# grading systems in other countries



## Whodunit

I'd like to know how the grade system works in your country in schools. I think I don't have to explain it further after the following table:

Germany:
1 - sehr gut (very good)
2 - gut (good)
3 - befriedigend (satisfactory)
4 - ausreichend (enough)
5 - mangelhaft (poor)
6 - ungenügend (not enough)

America/GB:
A - excellent
B - good
C - satisfactory
D - sufficient
E - poor
F - unsatisfactory

France:
20 sur 20 (A) - très bien
?? sur 20 (B) - bien 
?? sur 20 (C) - assez bien
?? sur 20 (D) - passable
?? sur 20 (E) - dessous de la moyenne (?)
0 sur 20 (F) - insuffisant (?)

Thanks for corrections and supplementations.


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## Fernando

The epoch when I was in school (so-called Middle Ages):

0-3: Muy deficiente = Very bad. Not normally used (F)
3-5: Insuficiente = Insufficient (E)
5-6: Suficiente = Sufficient (D)
6-7: Bien = Fair (C)
7-9: Notable = Remarkable (B)
9-10: Sobresaliente = Excellent (A)


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## Jana337

Czech Republic:

1 - výborně - excellent
 2 - chvalitebně - very good
 3 - dobře - good
 4 - dostatečně - sufficient
 5 - nedostatečně - insufficient

Universities:
1 - výborně - excellent
  2 - chvalitebně - very good
  3 - dobře - good
  4 - nedostatečně - insufficient

Jana


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## JLanguage

Whodunit said:
			
		

> I'd like to know how the grade system works in your country in schools. I think I don't have to explain it further after the following table:
> 
> America/GB:
> A - excellent
> B - good
> C - satisfactory
> D - sufficient
> E - poor
> F - unsatisfactory
> 
> Thanks for corrections and supplementations.


 
A: Excellent
B - B+: Good
B-: Decent
C: Acceptable
D: Barely sufficient
F: Failing

Numbers:
A: 90-100+
B - B+ : 85-89
B-: 80-84
C: 75-79
D: 70-74
F: <70

Whether or not B or C is satisfactory depends on both the school and the person, but it is universal that an F is failing and A is exemplary, while D is very poor.


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## amikama

In Israel there are two scales, 0-10 (usually small quizes, surprise quizes etc.) and 0-100 (usually exams).

It's ten years since I've graduated high school, but if my memory serves me right it goes like this:
10 or 95-100 = מצוין (execllent)
9 or 85-94 = טוב מאוד (very good)
8 or 75-84 = טוב (good)
7 or 65-74 = כמעט טוב (almost good)
6 or 55-64 = מספיק (sufficient)
5 or 45-54 = מספיק בקושי (hardly sufficient)
<4 or <44 = בלתי מספיק/נכשל (insufficient/failed)


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## alc112

I like this topic:

10: Sobresaliente
9: Distingudo
8 y 7: Muy Bueno
6: bueno
5 y 4: Regular
3, 2 y 1: Insuficiente


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## Whodunit

alc112 said:
			
		

> I like this topic:



So do I. Thank you all very much for your answeres and corrections.   

However I'd like to know the Russian one again. I just remember it's like the German one, just vice versa.


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## JLanguage

amikama said:
			
		

> In Israel there are two scales, 0-10 (usually small quizes, surprise quizes etc.) and 0-100 (usually exams).
> 
> It's ten years since I've graduated high school, but if my memory serves me right it goes like this:
> 10 or 95-100 = מצוין (execllent)
> 9 or 85-94 = טוב מאוד (very good)
> 8 or 75-84 = טוב (good)
> 7 or 65-74 = כמעט טוב (almost good)
> 6 or 55-64 = מספיק (sufficient)
> 5 or 45-54 = מספיק בקושי (hardly sufficient)
> <4 or <44 = בלתי מספיק/נכשל (insufficient/failed)


 
Wow, that's a lenient system, here anything less than a seventy is failing.


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## panjandrum

JLanguage said:
			
		

> Wow, that's a lenient system, here anything less than a seventy is failing.


It's not necessarily lenient. It could be just as difficult to score 40 in one scheme as to score 70 in another.  Logically, 50% should be average.  Grade creep is a big problem


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## timpeac

Jana337 said:
			
		

> Czech Republic:
> 
> 1 - výborně - excellent
> 2 - chvalitebně - very good
> 3 - dobře - good
> 4 - dostatečně - sufficient
> 5 - nedostatečně - insufficient
> 
> Universities:
> 1 - výborně - excellent
> 2 - chvalitebně - very good
> 3 - dobře - good
> 4 - nedostatečně - insufficient
> 
> Jana


 
That's interesting. At Czech university you can only be good or insufficient then, not average. I think in a way I like that since you know where you are! 

At British university you have

1st* "starred first" - 80+% -outstanding
1st - 70-80% excellent
2-1 - "two-one" - 60-70% - good
2-2 "two-two" - 50-60% - fair
3rd bare pass - 40-50%
fail - <40%

Again the percentages don't mean very much. For example, if you wrote something that was absolutely fantastic that even your tutor was in awe of it might get 85%. At least that is how it worked for arts subjects at my university. I don't know how it worked for subjects such as maths where there are right or wrong answers and so you could theoretically get 100% I suppose.


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## lsp

The US of A has gone in a variety of directions, so it's hard to generalize as a nation. However, where ABCDF is used, "D" is insufficient, borderline failure.

p.s. (The US of A have???  )


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## Mita

Hi!
In Chile:
7,0: excellent 
6,0 to 6,9: good
5,0 to 5,9: so-so
4,0 to 4,9: barely sufficient
1,0 to 3,0: insufficient
In Chile our grades are "blue" or "red". The red ones are very bad... if you have a red average grade in three subjects, you have to repeat.  



			
				JLanguage said:
			
		

> A: Excellent
> B - B+: Good
> B-: Decent
> C: Acceptable
> D: Barely sufficient
> F: Failing





			
				lsp said:
			
		

> However, where ABCDF is used, "D" is insufficient, borderline failure.


Don't you have "E"??


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## elroy

I want to second lsp on the fact that it's hard to generalize the US grading system.

When I was growing up, this was the system my American school used:

A: 100-93 (excellent)
B: 92-85 (above average)
C: 84-77 (average)
D: 76-70 (below average) 
F: 69-0 (failing)

Realizing that it was perhaps too strict (espeically since the passing grade at local Palestinian schools was 50, so that our failing 69 was, in their words, "19 points above average"), they later modified the system, albeit very slightly:

A: 100-90 (excellent)
B: 89-80 (above average)
C: 79-70 (average)
D: 69-65 (below average)
U: 64-0 (unsatisfactory)

The changed the F to U because they felt "unsatisfactory" sounded more pleasant than "failing."  Considerate, isn't it?   

Of course, the divisions get more specific with the well-known +'s and -'s, but the distinctions among those are even more complicated and varied.

Nevertheless, US grading systems are all alike in that there is no "E," at least as far as I know.  I think the "E" is more of a British thing.

As for the Palestinian system, I'm not entirely sure, but from what I remember it is very much like the Israeli system Amikama described: scale of 0-10 for short quizzes and such; scale of 0-100 for larger tests and exams; 5 and 50 passing grades, respectively.

In college and university, the GPA (Grade Point Average) system is used throughout most of the United States - but again, with slight differences here and there.  Generally, 4.00 GPA points is the highest you can get; anything above 3.00 is pretty good; below 3.00 and you start risking not looking so hot on your graduate school applications.

