"GPA fixation." It's not what you might think, which is probably over-achieving students fixating on getting straight As or some such goal. On the contrary, according to Western Oregon University (WOU), education fixated on GPA can harm students who get D-s or Fs.

WOU's solution? Simply get rid of D-s and Fs, and voila! Problem solved!

Beginning next fall term (2024), D-s and Fs will be replaced with "NC" (No Credit) and students not earning a passing grade in a course will be given a shot to try it again —without having had a D- and F negatively impact their GPAs. In other words, fail — and there are no consequences.

Vice President of Academic Affairs Jose Coll said in an email to The College Fix:

The GPA fixation we have as a country and the grading system that’s been in place for over 200 years has been used to determine who belongs and who is capable, although we know that similar to the SAT and ACT, many capable students have been prohibited from pursuing their post-secondary education due to these barriers.

Please. "Fixation" on goal achievement determines who succeeds in life and who doesn't, Mr. Coll. The reality of no consequences for failing a class will undoubtedly lead to unintended consequences, not to mention additional costs for taking a course or courses twice.

Coll further said:

GPAs will now be a true reflection of student success and course mastery; failures will no longer mask the demonstrated abilities of our students when they pass courses.

I beg to differ — for two principal reasons. 

First, the inclusion of D-s and Fs gives a true reflection of student success, not pretending D-s and Fs never happened. Second, real life doesn't pretend our failures never happened. On the contrary, people who strive for success learn to overcome failures — which makes them stronger — they don't pretend those failures never happened.

The university continued its silly rationalization with quintessential no-longer-hallowed halls of academia groupspeak (emphasis, mine):

The NC grade will also empower faculty and advising staff to proactively help students potentially transition to another degree or major, enabling them to explore and discover academic areas that interest them. Exploration and change of major, have historically been made more difficult by significantly lowered GPAs resulting from weighted grades of F. 

Coll shares that lower GPAs create barriers to registration, financial aid, and transferring: “Now, students at Western will have a new incentive to remain in classes longer, rather than dropping them out of fear of getting an F.”

This change is also intended to alleviate the pressure of learning, foster academic exploration, reduce grade anxiety, and shift focus to the student’s academic possibilities, and strengths. 

This is key since many students who struggle in a course in their first year of college and receive an F grade are discouraged from remaining engaged; their GPAs slip away, which in many instances results in students leaving college with debt and no degree. 

For example, a Western student earning an F during their first two quarters is 60 percent less likely to be retained. 

Again, nonsense. 

Real life isn't free of pressure, anxiety, or stress. Hence, a critical part of secondary education is preparing students for adult life in the real world — not coddling them and pretending their failures didn't happen. Call me old-fashioned, but we learn more from the consequences of our mistakes than from successes that come easily.

The Oregon Chapter of the National Association of Scholars threw cold water on the university's plan, citing "several concerns." A spokesperson for the group said in a statement to The College Fix:

Colleges should be evaluating how well they are teaching and how well students are learning. This approach seems poised to increase retention by keeping struggling students in the system regardless of performance until administrators can find a combination of courses to put a degree in their hand. Ensuring students can perform academically should come first. 

Students deserve the opportunity to try, to push themselves, and to fail. They have the right to be treated like adults, the right to fail and to learn from it. What they take away from that experience should be up to them to work out, not something framed up for them by college administrators to mask their problems with student retention and performance.

Precisely.

The Bottom Line

Everyday life doesn't coddle us. It's not always easy. It's sometimes damn hard. We don't always get second chances or do-overs. 

Yet this is another perfect example of the reality of higher education in America — a reality in which those who fail or don't succeed at an acceptable level are coddled, which is neither good for them nor society as a whole.

We used to call it the soft bigotry of low expectations. Regardless of what it's now called in the no-longer-hallowed halls of academia or how it's papered over, it is what it is — and what it always will be.

SEE MORE:

Oregon’s Governor Nixes Math, Reading, and Writing Proficiency Standards

Is It Any Wonder? America's Average IQ Declines for First Time in Nearly 100 Years

U.S. Navy Drops High School Diploma, GED Requirement for Recruits — What Could Possibly Go Wrong?