An inspection by the Swedish Schools Inspectorate has previously revealed that principals at 30 high schools across Sweden have failed to prevent or address the problem of grade inflation. Students, who take yearly national exams, have consistently been given higher grades than their test results would suggest. The inspectors said that long-term discrepancies indicate that grading may not be fair or equitable.

On May 11, Lars Strannegård published an op ed in Swedish daily Dagens Nyheter, expressing his grave concern for the grade inflation going on in certain Swedish schools. Strannegård said that if universities and institutes of higher learning can no longer trust that the grades used as a basis for admissions are fair, either the system must be rehauled or the Stockholm School of Economics must take measures to ensure the fairness of its own admissions process. Proposed alternative solutions include additional testing of students from certain schools and designing separate exams for flagged institutions.

Ministers welcome the criticism

The Swedish Minister for Schools, Lotta Edholm, and the Minister for The Education, Mats Persson, both welcomed the criticism, acknowledging the problem of grade inflation in Sweden. The government has now promised to take a number of measures regarding the grading system to prevent unfair grading. This includes, among other things, linking grading more clearly to national exams.

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For a complete list of the extensive media coverage on the issue, please visit the press page.