This is the system my university (Colgate University) uses:

4.33 - A+
4.00 - A
3.67 - A-
3.33 - B+
3.00 - B
2.67 - B-
2.33 - C+
2.00 - C
1.67 - D+
1.33 - D
1.00 - D-
0.00 - F 

A 4.33 (A+) is virtually impossible to get so for intents and purposes a 4.00 is the highest you can get.  If your cumulative GPA at the end of your collegiate career is a 3.3 or above, you graduate _cum laude_; if it's 3.5 or above you graduate _magna cum laude_; 3.8 or above and you graudate _summa cum laude_.


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## elroy

Mita said:
			
		

> Don't you have "E"??



Nope.  Not in the US.


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## Aupick

Whodunit said:
			
		

> France:
> 20 sur 20 (A) - très bien
> ?? sur 20 (B) - bien
> ?? sur 20 (C) - assez bien
> ?? sur 20 (D) - passable
> ?? sur 20 (E) - dessous de la moyenne (?)
> 0 sur 20 (F) - insuffisant (?)


 
France: 
16/20 = très bien (very good)
14/20 = bien (good)
12/20 = assez bien (quite good)

10/20 is the cut off for pass/fail, but is also called the 'moyenne' (average) which shows you how pessimistic the French system is. They used to say that 20 was for the good Lord and 19 for his angels, such was the difficulty of obtaining these grades, but they're just about within reach these days. Having said that, the higher up in the education system you go, the lower the scores are (the greater the expectations...). And averages of 7 or 8 become quite common.


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## Jana337

The most elaborate grading scale I have experienced is the Danish one:
 13: Is given for exceptionally independent   and excellent performance

             11: Is given for independent and excellent   performance

             10: Is given for excellent but not   particularly independent performance

             9: Is given for good performance, a little   above average

             8: Is given for average performance

             7: Is given for mediocre performance,   slightly below average

             6: Is given for just acceptable performance   (minimum pass mark)

             5: Is given for hesitant and not   satisfactory performance

             03: Is given for very hesitant, very   insufficient and unsatisfactory performance

             00: Is given for completely unacceptable   performance

 The jump from 13 to 11 emphasises the fact that 13 is only to be given in exceptional cases. It should therefore not necessarily be compared to the top mark in other systems. 

Jana


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## joensuu

France:
20 sur 20  - Excellent
18 sur 20  - très bien
16 sur 20  - bien 
14 sur 20  - assez bien
12 sur 20  - passable
<10 sur 20  - dessous de la moyenne (?)
8 sur 20  - insuffisant (?)

In France, i never see the letters used as marks after primary school.


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## alc112

Mita said:
			
		

> In Chile our grades are "blue" or "red". The red ones are very bad... if you have a red average grade in three subjects, you have to repeat.
> Don't you have "E"??


our grades here in Argentina also use red color for the worst grades. I mean 1, 2 and 3. For the others, the people who put them use blue or black.
Saludos


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## Cairenn

in Croatia:

5 = ODLIČAN [excellent]
4 = VRLO DOBAR [very good]
3 = DOBAR [good]
2 = DOVOLJAN [acceptable]
1 = NEDOVOLJAN [failing]


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## LadyBlakeney

Hello everybody,

Although Fernando already posted the Spanish grade system and it is crystal clear, I'd like to add a couple of things you may find curious:

Our marks range from 0 to 10. To barely pass, you need to get a 5, anything below that means you need to repeat the course or resit the exam, usually in September, before the start of the next course. 

In practically every subject (arts or science) you can get a 10 and:

- when your average grades for the last course in high school are close to 10, you may get a "matrícula de honor" (I don't know how to say it in English). It is a sort of academic honour, and the pragmatic part of it is that, should you decide to go to College, you don't have to pay the tuition for the first year (that is, in public universities).

- when you get a 10 in College for any subject, you also get a "matrícula de honor" and you get one subject for free in you next course's tuition.


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## Philippa

timpeac said:
			
		

> At British university you have
> 1st* "starred first" - 80+% -outstanding
> 1st - 70-80% excellent
> 2-1 - "two-one" - 60-70% - good
> 2-2 "two-two" - 50-60% - fair
> 3rd bare pass - 40-50%
> fail - <40%
> Again the percentages don't mean very much. For example, if you wrote something that was absolutely fantastic that even your tutor was in awe of it might get 85%. At least that is how it worked for arts subjects at my university. I don't know how it worked for subjects such as maths where there are right or wrong answers and so you could theoretically get 100% I suppose.


Hi Tim! I've never heard of starred firsts!! At my Uni it was 1st, 2.1, 2.2, 3rd, Pass degree (i.e. not honours) and Fail. I agree that the percentages don't mean much. Our finals papers were impossible (I did well and all my marks were around 50%)

Schools here give a variety of letter and number marks. Schools can have their own system - sometimes it includes separate marks for effort and achievement. I put different combinations of ticks, pluses and minuses in my mark book for me to refer to and write comments for the pupils.

In A level exams (17 and 18 year olds) there are pass grades from A (best) to E (worst). In GCSE exams (16 year olds) there are pass grades from A (best) to G (worst) and A* (even better than best!), but A* to C are often considered passes and the other grades fails.

Saludos
Philippa


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## Sev

Aupick said:
			
		

> France:
> 16/20 = très bien (very good)
> 14/20 = bien (good)
> 12/20 = assez bien (quite good)





			
				joensuu said:
			
		

> France:
> 20 sur 20 - Excellent
> 18 sur 20 - très bien
> 16 sur 20 - bien
> 14 sur 20 - assez bien
> 12 sur 20 - passable
> <10 sur 20 - dessous de la moyenne (?)
> 8 sur 20 - insuffisant (?)


There is a difference here. Well it depends whether you are talking generally or if you consider the "Bac" (A-level).
Generally joensuu might be right, event if I consider him/her being a little bit severe   
As for the bac, Aupick is right (and 10/20 is "passable")


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## Phryne

elroy said:
			
		

> This is the system my university (Colgate University) uses:
> 
> * 4.33 - A+
> 4.00 - A*
> 3.67 - A-
> 3.33 - B+
> 3.00 - B
> ......


Hi Elroy!

In my University (American) if you get an A+ you still get a 4.00 GPA.    Some teachers give you an A+ and some don't even bother. What's the difference anyway? 


			
				alc112 said:
			
		

> 10: Sobresaliente
> 9: Distingudo
> 8 y 7: Muy Bueno
> 6: bueno
> 5 y 4: Regular
> 3, 2 y 1: Insuficiente


I agree with this. Although when I went to college in Argentina a 4 (was and still) is a passing grade. You need over 60% of your test/class and sometimes even 70% just to get a 4. Weird, huh... 

In my highschool, though, I had to pass with a 6, or 60%. And the system was something like this:
 10: Sobresaliente/outstanding ==>100%
  9: Distinguido/excellent ==>90%
  8: Muy Bueno/very good ==>80%
7: bueno/good==>70%
  6: regular/sufficient==>60%
  5 y 4: insuficiente/insufficient==>50,40%
  3, 2 y 1: aplazado/you did horribly, worse than bad 

saludos


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## Aupick

Sev said:
			
		

> There is a difference here. Well it depends whether you are talking generally or if you consider the "Bac" (A-level).
> Generally joensuu might be right, event if I consider him/her being a little bit severe
> As for the bac, Aupick is right (and 10/20 is "passable")


Yeah, I had the bac in mind, as expressed here.


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## alc112

Phryne said:
			
		

> I agree with this. Although when I went to college in Argentina a 4 (was and still) is a passing grade. You need over 60% of your test/class and sometimes even 70% just to get a 4. Weird, huh...
> saludos


I copied from my Report  I have in front of me.
four 10s, two 9s, thrre 8s, one 7 and one 6. 
Saludos


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## joensuu

Sev said:
			
		

> There is a difference here. Well it depends whether you are talking generally or if you consider the "Bac" (A-level).
> Generally joensuu might be right, event if I consider him/her being a little bit severe
> As for the bac, Aupick is right (and 10/20 is "passable")



Not severe  it's the main comments we could have in high school and after.. But true for the BAC ...forgot it! It's not so far away but put away from my minds bad experiences


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## Silvia B

And now the italian one!!

