ACT Newsroom & Blog

As seniors across the country anticipate the culmination of their high school journeys, they are preparing themselves for the next phase of their lives. For many, this involves applying to college — a process that can be particularly confusing with the expansion of test-optional and test-flexible policies in admissions. What we know is that as applicants navigate what inputs matter in the selection process, the weight of high school grades only continues to grow.

However, new ACT research confirms that grade inflation is a widespread and systemic problem, calling into question how high school grades should be interpreted when used to measure academic achievement or predict college grades. Grade inflation — the phenomenon in which grades assigned in high school increase year over year in a manner that does not correspond with increasing levels of content mastery — became especially apparent in 2020 and 2021, in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, potentially misleading students when making important postsecondary decisions.

High school grades are meant to be an indicator of a student's academic performance as well as an indicator of preparation and potential success in college. Ideally, they would serve as a standardized comparison in contexts such as college and scholarship applications, helping students to understand how they are faring academically, and how prepared they are for future endeavors.

Unfortunately, high school grades are not a strictly objective measure of academic performance. In fact, they are often a mixture of performance on tests and assignments as well as subjective perspectives based on student characteristics such as ability, behavior, and attitude.

In addition to the subjective nature of high school grades, there are decades of research documenting the phenomenon of high school grade inflation. Well-documented evidence of grade inflation across time, and the incorporation of nonachievement components such as effort and participation in high school GPA, have resulted in an unstandardized way to compare students.

Grade Inflation Continues to Grow in the Past Decade, new research that I co-authored, examines the high school GPAs of more than 4.3 million students from more than 4,700 public high schools in the United States. Specifically, we looked at grades from 2010 to 2021. Our research found clear evidence of grade inflation for students who took the ACT test during this time.

We found that, even after taking into account student and school characteristics, the average high school GPA has increased from 3.17 in 2010 to 3.36 in 2021. Further, we found that while there was evidence of grade inflation throughout the entire period examined, the rate of grade inflation dramatically increased after 2016. Between 2016 and 2021 there has been a dramatic increase in high school grades relative to grades being assigned in 2010.

We saw evidence of the greatest levels of grade inflation during 2020 and 2021, which required consideration of the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic. While it seems a logical inference, we could not conclude that the pandemic had a direct effect on the inflation of students’ high school grades during this period, and there are a number of factors that should be considered — for example, some school systems moved away from the traditional A-F letter grading system at the beginning of the pandemic to a more flexible grading policy. The variety of grading standards across the U.S. is one example of the systemic challenges contributing to grade inflation nationwide.

As opposed to high school grades, standardized metrics provide a way to fairly and quickly evaluate students’ mastery of core content and potential for success in college. High school GPA and a standardized metric provide different, and therefore complementary, information; research shows that considering these two things together provides the most reliable predictor of college student success.

Today is Global Accessibility Awareness Day (GAAD), which is an annual spotlight on digital access and inclusion. It serves as a reminder to consider how the more than 1 billion people with disabilities or impairments experience web-based services, content, and other digital products. This year, it also marks an exciting milestone: For the first time in ACT’s history, blind students and students with visual impairments were able to take an accessible ACT test.

Ky’Ren Johnson, a junior at Louisiana’s Bastrop High School, recently became the first student in the U.S. to complete the ACT test using JAWS, or Job Access With Speech, a computer screen reader program that provides speech and Braille output for users with vision loss. We asked Ky’Ren about his great accomplishment, advice for peers, and the importance of raising awareness about digital access and inclusion.

You were surprised to find out you were the first person in the country to complete the ACT test using the JAWS software. Now that you've had some time to reflect on this achievement, how are you feeling about it?

I feel like I have accomplished something amazing, and I am very proud of myself for being a person who can open doors for others. I am very excited and thankful for all of the opportunities I have been given.

Could you describe the process of preparing for and then taking the ACT test using JAWS?

During the summer of 2021, my teacher for the blind/visually impaired, Mrs. Robin Grantham, and I worked together four days a week for about an hour per day on JAWS. At first, it seemed very difficult. You have to know where everything is on the keyboard, there are a lot of commands to learn, and you don’t ever use your computer mouse. We have continued to work with the program since then, because JAWS is always adding and updating. We also make sure we stay up to date on the system.

Mrs. Grantham did not sit with me during the test; Mrs. Coleman, an evaluator for our district, watched as I took my ACT using JAWS. This way no one could say I had help from Mrs. Grantham, and I could have proof that I could stand on my own two feet.

