Comparing US and Russian Grading Scales

Abstract

In the US, grades are usually based on comprehensive written exams: the larger the proportion of topic in which the student shows knowledge, the higher the student’s grade. In contrast, in Russia, the grades are based on oral exams, and the bulk of the grade comes from a student answering questions of a few (usually, three) randomly selected topics. A natural question is: what is the relation between the two grading scales? It turns out that “excellent” and “good” grades means the same in both scales, while the US “satisfactory” level is higher than a similar Russian level. Mathematics Subject Classification: 97B70