0-4 gravemente insufficiente

Note: sometimes it happens that someone get a 1-2-3 or even a 0 (one of my schoolmate got a 0+ once!  hahah!) Depends on teacher's point of view.
Many teachers never go under 4, which is anyway, really bad.

5 insufficiente

6 sufficiente 

7 discreto

8 buono

9 distinto

10 ottimo

Anyway, the "number marks" are used in high school.
Inferior grade of school use just "words" (insufficiente-suff-buono etc)

In exams (high school exams) the marks are from 60 to 100. If you get 60 points you pass your exams. To reach the score you have to sum all the scores you had in the exams (3 written - 1 oral)

At university the marks go from 18 to 30.
(18 is sufficient and 30 is excellent)

Of course if you get a mark under 60 (in high school exams) or 18 (in university's exams) you fail =(

Bye!


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## Whodunit

elroy said:
			
		

> The changed the F to U because they felt "unsatisfactory" sounded more pleasant than "failing."  Considerate, isn't it?



Same here! The worst grade is called "ungenügend" (not eough), but if someone gets a 6 (failing), it's just bad. I also often see teacher use 6+ (a little bit better than failed  ). The most astounding grade I've ever seen was given by a teacher in elementary school: 6- (worse than failed).   

Great thread, by the way.


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## Silvia B

Oh! I have to add:

We can also receive marks as 7.1/2, 6+, 8- etc.

Is it the same in other countries?

Bye!


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## Encolpius

in Hungary

5 - jeles  [the best]
4 - jó
3 - közepes
2 - elégséges
1 - elégtelen    [the worst]


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## emma42

When did we start having 1st* in British Universities?  It didn't happen in my day (shakes walking stick).


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## timpeac

emma42 said:


> When did we start having 1st* in British Universities? It didn't happen in my day (shakes walking stick).


"A starred first" was certainly around in my day - unless it was specific to my univesity.

Edit - oh well you would already have known that I had that grading system since I see I mention it above.


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## emma42

Yes, it was to your post I was referring, Tim, me old mucker.*


*BE slang = "my old friend".


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## Blehh.

Man, sign me up for European schooling. The grading system in the US is ridiculously strict! (The schooling system itself needs serious work.)

This is for my school: (They don't use +/- signs, I don't know why. =/ )
A: 90-100
B: 80-89
C: 75-79
D: 70-74
F: 69 or below

70 is passing.


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## Lemminkäinen

*The Norwegian grading systems:*

Elementary school (6-12 years old):

No grades. Teachers sometimes give feedback with comments such as "good", "very good", "excellent", but the choice of comments varies from teacher to teacher. 

_Ungdomsskolen_ (13-15 years old) and _videregående skole_ (16-18 years old):

*6* - More than average. Independence and distinguishment. 
*5* - More than average. A little less independence than a 6.
*4* - Average or a little more than average. 
*3* - A little below average.
*2* - Below average. Many faults, and a hesitant approach to the subject.
*1* - Below average. Very weak and insufficient (or none) _måloppnåelse_ ("reach of goals" - there are specific goals for each subject that students should reach).

It's possible with +'s and -'s on tests and papers (but not on the final grades), and it's also possible to get a "sliding grade", e.g. 4/3.
The order is: 3, 3+, 3/4, 4/3, 4-, 4 &c.
This is more widely used at _ungdomsskolen_, but the usage depends on the school and the teacher.

In addition, there are given characters in _orden_ ("order", depends on whether a student forgets books, doing his homework &c.) and _atferd_ ("behaviour", depends on the student's behaviour in and outside class).

These characters are based on the old grading system (before 1999):

*G* (god) - good; regular order and behaviour
*Ng* (nokså god) - somewhat good; clear breaches on regular order and behavious)
*Lg* (lite god) - little good; in extraordinary cases with large deviations of regular order and behaviour

*Universities:*

*A* - fremragende (excellent)
*B* - meget god (very good)
*C* - god (good)
*D* - brukbar (satisfactory)
*E* -tilstrekkelig (sufficient)
*F* - ikke bestått (fail)


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## Maja

In Serbia -> 
Primary and Secundary school:

1 - NEDOVOLJAN (failing)
 2 - DOVOLJAN (acceptable)
  3 - DOBAR (good)
 4 - VRLO DOBAR (very good)
5 - ODLIČAN (excellent)

University:

5 - failing
6 - passing grade
7 - 
8 - 
9 - 
10 - excellent


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## tvdxer

The thread about parents protesting grades or whatsuch has inspired me to ask all of you a question I, being a university student, consider very interesting:

What is the grading system like in your country's schools?

In the U.S., most high schools and universities primarily use the A-F system.  Students are assigned one of the letter grades based on what percentage of assignment and test points they have received (it is very common to give different weights to assignments, tests, quizzes, etc., however).  In my experience the most typical scale is this:

A, A-: 90 - 100%
B, B+, B-: 80 - 89%
C, C+, C-: 70 - 79%
D, D+, D-: 60 - 69%
F: <60%

Where a grade becomes a + or - depends heavily on the teacher.  In some classes, a B might become a B+ at 86.0%, while in others you might need 88.0% to get a B+.

There is no E.  It seems more convenient to automatically go to "F", for "failure".  You do not pass a class if you receive an F (generally for the semester).  

At one point in time, a "C" meant "average", but today, due to a phenomenon known as "grade inflation", "C"'s are undesirable for most students.  B+'s, B's, and B-'s are most often the average today .

A grade point average, one of the main benchmarks of academic achievement in high school (the other being standardized tests, such as the ACT and SAT) and college, is computed as follows (at least in my personal experience):

A: 4.0
A-: 3.7
B+: 3.3
B: 3.0
B-: 2.7
C+: 2.3 
C: 2.0
C-: 1.7
D+: 1.3
D: 1.0
D-: 0.7
F: 0.0

Grades in each class are multiplied by the number of credits the class is worth, and divided by the total number of credits earned.  For example:

Calculus : B- : 2.7 : 4 credits
Microbiology : C+ : 2.3 : 4 credits
Spanish : A : 4.0 : 4 credits
Organ Recital : A : 4.0 : 2 credits
Physical Conditioning : C : 2.0 : 2 credits

Total 16 credits

[(2.7 * 4) + (2.3 * 4) + (4.0 * 4) + (4.0 * 2) + (2.0 * 2)] / 16 = 3.0, "B" average

Some classes can be taken on a simple "pass / fail" basis.  I've never taken such a class, and am not sure about the following, but I think the credits earned by that class will be added to the student's cumulative number of credits, but it will not be computed into the GPA.

How does your country's system work?  (No, I don't expect anybody to give as detailed as an explanation as above)


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## tvdxer

Wow, I should have searched!

Sorry about that!

But let's bring this topic back...


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## Etcetera

The Russian system (used noth at schools and universities) is as follows:
5 = отлично = excellent
4 = хорошо = good
3 = удовлетворительно = satisfactory
2 = плохо = poor
*1 = очень плохо = very poor. 
The last mark isn't used at universities at all, and is very seldom used at schools.


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## GEmatt

In Switzerland, it's the opposite of Germany:

6 - Very good
5 - Good
4 - Satisfactory
3 - Unsatisfactory
2 - Poor
1 - Very poor

Half-grades are in use as well ("4-5" or "4.5"), and in some places, smaller increments are used, such as "4-", which is not 4 "minus", but between a 4 and a 4-5.

My high school was similar, but stuck a "7" at the top of the chart, for "Excellent".


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## roxcyn

elroy said:


> Nope.  Not in the US.



