‘Grades don’t matter’: Experts criticize Missouri board’s proposal to lower teacher GPA standard 

The Missouri State Board of Education may lower teacher certification standards to recruit more middle and high school educators, but experts tell The Lion the problems run deeper. 

In a press release on Dec. 3, the MSBE announced a proposed rule change to lower GPA requirements from 3.0 to 2.5 for educators seeking content certification in areas such as arts or STEM. 

A 3.0 GPA indicates an average B grade, while 2.5 is between an average of C+ and B-.  

Elementary, early childhood, and special education teachers would be exempt from the change. 

“As part of a comprehensive effort to address teacher recruitment and retention challenges in Missouri, the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education [DESE] has been focused on removing unnecessary barriers to the teaching profession,” said Commissioner of Education Karla Eslinger. “This research demonstrates we have the potential to expand our pool of future teachers, without concern that student learning and teacher success will be negatively affected.”  

While the rule change is under consideration, the public is invited to send comments to DESE by mail or email. Instructions on where to send a comment can be found in the board’s press release. 

MSBE expects to vote on the matter by March. 

According to research cited by DESE, GPA isn’t a significant indicator of a teacher’s quality.  

“There is no evidence tying a particular GPA in the content area to more effective teaching,” Daryl Fridley, DESE’s education preparation coordinator, told MSBE on Dec. 3. “Most of the non-teaching professional options in sciences, math and history do not require such a high GPA.” 

Carol Hallquist, vice president of the state school board, also indicated her support for the rule change.  

“When I reached out to principals and people who are in teacher preparation programs, they said there was no correlation [between GPA and teacher quality] and were very supportive,” she said. “They also said that you have to pass licensing tests, and that is really what we want to look at.” 

But according to James Shuls, research director at the Missouri-based Show-Me Institute, no test, GPA or certification exam is a surefire predictor of a teacher’s quality. 

“When they say that GPA isn’t really related to teacher quality, I think they’re right,” Shuls told The Lion. “But the same is true – and my own research has shown this – on certification exams. There’s little relationship between how well you do on the tests and your performance in the classroom.” 

DESE’s press release noted some states have no GPA requirements. And when Missouri implemented its certification requirements in 2017, the state saw “a substantial drop in the number of individuals completing the program for these certification types, disproportionately affecting teacher candidates in STEM subjects, where the need for teachers is particularly high.” 

However, it’s unknown exactly how many aspiring teachers are being prevented from receiving a content certification solely because their GPA is between 2.5 and 3.0. 

And Cory Koedel, an economics professor at the University of Missouri, said education majors already receive higher grades than students in other fields. 

“Grades awarded in university education departments are consistently higher than grades in other disciplines,” Koedel wrote. “One notable difference between education departments and other major departments at universities is that virtually all graduates from education departments move into a single sector of the labor market-education. 

“If the education sector is less effective at identifying low-quality graduates than are other sectors of the labor market, this would help explain why professors in education departments are able to consistently award [A grades] to most students.”  

He concluded that the academic standards of colleges of education are “astonishingly low.”  

It may help explain why Missouri’s most recent state report card revealed dismal academic outcomes for students. 

According to an analysis compiled by St. Louis University, math scores remain between 30-45% proficient, roughly at or below pre-pandemic numbers. 

Scores are universally worse in reading, with a high of 46% in 4th grade and low of 38% in 7th grade. 

Eslinger tried to sugarcoat the report by saying there was “positive movement,” but policy experts weren’t buying it. 

“The state board of education and the new commissioner are punting when it comes to accountability for school performance,” observed Susan Pendergrass, education policy director at the Show-Me Institute. “The state leaders of public education in Missouri either have no confidence in their measurement system or they have no confidence in their schools.” 

Lowering standards for teacher certification likely won’t instill confidence in Missouri parents and voters either.  

“It certainly is a bad look when the agency that is tasked with upholding the quality of education in our state says, ‘Grades don’t matter,’” Shuls concluded.