You have credited family, friends, and teachers with helping you do what you did. How did your teachers, in particular, provide support?

Well, first Mrs. Grantham made sure we had the software to be able to use it. She worked with me during the summer, which helped a lot because during the school year our time together is spent learning Unified English Braille. Also, she worked with me daily during the school year to help me stay on track. She will open a Zoom meeting quickly and work with me if I have any questions. She won’t just tell me what to do; we have to meet.

The way she teaches is unique; she’s very dedicated. She does not tell me what to do, she suggests or gives two options and then asks which one I should use, allowing me to make mistakes. She says that is a great way to learn – making mistakes. I feel like this way of learning has made me a better thinker and problem solver. But it is so great to not have to depend on a human reader.

What are your plans for after high school?

I plan to attend a four-year college to become a teacher of the blind and visually impaired with a science degree, and to receive a master’s in teaching braille and orientation and mobility. I am hoping to attend Southern University at New Orleans in Louisiana and then continue my education at Louisiana Tech University for my master’s.

What is your message to other students following in your footsteps?

Don’t be afraid to venture out of your comfort zone. Don’t be afraid to make mistakes, because that’s how we learn. No one is capable of being perfect all the time. Respect people who are trying to help you and respect yourself enough to try.

How might raising awareness about digital access and inclusion help more students accomplish feats similar to yours?

Mrs. Grantham has told me that it is always best to stay connected with federations for blind people and to stay up to date with technology and resources that will help me succeed. Digital access helps everyone reach their goals and to be independent. We have to care enough and want something badly enough to try to find a way to succeed.

Inclusion should matter for everyone. I may be visually impaired, but I do not have a cognitive disability/disorder. That is where some people definitely need to grow in their prehistoric thinking. Just because someone is blind, deaf, physically disabled, and so on does not mean they have a cognitive disability/disorder. We are capable!

IOWA CITY, Iowa (May 16, 2022) — A new report from ACT, the nonprofit organization that administers the ACT college readiness exam, finds evidence of grade inflation in high school seniors’ GPAs between 2010 and 2021. The average high school GPA increased 0.19 grade points, from 3.17 in 2010 to 3.36 in 2021, with the greatest grade inflation occurring between 2018 and 2021.

“Grade inflation is real, it is widespread, and it weakens the value of student transcripts as a single measure of what students know and are able to do,” said ACT CEO Janet Godwin. “The study shows that grade inflation is a persistent, systemic problem, common across classrooms, districts, and states.”

The phenomenon of “grade inflation” — the assignment of grades that do not align with content mastery as measured by the ACT — calls into question whether, and to what degree, grades alone should be used to measure academic achievement or predict future grades. According to the report, grades can be a misleading indicator of how well students are currently performing academically and how prepared they are for future endeavors, including college. As grade inflation increases over time, high school GPAs become less useful as a single indicator of academic achievement.

Grade inflation became especially apparent in 2020 and 2021, and in some cases the rate of grade inflation increased substantially during those years, though attributing these changes directly to the COVID-19 pandemic is difficult. Shifts in high school course grading policy during the COVID-19 pandemic may account for the most recent growth in grade inflation. In response to the coronavirus outbreak, some school districts moved away from the traditional A-F letter grading system at the beginning of the pandemic to a more lenient policy dictated by districts, schools, or classroom teachers. As a result of the dramatic changes to the way grades were assigned, it is fair to ask whether GPAs assigned during the pandemic are comparable to GPAs assigned prior to it.

However, grade inflation began long before the COVID-19 pandemic. ACT research shows that high school GPAs have steadily increased over the past decade even as standardized measures have remained stagnant or have fallen. Grade inflation may be escalated by a growing interest in test-optional or test-blind admissions policies, whereby colleges no longer require standardized assessments of students’ knowledge and skills to be considered in college admissions decisions.

“Grade inflation makes college admissions more challenging and confusing for students, who need accurate, meaningful grades to tell the whole story of their academic success,” Godwin said. “Grade inflation also limits students’ ability to meaningfully gauge their academic readiness for college work and select a college where they are likely to thrive.”

ACT researchers reviewed and analyzed data from the 2010 to 2021 ACT-tested high school graduating classes for the study. The data included students’ most recent score for those who took the ACT test more than once. Students also provided information related to their courses and their grades, as well as demographic information and school characteristics.