Some schools use "E" for F and it looks like some schools use "U" also.  I would like to comment on schools in USA.  The basic grading system is as follows:

90-100 A
80-89 B
70-79 C
60-69 D
59 or below F

As you have seem from the various posts *many* schools manipulate those basic numbers, some of the numbers higher.  Since schools in USA vary from state the state and school district to school district, each school district sets the grade system.  

One school system in my city gives students holistic scores for writing and speaking (for another language):

8--9: Exceeds proficiency
6--7: Meets Proficiency 
5--6: Working towards Proficiency
3--4 Need for intervention
2 and below No acceptable

The holistic scores are converted into numbers, for example most writings and speakings are worth 25 points.  So a score of 9 would be 25, 8--9 would be 24.  The students need to have at least an 80% in reading, writing, listening and speaking at the end of the class to move onto the next level.  If they do not have those levels they must take summer school or may repeat the class so that they can become proficient---otherwise they do not get course credit for the class and will not more on in the language.


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## roxcyn

Phryne said:


> Hi Elroy!
> 
> In my University (American) if you get an A+ you still get a 4.00 GPA.    Some teachers give you an A+ and some don't even bother. What's the difference anyway?
> I agree with this. Although when I went to college in Argentina a 4 (was and still) is a passing grade. You need over 60% of your test/class and sometimes even 70% just to get a 4. Weird, huh...



Refering to my last post I would say the same goes for universities.  Each university in the States sets what their grade point system will be.  The "standard" system is:

A 4.0
B 3.0
C 2.0
D 1.0
F (E or U): 0.0

Many schools have the pluses and minuses: A+, A-, B+, etc.

The difference between an A and A+, A+ would be that you got 100% or more (especially if there was extra credit offered in the class).  The universities I have atteneded never gave A+ at all.  As I said the grade system depends on the university.


----------



## Reina140

My school was very strict.

A=100-93
B=92-85
C=84-77
D=76-70
F=69 and lower

We didn't really apply the + & -'s when grading but the plus is the highest number in each category and the minus is the lowest.  For ejemplo:

100=A+
93=A-

92=B+
85=B-

84=C+
77=C-

76=D+
70=D-


----------



## curly

For Irish secondary schools we have no comments on whether a particular grade is good or not, except that under 40% is a fail.

Junior Cycle                

A = 85%-100%
B = 70%-84%
C = 55%-69%
D = 40%-54%

E = 25-39%
F = 10-25%
NG = under 10% 

The senior cycle just splits those grades into A1s A2s etc.

Any pass grade at higher level is an honour and an A at Ordinary is an honour.

We get an automatic 10% if we take our test in Irish (meaning we can get 100% quite easily if we speak Irish) are there any other countries that give a bonus percentage like this?


----------



## Thomsen

A facet of this topic would be what expectations are for good grades. In America students often acheive and are gladly given by teachers A+ for good work. In fact if a teacher finds every student excellent he could award them all A+. This has almost never happened I imagine, but it is not impossible. I was told by my French teacher years ago that no French student receives a 20. A 20 is perfect and no student is perfect. 

Is that still true? Is it true in other systems?


----------



## Reina140

curly said:


> For Irish secondary schools we have no comments on whether a particular grade is good or not, except that under 40% is a fail.
> We get an automatic 10% if we take our test in Irish (meaning we can get 100% quite easily if we speak Irish) are there any other countries that give a bonus percentage like this?


 
Wow, you only have to be above a 40% to pass, my God, that's 29 points lower than in my school. And you get extra credit just for speaking the language you've known since birth? Well, definitely not in my school, we didn't have any bonuses like that. The only time we'd usually have any bonus, would be an optional essay at the end of a test usually only worth about 5 points.


----------



## maxiogee

Reina140 said:


> And you get extra credit just for speaking the language you've known since birth?



Hah, would it were so!
The Irish-language-speaking population of Ireland is tiny. Less than 5% would be able to conduct a half-decent conversation on a random topic of current affairs.
We are an English-speaking nation.


----------



## Reina140

maxiogee said:


> Hah, would it were so!
> The Irish-language-speaking population of Ireland is tiny. Less than 5% would be able to conduct a half-decent conversation on a random topic of current affairs.
> We are an English-speaking nation.


 
Oh, well I was unaware that not many knew the language.  I knew that Irish people spoke English, but I thought that they also knew Irish.  Okay, well that makes much more sense then.


----------



## curly

I'd also point out that a higher minimum pass percentage doesn't really mean anything, tests are supposed to be designed so that the majority of students get the "average" mark aren't they?


----------



## Reina140

curly said:


> I'd also point out that a higher minimum pass percentage doesn't really mean anything, tests are supposed to be designed so that the majority of students get the "average" mark aren't they?


 
In our different grading systems, here's the difference.

Here's the results of a 20 question test:

Ireland  14/20=70%==B

My school  14/20=70%==D- (one point above failing)


----------



## maxiogee

curly said:


> I'd also point out that a higher minimum pass percentage doesn't really mean anything, tests are supposed to be designed so that the majority of students get the "average" mark aren't they?



You're letting your grasp of maths get the better of your thinking, curly.

The majority will get the average by definition. The average is what you get when you divide the total of the grades achieved by the numbers achieving them.


----------



## Thomsen

Reina140 said:


> My school was very strict.
> 
> A=100-93
> B=92-85
> C=84-77
> D=76-70
> F=69 and lower


 
Interesting... Public or private, can I ask?  My school was straight up 100-90 A 89-80 B 79-70 C 69-60 D 59- F...


----------



## Reina140

Thomsen said:


> Interesting... Public or private, can I ask? My school was straight up 100-90 A 89-80 B 79-70 C 69-60 D 59- F...


 
I went to a public school.  I live in Pennsylvania and a lot of schools surrounding the area were also very strict.  The more inner city schools were more lax.


----------



## Thomsen

Reina140 said:


> I went to a public school. I live in Pennsylvania and a lot of schools surrounding the area were also very strict. The more inner city schools were more lax.


 
Cool.  Well I went to public school in NJ and I guess we didn't pick up on the trend. 

I guess it should be noted that such things are usually the responbility of local school disctricts which follow generally similiar but not identical formats.


----------



## curly

maxiogee said:


> You're letting your grasp of maths get the better of your thinking, curly.
> 
> The majority will get the average by definition. The average is what you get when you divide the total of the grades achieved by the numbers achieving them.


 
True, but when I put the word average in quotation marks I mean whatever grade is accepted as average, the tests here will be designed so that most people get a C, around 55%- 69%, it's usally accepted that a test is too hard or too easy if the majority of scores fall below or above the preset average mark. I just completed a test where the preset average mark was 95%, It wasn't strict at all because the test was an easy one that most people aced. (it wasn't of course a state exam, just a little class exam).

I'm just saying that comparing percentages doesn't really mean anything between different tests.


----------



## Venezuelan_sweetie

Oh boy, _*now*_ I'm feeling old...

In my days, the grading system was like this:
20: Excelente ("excellent", and the teacher -even University prof.-, would add "!!")
19-18: Sobresaliente (outstanding)
17: Distinguido (beyond the average)
16: Muy bien (very good)
15: Bien (good)
14-10: Regular (fair)
09-05: Insuficiente (insufficient)
04-01: Aplazado (failing)

People would refer to their marks saying "I got a 15", "and I got a 12", "Really? I flunked!!". I (with my anti-maths attitude, just to poke on other people's eyes) would say: "I got 6", which would be followed by a deadly silence.  "How come? -would say a corageous one-, you've always been such a good student!"  And I'd answer: "That's right, I got 6 _decent marks_: two distinguido's, one 'sobresaliente', two 'muy bien' and one 'excelente' ". They would always ask: "You got *what*?!" 

