Here's Why You Never Got An 'E' On Your School Report Card (2024)

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Here's Why You Never Got An 'E' On Your School Report Card (2) Here's Why You Never Got An 'E' On Your School Report Card (3)

Why is there no E in the grading scale?

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Some schools do hand out E letter grades instead of an F, but they are in the minority. A majority of schools in the United States, particularly beyond primary age, give grades of A, B, C, D, or F.

Rather than a failure on the part of academic institutions to know the alphabet, the simple answer is that “F” stands for “fail.” The other four grades are more or less considered “passing” (though in some districts a D is also a failing grade), which is why they go in alphabetical order.

Here's Why You Never Got An 'E' On Your School Report Card (4)

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The F is considered separate as it denotes a failing grade, and does not need to go in alphabetical order. It just so happens that “fail” starts with a letter that skips one letter alphabetically on the scale.

That said, E was used at one point. The first college in the United States to use a grading scale similar to the one we know today was Mount Holyoke College, an all-women’s university in Massachusetts.

Before that, Yale used a ranking system in 1785 where “optimi” was the highest mark, followed by second optimi, inferiore (“lower”), and pejores (“worse”). William and Mary ranked students by number, where No. 1 was the first in their class and No. 2 students were “orderly, correct and attentive.”

For a while, Harvard had a numerical grading system where students were graded on a scale from 1-200 (except for math and philosophy classes, which were 1-100). Yale had a four-point scale in 1813, switched to a nine-point scale somewhere down the track, and back to a four-point scale in 1832.

In 1883, there’s a single reference to a student earning a “B” at Harvard, but historians haven’t found additional documentation to back up the idea that a letter grade system was actually in place at that point. It is known that just a few years later, Harvard had a system of Classes in place—students were either Class I, II, III, IV, or V, with V being failing.

That brings us back to the 1887 Mount Holyoke system, which looked something like this:

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  • A: excellent, 95-100%
  • B: good, 85-94%
  • C: fair, 76-84%
  • D: barely passed, 75%
  • E: failed, below 75%

A year later, Mount Holyoke modified their grading scale. “B” became anything from 90-94%, “C” was 85-89%, “D” was 80-84%, and “E” was 75-79%. Below that, they added in the dreaded “F.”

Over the years, the letter grading scale became popular across colleges and high schools alike. A lot of schools skipped E and went straight to F. Apparently, some teachers were concerned that students and parents thought E stood for “excellent,” though there is no evidence suggesting that they thought A stood for “awful,” so it’s possible that schools were just trying to simplify the scale. After World War II, some schools—many in the Midwest—decided to go back to E, getting rid of F.

In truth, any letter could stand in for E or F and still mean the same thing. Some schools use “U” for “unsatisfactory” or N for “no credit.” Educators could use just about any letter and it would amount to the same thing. It is simply an indicator of a non-passing grade.

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The grading scale itself has been marked with an F (or E, or U, or N) by some people who believe it is no longer a relevant way to judge students’ work. For one thing, there are variations across institutions. Some schools use + and -; some don’t. Some say an A is 90% and up, or 93% and up, or 95% and up. Some consider a D to be a failing grade rather than a passing one.

Critics of the grading scale believe a written analysis of students’ work would be more effective in terms of feedback, but they recognize that students and parents probably wouldn’t read them and teachers, who are often overworked as it is, don’t have time to write them anyway. Letter grades are just an easy way to generalize a student’s performance; so despite the discrepancies between schools, they’ll probably be around for a long time.

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Here's Why You Never Got An 'E' On Your School Report Card (2024)

FAQs

Here's Why You Never Got An 'E' On Your School Report Card? ›

In the 1930s, as the letter-based grading system grew more and more popular, many schools began omitting E in fear that students and parents may misinterpret it as standing for “excellent.” Thus resulting in the A, B, C, D, and F grading system.

