Portsmouth High School is one of few local schools to use the 7-point grading method, instead of the 10 point method. The use of the 7-point scale has been controversial and met with mixed opinions from students and other individuals. On one hand, the 7-point scale is viewed as problematic and excessively challenging for the high school students, while others see it as a way to push above other schools academically. Either way, the 7-point scale is a concept surrounded by debate.

Student opinion about 7-point scale is varying. Some are not really affected by this system, whereas others associate it with negativity. The ones who had more apathetic views about the grading scale were usually 9th grade students, when interviewed for this article. Upper-class students tended to dislike it on the other hand; “ It makes my grades look worse,” one student said regarding the subject. More concerning is the lack of clarity in how college admissions weigh the 7-point scale when looking at grades. Out of three students asked about colleges’ consideration of the scale, 2 of them regarded the topic with doubt. The third student said that colleges had to adapt to numerous types of scales and ours should be no different.

Personally I dislike the system. I dislike that this grading system only really awards the most academically gifted students. I dislike how it’s complex and surrounded with doubt and uncertainty. The 7-point scale feels an unnecessary punishment for students of Portsmouth High School and doesn’t affect the lives of “A” students but turns “A-” students into “B” students, and “B” students into “C+” students. The 7-point scale is useless in a public school environment, especially in an age where grade related anxiety is sky-rocketing. In this now desperate attempt  to get an admirable grade, students are plaguing themselves with the unnecessary. It is unusual to make scoring more difficult  and ruthless, without relaxing on the quantity or difficulty of work given.