0 = 0, or so I have ever been told.

In most cases and with standard mathematics I would have been proven correct.  Indirectly the school system decided against this notion.

The standard grade scale for students in the U.S is A, B, C, D, F, with A being the highest and F being the lowest. Within that scale, there is a subscale that creates the letter grades.

Typically,      

The first thing that should jump out is that all categories are divided into ten point increments except for F. There is a 59% chance of earning an F while there is only a 10% chance of earning any other particular grade.  To go even further, only 41% of the scale will award a passing grade.  The state of Florida has a Grade Point Average (GPA) requirement of a 2.0 for graduation.  A 2.0 is the equivalent to a C.  So, in actuality, the grade scale is skewed 30/70 in favor of a grade not worthy of graduation.   Things seem skewed in the wrong direction.

The first argument against my claim is that students are in control of their grades. This is 100% accurate and I couldn’t agree more. But, even the best students have a lapse in judgment or experience teenage forgetfulness.  Given that this occurs more than we would like, should the student’s entire body of work be wrecked because of one assignment?

When a student receives a zero the impact is almost unrecoverable.  See for yourself.

https://youtu.be/KldfZBTKhBc

I believe that students should be held accountable for all assignments turned it, or not turned in, and quality of work is essential. By no means am I trying to give students a free pass to getting higher grades. What I am stating is that the absence of one assignment should not turn an A student into a D student in the gradebook.

If our goal as educators is to motivate and teach students, why would we have a grading scale that is skewed to fail and discourage?

I propose that if we must have a grading scale, that the one we choose is fair. All grade categories should be evenly distributed it.  If the range for an A is 10 points then so should a F.  Such a system would allow for greater grade recovery efforts.