Why is there no letter E in grading? ›

That's a good question! It's a simple answer really. Back in 1897, the letter E used to mean the same thing as F; that is, it used to be the lowest possible grade. However, parents and students found it easier to understand that “F” stood for “Failed” (rather than thinking that “E” could mean “excellent”).

Can you get an E on your report card? ›

A, B, C, D, and E with E being a failing grade. A failing grade would most likely require the student to retake the class in order to get credit. In the US the E just replaces the F one might see in a typical A, B, C, D, and F system. Fewer schools use E's vs F's.

Does F+ exist in grades? ›

In Academic grading in the United States, F+ is a rarely used grade above F.

Is E good for a grade? ›

A popular grading system in the United States uses four or five letters, which are ranked in descending order: E (Excellent) G (Good) S (Satisfactory)

Why can't you get an E? ›

In the 1930s, as the letter-based grading system grew more and more popular, many schools began omitting E in fear that students and parents may misinterpret it as standing for “excellent.” Thus resulting in the A, B, C, D, and F grading system.

Is B+ a good grade? ›

A+, A, A- indicates excellent performance. B+, B, B- indicates good performance. C+, C, C- indicates satisfactory performance.

What does Z mean in grades? ›

The letter Z is used to indicate that a grade was not properly received and/or recorded for a course. Note: No grade points are allowed for grades F, I, NP, P, PR, NPR, W, or Z. A complete record of all previously used grades and grading systems is detailed on the official transcript. Grade.

Is E or S better on a report card? ›

E Excellent: The student consistently meets and regularly exceeds expectations. G Good: The student regularly meets expectations. S Satisfactory: The student usually meets expectations. N Needs Improvement: The student does not consistently meet expectations.

Is 60% a failing grade? ›

Is a D Considered Passing? A letter grade of a D is technically considered passing because it not a failure. A D is any percentage between 60-69%, whereas a failure occurs below 60%.

Is a 66 an F? ›

You'll usually need to receive a letter grade between A and D to pass a class, often the numerical equivalent of 65 percent or higher. Receiving an F—which stands for “fail”—indicates that you did not pass the class. The cutoff to receive an F is usually 64 percent.

Why is Z not a grade? ›

A grade of "Z" indicates that no grade has been submitted by the instructor for the student. All questions regarding unreported grades should be directed to the course instructor.

Is a C+ bad? ›

I don't think you need to worry too much. C+ isn't that awful of a grade, first of all, and if you're planning on taking humanities it shouldn't matter as much anyway. If you are planning on doing STEM or math-based majors, just make sure you're able to show that you improved.

Is a 93 an A? ›

What are letter grades and how do they convert into percentages? Common examples of grade conversion are: A+ (97–100), A (93–96), A- (90–92), B+ (87–89), B (83–86), B- (80–82), C+ (77–79), C (73–76), C- (70–72), D+ (67–69), D (65–66), D- (below 65).

Is a 90 an A? ›

Thus, an A is a 95, halfway between 90 and 100. An A- is a 91.25, halfway between 90 and 92.5. Etc. Grades between these are averages.

Is 95 a good grade? ›

However, what constitutes a “good grade” is relative. For students that consistently make Cs, getting a B may feel extremely rewarding, while straight-A students may see a B as the ultimate letdown. In a poll of approximately 50 Bellaire students, 75.5 percent of people consider 90+ a good grade.

What is an E in the grading system? ›

E. = Failure or unofficial withdrawal from a course.

Is there an E in American grading system? ›

Some schools do hand out E letter grades instead of an F, but they are in the minority. A majority of schools in the United States, particularly beyond primary age, give grades of A, B, C, D, or F.

What number grade is an E? ›

Grading Numerology
Letter → Number Conversion
Letter GradeNumerical Grade
D65.00
D-61.25
E55.00
10 more rows

What mark is an E grade? ›

Australian Capital Territory (ACT)
GradeScaleScale 2
B4.00 - 4.9970.00 - 84.99
C3.00 - 3.9950.00 - 69.99
D2.00 - 2.9925.00 - 49.99
E1.00 - 1.990.00 - 24.99
2 more rows

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