Especially at High School, virtually nobody would get a 17 mark, especially at Physics, Maths or Chemistry (we used to call them "las tres Marías", the three ones that most people had trouble with). Oh, and languages were also troublesome. 

In Venezuela, school programs date back to the Ice Ages, I'm sure. And most teachers sucked all the way! (Maybe that's why down here, I'm a _language instructor_, not a teacher!  ) Needless to say, Venezuelan school system is terrible and does not work at all. 

At University, the system would vary, depending on the institution. Some of them use percentages, some others a 1-10 scale (which in the end is just the same), and a minority still uses a 0-20 scale. Mine, used the latter.

Recently (4 or 5 years ago, I think) the grading system was modified to suit the ABCDF system. I'm not sure how it works, but if I find out, I'll let you guys know


----------



## Lavinia.dNP

In Italy we have 4 different scorings : one for elementary, college and high school which is on 10, one for the high school diplome only which is on 60, one for the university exams which is on 30, and the last one, for the university diplome only, which is on 110

at school :
10 e lode = means better than the teacher himself : impossible to get
10/10 = means more than perfect, you never get it
9/10 = means perfect, only the "geekest" geeks get it
8/10 = means outstanding; human beings can achieve it if they study very hard
7/10 = means very good, you did more than just the minimum to pass
6/10 = means average, minimum pass mark
5/10 = means that you fail, but if you study a little bit more, next time you can pass
4/10 = means that you are way below pass mark, and that you need to work very hard if you want to pass
3/10 = means that you are a complete ignorant, and you don't make any effort to even try and pass
0 to 2 = is given to those who refuse to answer or behave very badly

for the high school diplome :

60/60 = you'll probably get the Nobel prize later on
54/60 = perfect
48/60 = great
42/60 = good
36/60 = minimum pass mark
below 36 = you fail

For university :

30 e lode = you are better than the teacher himself
30/30 = perfect
27/30 = outstanding
24/30 = very good
21/30 = good
18/30 = minimum pass mark
below 18 =  you fail

note that in Italian universities you can refuse a score and try the exam again in the next exam session in order to have a better average, which will give you a better starting point for the final graduation exam.

For the final graduation exam :

The final exam score depends mostly on the average of all the exams you did in the 5 years of university : the maximum you can add to the average if you do an outstanding final exam is 7 points.
This exam consists in the presentation of a graduation thesis you worked on during the last year, supervised by your supervising professor.
During this exam, you sit in front of a board of professors who have read your thesis in the previous days and ask you questions about it.

110 e lode = you are better than the professor himself
110/110 = you are a genius
99/110 = outstanding
88/110 = very good
77/110 = good
66/110 = minimum pass mark
below 66 = impossible since you need to have passed all your exams and the average of all your exams is the base to which your graduation exam can only add points

I graduated in an interpreting school with the score of 110 e lode, but I'm not normal, I'm affected by severe "interpretitis"


----------



## DrWatson

*Finland:

*There are currently (at least) three systems in use in Finland: one for comprehensive school and secondary education, one for matriculation examinations and one for universities.

The best-known grade system is the one used in comprehensive schools and facilities of secondary education. The grades are:

10: *erinomainen* (=excellent)
9: *kiitettävä* (=very good, lit. praiseworthy)
8: *hyvä* (=good)
7: *tyydyttävä* (=satisfactory)
6: *kohtalainen* (=fair)
5: *välttävä* (=passable)
4: *heikko* or *hylätty* (=weak or failed)

The second one is used in matriculation examination results. The examinations are held in the end of upper secondary school (or gymnasium, in Finnish: *lukio*). In principle, taking the matriculation exam is not mandatory, and one can pass gymnasium without it. In practice, however, without taking it one may have a hard time applying for further educational facilities, such as universities. The grades used in the exam evaluation:

L: *Laudatur* (the best)
E: *Eximia cum laude approbatur*
M: *Magna cum laude approbatur*
C: *Cum laude approbatur*
B: *Lubenter approbatur*
A: *Approbatur*
I: *Improbatur* (fail)
(I don't remember the translations, since the grade names are in Latin)

I have little knowledge of the system in university, but the grades are as follows:

5 (the best)
4
3
2
1 (the worst)


----------



## Lugubert

Would that I knew all the current Swedish systems.

I think there's no grading until grade 7 or 8 to 9. Nowadays, I think they are at No pass, Pass, Good pass, and Very good pass. (My translations.) I just have to tell you that one of my nieces scored MVG (Very good) in all subjects, from French through Maths to Phys Ed.

In my days, there were coefficients applied when applying for university. For example, for U of Tech, Maths was multiplied by 4, and languages by 0.5 or 0.25. Religion and subjects like music were almost ignored, if I remember correctly.

When I was at the U of Technology, we had passing grades 3, 4 and 5. Theoretically, there were 6's and 7's if you took additional courses.

University used translations of the Latin system, like Approbatur, Non sine laude approbatur (Pass, Pass not without praise) etc. They were translated into Swedish as "Ett betyg" (one (degree of ) report) etc. You got a 1 for one successful semester (6 months), 1.5 "Etta med spets" (A 'one' with an edge?) etc. Nowadays, it's 20 Swedish credit points per passing semester, possibly with a VG (the superiour grade, like 'well done', but not with an additional numeral value), corspomnding to 30 EU credits, I think.

We're just too blunt compared to the system in India where it seems that almost decimals count on the high school scale from 0 to 100 when calculating the 'cut-off point' for university entrance. Info on India welcomed!


----------



## Algue

Hello!

In Russia we have the following system:

5 "otlichno" (excellent)
4 "horosho" (good)
3 "udovletvoritelno" (satisfactory)
2 "neudovletvoritelno" (unsatisfactory)

1 exists, but is used only to mark an absence of a homework or a bad behaviour (a teacher can put 2 either)

Besides, some years ago there was a tendency to put also halves. For example, 4.5 or 3.5. But I'm not sure it was around all Russia and it wasn't very official (not for the exams).


----------



## Behane

emma42 said:


> When did we start having 1st* in British Universities? It didn't happen in my day (shakes walking stick).


 

I've never heard of a 1st* at British unis either (I graduated 2005) but surley the term '1st with honours' for the exceptional plus 80% student has existed for a while?

I have only ever met one person who managed this feat, and he really, really is exceptional in his field.

We also have nicknames for our university grades:

1st - a Damian (Hirst??)
2:1 - can't remember
2:2 - A Desmond (Tutu)
3rd - a Douglas/Thora (Hurd)


----------



## frenchtranslater

I have learned in a Belgian public school and the grading system was:

TBM - Très Bien Maitrisé (very well mastered) - excellent
BM - Bien Maitrisé (well mastered) - above avergae
M - Maitrisé (mastered) - average
PAM - Pas Assez Maitrisé (not well mastered) - below average
NM - Non Maitrisé - fail


----------



## mcibor

In Poland
Previously

5 - bdb - bardzo dobrze = very good
4 - db - dobrze = good
3 - dost - dostatecznie = enough
2 - nsdt - niedostateczny = not enough

now up to high school we use also

6 - cel - celująco = excelent
2 - mier - mierny = indifferent

we use also + - and =, eg 2=, so we have:
6, 5+, 5, 5-, 4+, 4, 4-, 3+, 3, 3-, 2+, 2, 2-, 2=, 1

in universities the are no +-, but are used halves. Also system is from 2 to 5:
5; 4,5; 4; 3,5; 3; 2 (in Polish integer separator is a comma)

Michał


----------



## caballoschica

My grading scales (%):
High school (Reina, mine was very similar to yours, my high school was public, by the way):
A  100-96
A- 95-92
B+ 89-91
B   86-88
B- 83-85
C+ 80-82
C   77-79
C-  74-76
D+ 71-73
D   68-70
D 65-67
F <65

College A:
A 90+
B 80+
C 70+
D 60+
F <60

Kenyon College
97-100 A+
93-96 A
90-92 A-
.
.
.