Based on these findings, a holistic admissions evaluation that ensures appraisal of the whole student, including both high school GPA and an objective metric, should be used when making decisions about college admissions as well as scholarship applications.

Key findings:

• This analysis suggested grade inflation was more of an issue for students with moderate and lower ACT Composite scores than for students with higher ACT Composite scores.
• Students with low and moderate family incomes had higher rates of grade inflation compared to students with high family incomes.
• Black students experienced a greater degree of grade inflation than white students.
• Schools with a higher proportion of students who receive Free or Reduced-Price Lunch services had higher grade inflation than schools with lower proportions of students receiving these services.
• At a school level, schools with fewer students of color experienced grade inflation at a higher rate across time than schools with more students of color.

About ACT
ACT is a mission-driven, nonprofit organization dedicated to helping people achieve education and workplace success. Headquartered in Iowa City, Iowa, ACT is trusted as a national leader in college and career readiness, providing high-quality assessments grounded in over 60 years of research. ACT offers a uniquely integrated set of solutions designed to provide personalized insights that help individuals succeed from elementary school through career. Visit us at www.act.org.

Contact: Allie Ciaramella; allie.ciaramella@act.org

A key to the success of educators working to increase the number of first-generation college students and students from low-income families pursuing a college degree or other higher education credential is how they creatively hold events, from large to small. This is exemplified by the recent winners of the third annual School of Excellence awards, an initiative of the American College Application Campaign (ACAC) that honors schools across the country that are helping students pursue postsecondary success.

While these application events often take place from September through December, a growing number of schools and even some colleges are gathering students in the spring to remind them that there’s still time to apply. But regardless of the timing, school counselors and college and career readiness teachers and coaches stress the importance of including all students — and their families — in college preparation opportunities.

Johnson Senior High School in St. Paul, Minnesota, was named a 2021 School of Excellence, in part because of its ability to bring students together as part of this national effort.

Samina Ali, a counselor at the high school, says she’s most proud of its annual Scholarship and Financial Aid Night, where students and families are invited to meet with scholarship representatives, community partners, higher education admissions representatives, financial aid officers, language translators, and school staff.

“At this event, we work at completing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid and Minnesota Dream Act forms,” Ali explained. “We’re data-driven and follow up with students who need to complete college applications and other items for higher education. This is done through ongoing workshops, individual student meetings, group meetings, going into the classrooms to meet with students, and continuous work with our community and partners.”

Ali believes in forming partnerships with colleges, financial aid offices, and school staff so everyone understands the families’ needs.

“It’s very important to make accommodations and to find resources for students and families to overcome any barriers to applying for education, such as language, financial concerns, and being the first in their family to go to college,” she said. Because they work with many first-generation students, counselors strive to include parents in these conversations, as well.

Including parents is important to maximize the effectiveness of college preparation opportunities, according to recent ACT survey data. ACT recommends that high schools help students as well as their families understand why these opportunities are helpful and what college-related information they provide.

Roderick Moore takes a similar approach, but his school’s college application event went one step further by opening it up to all high school students from across the district. Moore is a college and career readiness teacher at Forest Hill High School in Jackson, Mississippi, another 2021 School of Excellence.

“Many of the students have no idea about the college and universities within a 25-mile radius of the Jackson area. This college application event attracted colleges from Alabama, Florida, Tennessee and Georgia,” he said. “My advice to any colleagues who are considering starting a college application event is, don’t be afraid to start small. Just begin by making a call to the admissions office at one college. Planning and organizing are important but don’t feel overwhelmed. Create a team to help plan a successful college application day.”

Each year, School of Excellence award-winner Tuckerman High School in Tuckerman, Arkansas, hosts a College 101 Night for juniors, seniors and parents. College and career coach Michael Smith surveys students to determine which colleges they would like to hear from, following another ACT recommendation for improving college preparation opportunities: personalizing support based on student feedback. Smith then invites those colleges’ recruiters to attend the event and interact with interested and eager students. He also tries to organize campus trips, so students can see college life for themselves.

Mason City High School counselor Karla Wymore in Mason City, Iowa, uses a different approach.

“We’re so fortunate to be able to allow students time within a class period to apply to at least one college,” she said. “We know that when left to do it on their own, students tend to put it off, so allowing time within a specific class period is key.”

Wymore believes it’s important for students to apply to at least one college, even if they don't think they are going to go to college. That way, they still have options.

These efforts are just a sample of what schools have been able to accomplish. Overall, ACAC’s 2021 annual survey found that 45 state campaigns achieved the following: