Harvard faculty have approved a controversial plan to overhaul the college’s grading system, including new limits on how many A’s professors can award. The goal: make an A mean something again.

But the debate goes beyond transcripts and GPAs. At a moment of deep skepticism toward elite higher education, some supporters say tougher grading could also help restore trust in institutions like Harvard.

In this episode of College Uncovered, GBH’s Kirk Carapezza heads to Harvard Yard, where high-achieving students worried about their futures are pushing back. And we hear from professors divided over a broader question: What are grades actually used for?

Grade inflation has been rising for decades at colleges across the country. Economist Jeff Denning of the University of Texas at Austin explains why easier grading may weaken students’ incentives to study and to truly learn the material.

Meanwhile, a faculty report from Yale’s Committee on Trust in Higher Education argues that grades at elite universities often no longer do what they’re supposed to do: measure and communicate learning. We hear from two of the report’s authors, sociologist Julia Adams and law professor Sarath Sanga.

And finally, The Hechinger Report’s Jill Barshay explains why, in the age of the easy A, parents may be getting a misleading picture of how their kids are actually doing.

Related links: 

Harvard limits number of students who get A grades

With rampant grade inflation, could Harvard make an ‘A’ mean something again?

Easy A’s, lower pay: Grade inflation’s hidden damage

College Uncovered: What do college students learn, anyway?

Parents trust report cards more than test scores — with consequences for kids

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Credits:

Host and Producer: Kirk Carapezza 

Editors: Azita Ghahramani and Lisa Wardle

Executive Producer: Lee Hill  

Mixing and Sound Design: David Goodman & Gary Mott

Theme Song and original music: Left-Roman

Artwork: Matt Welch 

Project Manager: Isabel Hibbard

Consulting Producer and Head of GBH Podcasts: Devin Maverick Robins

"College Uncovered" is a production of GBH News