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Grade inflation and law school admissions

Grade inflation and law school admissions Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the evidence on whether grade inflation has led to an increasing emphasis on standardized test scores as a criterion for law school admissions. Design/methodology/approach – Fit probabilistic models to admissions data for American law schools during the mid to late 1990s, a period during which trends of grade inflation can be observed, and detect changes in emphasis on grades and standardized test scores as admissions criteria over time. Findings – The juxtaposing trends of grade inflation and of the increasing predominance of standardized test scores in law school admissions suggest the possibility that grade inflation has had a negative impact on the value of grades as a signal of student ability. Practical implications – The empirical evidence of potential undesirable consequences of grade inflation may persuade education professionals to take active measures to control the inflationary trend. Originality/value – Viewing grades as a signal of a student's ability, this study is the first attempt to measure the responses of signal receivers to grade inflation using real‐world, behavioral data. http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png Quality Assurance in Education Emerald Publishing

Grade inflation and law school admissions

Winai Wongsurawat
Quality Assurance in Education , Volume 16 (3): 12 – Jul 11, 2008
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References (18)

Publisher
Emerald Publishing
Copyright
Copyright © 2008 Emerald Group Publishing Limited. All rights reserved.
ISSN
0968-4883
DOI
10.1108/09684880810886240
Publisher site
See Article on Publisher Site

Abstract

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the evidence on whether grade inflation has led to an increasing emphasis on standardized test scores as a criterion for law school admissions. Design/methodology/approach – Fit probabilistic models to admissions data for American law schools during the mid to late 1990s, a period during which trends of grade inflation can be observed, and detect changes in emphasis on grades and standardized test scores as admissions criteria over time. Findings – The juxtaposing trends of grade inflation and of the increasing predominance of standardized test scores in law school admissions suggest the possibility that grade inflation has had a negative impact on the value of grades as a signal of student ability. Practical implications – The empirical evidence of potential undesirable consequences of grade inflation may persuade education professionals to take active measures to control the inflationary trend. Originality/value – Viewing grades as a signal of a student's ability, this study is the first attempt to measure the responses of signal receivers to grade inflation using real‐world, behavioral data.

Journal

Quality Assurance in Education – Emerald Publishing

Published: Jul 11, 2008

Keywords: Examinations; Assessment; Qualifications; Standards; Law schools; United States of America

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