The most lenient was 88-100 A and <50%F  in a chemistry class at college A


----------



## kurumin

in Brasil

0 the worst [a failure]
10 the best [absolute best]


----------



## gabrigabri

Whodunit said:


> Germany:
> 1 - sehr gut (very good)
> 2 - gut (good)
> 3 - befriedigend (satisfactory)
> 4 - ausreichend (enough)
> 5 - mangelhaft (poor)
> 6 - ungenügend (not enough)




Austria:

1 - sehr gut (very good)
2 - gut (good)
3 - befriedigend (satisfactory)
4 - genügend (sufficient)
5 - nicht genügend (not enough)


----------



## loladamore

Very few UK universities award First Class degrees *with distinction*. Cambridge is one, which is probably where timpeac studied, as he referred to it as a *Starred First*. Had he gone to another university he might have called it a *Congratulatory First*. This kind of award is a rare ocurrence, reserved only for the undeniably brilliant.

Around 10% of students nationally are awarded a First Class Honours degree; however, some departments in certain universities are notorious for only awarding such a degree every once in a blue moon, whereas they are more easily attained in others.


----------



## Musical Chairs

I'm surprised nobody has said anything about how grades are curved, especially in college. So, you could get a 70% but if the class average was a 40%, you could have an A because you did very well compared to everyone else (typically the case in hard courses like organic chemistry). Many of my teachers have bell curve distributions or policies that go, "the top 20% of the class gets A's, 35% B's, etc." Many students study to "beat the curve." I think this is better than in HS, where there was just a scale that went 94-100 is an A, 90-93 is a B+, etc. because some teachers are ridiculously easy/hard. It only means anything when you're compared to everyone else.

Some departments give out A+'s at my school but it's still worth a 4.0 like an A. However, it still gets recorded on your transcript as "A+." It's much, much harder to get a 4.0 in college than in HS. In my opinion, a 4.0 in HS doesn't mean too much because the teachers are so much more lenient and many, many students get that or higher especially with the extra 0.5 awarded for AP courses.


----------



## loladamore

Musical Chairs said:


> I'm surprised nobody has said anything about how grades are curved, especially in college.


 
I was just thinking that, Musical Chairs. Back when we did 'O' levels in the UK (at age 15-16), grades were curved. Thus, you could get an A with 70% one year, whereas if you sat the exam the following year, 70% might only get you a C. Some years there was barely a 2% difference between an A and a C, or so our maths teacher told us. It depended on how difficult the exam was and who you were up against.
The system has since changed.

I don't think the curve applies to degree-level marking in the UK: student performance varies from year to year and the average grade awarded fluctuates.


----------



## timpeac

loladamore said:


> Very few UK universities award First Class degrees *with distinction*. Cambridge is one, which is probably where timpeac studied, as he referred to it as a *Starred First*.


I had no idea I was that transparent! Yes, well done Sherlock!


----------



## Musical Chairs

Interesting, though a 2% difference between an A and a C is pretty harsh! Why would they have such a narrow cutoff?


----------



## lizzeymac

Musical Chairs said:


> Interesting, though a 2% difference between an A and a C is pretty harsh! Why would they have such a narrow cutoff?



Curving grades in high schools (secondary schools) is a relatively recent policy here in New York City - perhaps 25 years?   If you have the bad fortune to be assigned to the one or two mediocre teachers in your school it can ruin your grade point average.  Curving grades seems a necessary safety net for the students.  
Some of us had to make it though Organic Chem and Qualitative Analysis on straight grades.


----------



## Musical Chairs

lizzeymac said:


> Curving grades in high schools (secondary schools) is a relatively recent policy here in New York City - perhaps 25 years?   If you have the bad fortune to be assigned to the one or two mediocre teachers in your school it can ruin your grade point average.  Curving grades seems a necessary safety net for the students.
> Some of us had to make it though Organic Chem and Qualitative Analysis on straight grades.



If people had to make it through Organic Chem on straight grades, everyone would fail. An A is around an 80%, I think. Edit: The class average is around a 40%.


----------



## CrazyArcher

Well, one more remark on grades in Israel: they go from 0 to 100, but there are flexibilities.
At schools the passing grade is 55, and in most universities and colleges it's 60, with an exception of Technion, where the passing grade is 56 but the exams are damn hard. 
Sometimes at schools teachers add 'bonus' tasks to the tests, so if the student does all the test correctly, including the bonus task, he can get a grade higher thatan 100.
In universities there's sometimes a similar practice. There are rarely bonus questions, but sometimes the professors make all the parts of the exam sum to a grade higher than 100. In this case, however, the highest possible grade is still 100.


----------



## -Epic-

Israel universitys and high school finals also use the bell graph grading. Tho it rarely changes anything.

the highest change I had was 4 (out of 100) points :-\


----------



## loladamore

Musical Chairs said:


> Interesting, though a 2% difference between an A and a C is pretty harsh! Why would they have such a narrow cutoff?


As you yourself pointed out:


Musical Chairs said:


> Many of my teachers have bell curve distributions or policies that go, "the top 20% of the class gets A's, 35% B's, etc."


Say, for example, you need 75% for an A, and then 35% of the students sitting the exam score between 73.5% and 74.9%, a C would be set at 73% that year.
This is one of the reasons the system was changed, I gather. A new *A* *grade was introduced under the current *GCSE* sytem, as too many students were getting As.

I've just realised I didn't mention the Mexican system, and I don't think anyone else has either. Here we give:

10 - Excellent
9 - Very good
8 - Good
7 - Satisfactory
6 - PASS
5 - FAIL

It is loosely based on a percentage, eg, 76-85% = 8, but a final grade is not usually based on a single exam. You need an overall average of at least 8 to be accepted in a postgraduate degree.

Unlike the old 'O' levels, you might have a class full of 9s and 10s one year, and everyone might get 7s or fail the next. It's performance based and not comparative.


----------



## sureño

According to what I’ve seen, I have the impression that many of us think that all schools use similar grading systems. I think that assumption might be a mistake, and some of us would be surprised to know the reality. 

Consequently the question is: What grading system is used in your country? 
Below is a brief description of our school grading system in Argentina:

Elementary schools only grade with words. From best to worst, the grading is as follows:
“Excelente- Muy bueno- Suficiente bueno- Suficiente regular- Insuficiente” 

In secondary schools and universities, the scale is numerical, from 10 to 0 (10 being excellent and zero being the opposite of course). 

The average required to pass each subject is 6. Subjects with an average of 4 or higher but less than 6, require an additional test in December (Remember that the school period here runs from March to December). 

Students with subjects that average less than 4 (a very bad grade) are required to study the subject longer, therefore the additional test will be postponed until the following March.


----------



## sokol

Austria:
We have five grades over the whole schooling system which might be expressed both in numbers or in words:
1 sehr gut = very good - muy bien
2 gut = good - bien
3 befriedigend = satisfactory - satisfactorio
4 genügend = enough - suficiente
5 nicht genügend = not enough - no suficiente

If you get a 5 you will have to make an additional test before the next year begins, and if you fail you've got to repeat the class; and I think you don't even get to test for the next class if you've got three or more 5's.

However in primary school very few pupils get marks worse than 2 - and further it is now possible in some cases to proceed to next class even with a 5 (I think; regulations were changed since I was a child so I don't know exactly what they're like nowadays): for smaller children teachers give bad marks (below 3) usually only for children who do not show any initiative to learn. This changes of course from secondary school onwards.

Further there are a very few schools where the classical grades system is replaced by a verbal valuation, but this is not optional and not open to all schools - these schools are so-called "Schulversuche" where new concepts of teaching are tried out (some of those already exist for quite some time) while the great majority of Austrian schools has to use the official grades system.

