In a reward-punishment analysis, is a mere 0.2 bump in grade for taking an honors-level class worth it? Probably not.
Should there be more than a 0.2 bump given to an honors-level class? Definitely.
Weighting an honors-level class to boost the student’s GPA should reflect the course’s rigor. Honors classes, especially in Form V—Biology* and U.S. History*—are notoriously difficult.
How difficult are they? Probably more difficult than a 0.2 bump in grade suggests. The sheer volume of work, high grading standards, and complexity of material deserve more than a 0.2 bump.
Fourth Former Colin Toth agrees, “0.2 is a little conservative. It is a general rule that honors classes are much more time-consuming compared to standard classes—whether this be in homework, preparing for a quiz, or supplementing a class to keep up with the built-in speed of an honors class. Honors students should get a larger boost [to GPA].”
The 0.2 increase for honors-level classes seems even less advantageous when compared to the jump in GPA calculation using the school’s grading scale, which converts a number grade to a letter grade in both standard and honors classes.
Jumping from a 96 A to 97 (or 96.5) A+ should not earn more than the difference between an honors-level and a standard-level class.
When a grade of A+ is earned, there is a 0.3 jump from an A. That is true for both standard and honors classes. If one student has a 96 and one student has a 97, the student with a 97 gets the benefit of the 0.3 addition. Sometimes teachers round up so it’s possible a student with 96.5 will get the 0.3 bump which will not be afforded to the 96 student. This means that an A+ in a standard level class is more valuable than an A in an honors level class. Oddly, there is an even larger 0.4 bump from an 89 B+ to a 90 A-.
The challenge of obtaining a one-point difference (and sometimes half of a point if rounding up) needed to earn the 0.3 or 0.4 increase in GPA can’t be compared to the grit required of the self-sacrificing and hardworking student who dares to embark on honors-level work, which only gives the student a 0.2 advantage.
Math teacher Mr. Samuel Walters said, “The only matter the Haverford-assigned GPA counts for is Cum Laude [society]. Colleges calculate their own GPAs. While we want students to get rewarded for taking harder courses, we don’t want Cum Laude [society] to be reserved for only honors students.”
High-achieving students, regardless of interest level, do not think taking an honors-level course is optional if they want to apply to top-tier colleges. As Haverford does not offer AP classes, even honors-level classes are seen as “not strong enough for top colleges” to some students.
The question among high achievers isn’t “should I take every honors class available?” but “will I die taking every honors class available?”
As there is a decent risk that an honors student, given the increased workload and academic challenge, may end up with a less-than-desirable grade, the already small 0.2 benefit is worth even less as it will only minimally raise a lower grade.