially in this time of financial crisis when scholarships are so important.”

If passed, the grading change will take effect at the start of the 2009-2010 school year.

Two of Vicksburg’s other high schools — St. Aloysius and Porters Chapel Academy — operate under a 7-point grading scale.