The number of “A” grades has tripled over the past seven decades, to the point where it is now the most common grade awarded by American post-secondary institutions. What is the cause? Entitled students who demand better marks because they paid for them? The general whittling-away of educational standards? Affirmative action? Changes in the philosophy of pedagogy? An interesting opinion piece in the Washington Post looks at “The rise of the gentleman’s ‘A’ and th GPA arms race.”