Karimi, A., & Manteufel, R. D. (2025, March), Widely Varying Grade Distributions in Courses Taught by Different Instructors  Paper presented at 2025 ASEE -GSW Annual Conference, Arlington, TX, Texas. 10.18260/1-2--55089

\bibitem{asee_peer_55089}
  Karimi, A., \& Manteufel, R. D. (2025, March), \emph{Widely Varying Grade Distributions in Courses Taught by Different Instructors}
  Paper presented at 2025 ASEE -GSW Annual Conference, Arlington, TX, Texas.
  10.18260/1-2--55089

Amir Karimi and Randall D. Manteufel P.E..  "Widely Varying Grade Distributions in Courses Taught by Different Instructors".  2025 ASEE -GSW Annual Conference, Arlington, TX, Texas, 2025, March.  ASEE Conferences, 2025.  https://peer.asee.org/55089 Internet.  16 May, 2025

\bibitem{asee_peer_55089}
  Amir Karimi and Randall D. Manteufel P.E..
  "Widely Varying Grade Distributions in Courses Taught by Different Instructors".
  \emph{2025 ASEE -GSW Annual Conference, Arlington, TX, Texas, 2025, March}.
  ASEE Conferences, 2025.
  https://peer.asee.org/55089 Internet.  16 May, 2025

@INPROCEEDINGS{asee_peer_55089
author = "Amir Karimi and Randall D. Manteufel P.E."
title = "Widely Varying Grade Distributions in Courses Taught by Different Instructors"
booktitle = "2025 ASEE -GSW Annual Conference"
year = "2025"
month = "March"
address = "Arlington, TX, Texas"
publisher = "ASEE Conferences"
note = {https://peer.asee.org/55089}
number = {10.18260/1-2--55089}
}

TY  - CPAPER
AB  - In our engineering program, grades of C- or better are passing grades, while D, F, and W (withdrawal) are non-passing.  In recent years, it is noticed that the percentage of DFW grades for the same courses vary significantly, depending on the instructor. In six sections of a lower division engineering course taught by two different instructors in fall and spring semesters, the rate of DFW assigned varied from 21% to 73%.  In a junior level mechanical engineering course, three different instructors taught three sections of the course in the fall and spring semesters. In this case, the DFW rates varied within a range of 45% to 71%. In a junior level mechanical engineering course that typically had DFW rates in a range of 25% to 40 %, a new instructor issued 42% A, 42% B, 14% C, and only 2% of students received grades of DFW.  There exists a wide range of grade distributions in required engineering courses. In general, the average GPA for laboratory courses are higher than those for the lecture ones. During the fall and spring semester of 2023-24 academic year, excluding the laboratory courses, the average GPA in prerequisite course varied from 1.02 (1.15 standard deviation) in a thermodynamics course to 3.19 (0.77 standard deviation) in a fluid mechanics course.  Easy grading in foundational engineering courses often leads to higher fail rates in subsequent engineering courses which build on prerequisite topics.  It is challenging to teach solid mechanics or machine element design when students can’t construct a free body diagram or calculate the moment of a force.  Similarly, it is challenging to teach heat transfer when student don’t have the necessary mathematical skills required for the course, or understand pressure, fluid flow, and control volume analysis.  A study was initiated to compare the grade distributions in required engineering courses in the last three years. The final extended abstract will provide a more detailed description of grade distribution for the courses offered in the program and summary of recommendations to be submitted to the department chair for possible actions.
AU  - Amir Karimi
AU  - Randall D. Manteufel P.E.
CY  - Arlington, TX, Texas
DA  - 2025/03/09
PB  - ASEE Conferences
TI  - Widely Varying Grade Distributions in Courses Taught by Different Instructors
UR  - https://peer.asee.org/55089
DO  - 10.18260/1-2--55089
ER  -