The grades system of Germany*) is different of the ones of Austria: in Germany there are marks from 1 to 6 (with 6 being an approximate equivalent of Austria's 5).
(And that's about all I know about grades in Germany.)
*) Bavaria at least; in Germany schooling is ruled by the _Bundesländer_, not by the nation, other _Bundesländer _might have other rules and even other grades for what I know.


----------



## dihydrogen monoxide

In Slovenia the grades in schools are like this. In my time it was like this.
From 1st-8th grade (7-15 years old)

1- nezadostno (unsatisfactory)
2- zadostno (satisfactory)
3- dobro (good)
4- prav dobro (very good)
5- odlično (excellent)

In high school it is the same. However, physical education and arts were graded in this way.

mu- manj uspešno (unsuccessfull)
u- uspešno (successfull)
zu-zelo uspešno (very successfull)

This was in high schools as well untill the minister of Education changed this and turned mu/u/zu to 1-5.
Pupils from 7-10 years old don't get grades but just satisfactory/unsatisfactory and so on...
It's like a Norwegian system, we borrowed the 9 years of schooling, some time ago there were only 8 years of schooling until you went to high school.
As for universities it goes like this
5-failing
6
7
8
9
10-excellent
We just call grades in universities by numbers and not by names. 
In high school if you had three 1s (unsatisfactory grade), you would have to make another attempt at making the exams in the summer. I've read somewhere that our current minister of Education decided that you could pass the grade with an unsatisfactory grade (1), but it is up to teachers to decide.

In Bosnia:
Schools (7-15 year old) just like in Norway. 
The reason why we have Norway system now, it's because ministers say that we're in European union and we must do as European Union does. But that's off-topic.


----------



## bb008

Hola
 
En Venezuela el sistema de evaluación ha cambiado muchísimo, anteriormente cuando yo estudiaba en primaria y secundaria era de esta manera:
 
1-10: Insuficiente
10-14 Suficiente
15-17 Distinguido
18-20 Excelente
 
"Y si tus notas no se encontraban entre 10 y 20 no pasabas de grado".
 
Y en la universidad la evaluación era del 1-9, nueve como máxima nota "excelente" y promedio mínimo para pasar la materia era de 6.
 
Luego cambio la evaluación universitaria y la colocaron del 1-20, luego volvieron a cambiarla a porcentajes que cubría un 100% de los cuales un 70% era acumulativa: trabajos, exposiciones, entre otras y el 30% exámenes y asistencia, esto también lo comenzaron aplicar en las escuelas.
 
Después del 98 vino _"lo peor que nos ha podido pasar"_ y comenzaron cambios en el sistema escolar sobre todo la primaria y secundaria, ahora te clasifican en "cubrió las expectativas" - "no cubrió las expectativas" entre otras que quitan y ponen.
 
"Y aunque estés muy mal preparado" te pasan de grado, esta prohibido repetir (esto es en primaria y secundaria) a menos que sea una orden bajo cuerda por parte del padre o representante (acuerdo con el colegio), para que te coloquen en el mismo grado reconociendo tus fallas, pero esto es muy difícil.
 
Saludos.-


----------



## chango descalzo

dihydrogen monoxide said:


> In high school if you had three 1s (unsatisfactory grade), you would have to make another attempt at making the exams in the summer.


 
Here in Argentina, the ‘escuelas secundarias’ (high schools) have from 12 to 15 subjects each year (depending of the school). For getting promotion the pupils have to approve all of them, of course. However, in case they fail in two subjects, still will be promoted in conditional way. But if a pupil fails in 3 subjects, then he/she needs repeat not just these subjects but the whole year.
These pupils suffer a kind of apartheid, since the schools have the admission right, and they often adduce there are not vacancy for these “repitientes”. 
I’d like to know if something similar happens in other countries too. 

P.S. I hope my English looked at least understandable, since I’m a poor and ignorant barefoot kid


----------



## dihydrogen monoxide

chango descalzo said:


> Here in Argentina, the ‘escuelas secundarias’ (high schools) have from 12 to 15 subjects each year (depending of the school). For getting promotion the pupils have to approve all of them, of course. However, in case they fail in two subjects, still will be promoted in conditional way. But if a pupil fails in 3 subjects, then he/she needs repeat not just these subjects but the whole year.
> These pupils suffer a kind of apartheid, since the schools have the admission right, and they often adduce there are not vacancy for these “repitientes”.
> I’d like to know if something similar happens in other countries too.
> 
> P.S. I hope my English looked at least understandable, since I’m a poor and ignorant barefoot kid


 
Your English is understandable. From what I understand Argentina is strict concerning school system. In Slovenia if one fails 4 subjects then he repeats the year.


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## chango descalzo

dihydrogen monoxide said:


> From what I understand Argentina is strict concerning school system. In Slovenia if one fails 4 subjects then he repeats the year.


 
Thank you Monoxide.
I'm still waiting for answers about how are treated those who have to repeat a year in your country


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## airelibre

**** New Question (thread merged by moderator) ****

Incidentally, how does the grade system work in Israel? Ie, in English speaking countries it goes from A* through the letters. Since Hebrew uses a different writing system, I doubt it is the same.


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## ystab

Basically, the grade is a score out of a hundred. In the past it used to be out of ten. Some use, in addition or instead, verbal equivalents. For example, in high school diplomas every range has an equivalent: מצוין, טוב מאוד, טוב, מספיק, בלתי מספיק and so on. Some teachers use other marks: ,מעולה, נאה etc., and also, you can see some hybrids like טוב+ or טוב מאוד-. I've also seen teachers using א-ד as equivalents for the A-F grading.


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## airelibre

That's interesting, thanks. How about for degreees? In some countries, like the UK there is 1st, 2.1 2.2 3rd and simple pass with no honours, but they have a different system in the US. How about in Israel?


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## ystab

For degrees, as far as I know, there are three levels: no honors mentioned, בהצטיינות and בהצטיינות יתרה. Don't ask me by what grade each is determined. I believe it varies from one university to another, even from one faculty to another within a university, and from one year to the next.


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## airelibre

Ok, many thanks.


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## RM1(SS)

JLanguage said:


> A: Excellent
> B - B+: Good
> B-: Decent
> C: Acceptable
> D: Barely sufficient
> F: Failing





Mita said:


> Don't you have "E"??





elroy said:


> Nope.  Not in the US.



When I was in grade school in Michigan, in the '60s, grades were ABCDE.  In junior high school I moved to Illinois, where grades were ABCDF.  I always assumed that this was to make it obvious that F meant "fail."


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## ebrahim

Iran
1-20, the bigger the number the best the mark


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## DarkChild

Bulgaria:

6 - otlichen (excellent)
5 - mnogo dobar (very good)
4 - dobar (good)
3 - sreden (average; official English translation is "fair" which makes no sense IMO)
2 - slab (lit. weak, official English "poor")

In communist times there was a grade for bad behavior 

1 - losh (bad)  this could ruin your whole diploma and prospect for the future because it can involve things from cheating to being a bad communist. This is no longer part of the grading system.


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## DarkChild

RM1(SS) said:


> When I was in grade school in Michigan, in the '60s, grades were ABCDE.  In junior high school I moved to Illinois, where grades were ABCDF.  I always assumed that this was to make it obvious that F meant "fail."



Nowadays, C is the minimum passing grade in universities and in NY it's 65.


