What is a “C”?
When I was growing up and in school a “C” grade on a report card - described as “satisfactory” - represented lackluster achievement that was certainly below the average. It corresponded to the 60% range of percentile grades. Precisely, a “C” was between 60-69%. A “B” grade ranged from 70-79%. “A” grades began at 80% and anything between 90-100% was counted an “A+” The dreaded “D” was from 50-59%, and of course a failing “F” was everything below 50%. That’s how I always knew it growing up. A “D”was feared, “Bs” were accepted with humility, but “Cs” were an embarrassment that nobody wanted to talk about or show their friends. So if things ever changed, no one told me about it, which is why I was surprised to learn that the grading policy at my work counted a “C” up to 79%, calling a “C” “average.” I was shocked. A “C”is average? Since when? A “C” is mediocre, not average, and nothing at all to boast about. You don’t get into college with a “C” average (unless your name is Bush). I thought I was staring “grade inflation” - or, rather grade deflation - right in the face.
“C” isn’t bad. But it isn’t good, either, and a person should always strive for the good. When university handbooks recommend at least a B average for consideration for admission we can trust that that minimum mark will be pushed upwards into the A range due to competition. So, realistically, you need/needed an A average in high school to get into university, and admission for B average freshmen was/is kind of like a booby prize for boobs. Or, that’s how it was when I finished high school. When we learned a few years ago that U.S. President George Bush’s university average was a “C,” that indicated to me that he is a fool with a mediocre mind, not that he is an admirably average guy.