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## ilocas2

Czech republic (elementary and high schools):

1 - výborný (excellent)
2 - chvalitebný - (something like praisable, this word almost doesn't appear anywhere else than in this context)
3 - dobrý (good)
4 - dostatečný (sufficient)
5 - nedostatečný (insufficient)

grades for behaviour:

from 1 to 3, 3 is the worst

in universities I'm not sure, but grades are not very important there, either you pass an exam or you don't pass an exam


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## airelibre

DarkChild said:


> Bulgaria:
> 
> 6 - otlichen (excellent)
> 5 - mnogo dobar (very good)
> 4 - dobar (good)
> 3 - sreden (average; official English translation is "fair" which makes no sense IMO)
> 2 - slab (lit. weak, official English "poor")
> 
> In communist times there was a grade for bad behavior
> 
> 1 - losh (bad)  this could ruin your whole diploma and prospect for the future because it can involve things from cheating to being a bad communist. This is no longer part of the grading system.


Average usually means fair, so it's not completely senseless, but there is a slight connotation that average is not good but not bad, while fair connotes "good enough", so there is a tiny difference.


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## DarkChild

airelibre said:


> Average usually means fair, so it's not completely senseless, but there is a slight connotation that average is not good but not bad, while fair connotes "good enough", so there is a tiny difference.



I think they should use another word, not "average" since in reality this grade isn't the average and is quite the bad news for parents


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## apmoy70

Greece

Primary School: Grades 1 to 4 => A' (excellent), B' (very good), Γ' (good), Δ' (average); Grades 5 and 6 => 10, 9 (excellent), 8, 7 (very good), 6, 5 (good), 4 (average)
Secondary School: Gymnasium (junior high school), Lyceum (high school) => 20, 19 (excellent), 18, 17 (very good), 16, 15 (good), 14, 13 (fairly good), 12, 11 (average), 10 (barely sufficient), below 10 (failing)
University => 10, 9 (excellent), 8, 7 (very good), 6 (good), 5 (barely sufficient), below 5 (failing)


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## mab0828

In Panama the grading system is different from Universities than Schools, and even for Kinder level.

Universities use 0-100 point grade scaling similar to the United States grading. 71 is required to pass or the same as a C.
A: Excellent
*Scale Grade            Description             Grade*
91.00 - 100.00         Sobresaliente                 A
81.00 - 90.00           Bueno                            B
71.00 - 80.00           Regular                          C
61.00 - 70.00           Minima de Promoción      D (You have to do a Recovery test/exam to get another grade to update the one you got at the subject. It shows a (*) in your record, which means you Recovered the Subject.)
0.00 - 60.00             Fracaso                          F

At schools are used the 0-5 point system. This means, for example, if a student has a 4.5 that is the equivalent of an A- or somewhere around the 95 point range. In order to pass the lowest grade is 3.0. We do not use 0 as a valid grade.

In Kinder, the grades are
LVL-Lo voy a Lograr
LEL - Lo Estoy Logrando
LHL - Lo He Logrado

When it comes to the GPA Scale though, Panama uses 0-3 point scale to determine the student's GPA. So if i student has a 2.5 that is roughly the same as a U.S. student having a 3.0 - 3.5.


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## wtrmute

In Brazil, grades go from 0 through 100, or 0 through 10 for early Elementary school (the first five or so years).  Though on exams and report cards the grades are marked out of 100, in common parlance the grades are divided by ten and rounded down, so anything from 70–79 is a seven, and anything from 30-39 is a three, etc. The passing grade is a five in the public system and in many private ones, but a given school may require a six or even a seven to pass.

Usually the students take exams every bimester.  They get an exam where every question has a point value, and if the student gets a question right, they get the points for that question.  If an exam has few questions, a question may be "half-right" and half the points are awarded.  The points are added up and this is the grade.  If the teacher wants more latitude in giving out grades, they may assign the exam a weight (70% or 80% of the total grade) and the other 20% or 30% may come from classwork or assignments to be done at home or in groups.

In universities, the concept is the same on a class-by-class basis, but the student's "overall" grade, equivalent to American GPA, is something called _coeficiente de rendimento_, or yield coefficient (abbreviated to CR).  It's an average of the grades for all of a student's classes, weighted by the number of credits of each class.  Usually for scholarships or apprenticeship programs it is a good idea to maintain at least a CR 7.0, but one can graduate with a CR of 5.


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## Copperknickers

The Scottish school grading system is very complicated and changes every 10 years or so so I don't even know what it is at the moment. I also don't know what comes below grade 'C' since if I had ever got below a grade C I would be thrown out of the house . But in the English university system its:

70%+ First Class (1st)
65%+ Upper Second Class (2:1)
60%+ Lower Second Class (2:2)
40%+ Third Class (3rd)
<40% Fail, but sometimes if you get 35% and above you can get a 'condoned fail'

The general idea is that 100% is the best possible standard, i.e. what would be expected of a tenured lecturer. So it's pretty much impossible to get 100% outside of subjects like Maths which don't have essays. That is why the pass mark is so low I believe (also because universities figure they get paid a lot of money to teach students, so they don't want to let students fail unless they are clearly completely clueless).


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## morior_invictus

Slovakia / Slovak Republic:

*Elementary schools *(9 grades – for children between the ages of ~ 6-14) and* high schools *(4 grades – for children between the ages of ~ 15-18) - the grading system*:

_1 – výborný_ (excellent performance)
_2 – chválitebný_ (commendable – it’s not the highest grade but the pupil deserves to be at least "patted on the back" for getting this second-highest grade)
_3 – dobrý_ (good)
_4 – dostatočný_ (sufficient / satisfactory)
_5 – nedostatočný_ (insufficient / unsatisfactory)

For subjects that are not graded using the above grade system (because these subjects are, for example, elective, there are no generally accepted gradations for these subjects, they are not considered "core," ...) Slovak schools use the "pass-fail" grading system:

_absolvoval_ (he passed) / _absolvoval*a*_ (*she* passed),
_neabsolvoval_ (he failed) / _neabsolvoval*a*_ (*she* failed).

Pupil behavior**:

_1 - veľmi dobré_ (very good behavior),
_2 – uspokojivé_ (satisfactory),
_3 - menej uspokojivé_ (less satisfactory),
_4 – neuspokojivé_ (unsatisfactory).

*Universities* (_bachelor’s degree programs_ – last usually 3 years, _master’s degree programs_ – last usually 2 years, etc.) – the letter grading system is used (grading as well as the length of degree programs may vary between universities):

*A* (100-91), *B* (90-81), *C* (80-71), *D *(70-61), *E* (60-51), *FX* (50-0)

Degree programs, however, also consist of courses that are not letter-graded after completing a final exam (because they are not considered "core" to that particular degree program). In this case, students receive "credit" (*zápočet*) that officially confirms that they have successfully completed a course – usually a word "*započítané*" (credits received)(or sometimes just "*Z*") is put next to the course that has been completed.

Example:

_Master’s degree program:_ *Law* (lasting 2 years)

1st year – winter semester

_Course #1_: *Criminal Law* (12 obligatory seminars and 12 facultative lectures followed by a final exam at the end of winter semester after "credits" have been received – the final exam is letter-graded – A/B/C/D/E/FX)("credits" are earned when a student passes a test given on the last seminar; then the student takes a final exam and receives one of the aforementioned six letter grades)

_Course #2_: *European Constitutional Law* (12 compulsory seminars and 12 facultative lectures ending in receiving "credits" – no final exam in ECL at the end of winter semester)

_Course #3_: *Criminalistics* (no obligatory seminars, only facultative lectures followed by a final exam at the end of winter semester)

_________________________________________
* § 55 (5) - Act no. 245/2008 on education and instruction (the School Act)
** § 55 (6) - Act no. 245/2008 on education and instruction (the School Act)


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## Sepia

What sucks about grading systems is that those who give the grades often have extreme leeway in giving them - except with written tests where you just check boxes. That means that two persons who are equally good in a subject can be so far apart that one is above average and the other one flunks. I have seen that happen.


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