This is good: More schools de-emphasizing students' class rankings

Here's why:

"Finishing first or fifth at your high school doesn't tell a college as much about you as your standardized test scores or the strength of your curriculum because that they can compare to students at other schools," said David Hawkins, director of public policy for Alexandria, Va.-based National Association for College Admission Counseling .

Hawkins said ranking does not make sense in small, private institutions such as boarding schools where there are 20 students in a class.

But there is still a strong emphasis on GPA and this quote from a "top" student is telling:

Valedictorians of schools that don't rank say they are glad they didn't know they had the best grades in the class until the end.

"It takes some of the pressure off of getting good grades," said Brian Lloyd, 17, Darien High's valedictorian for the class of 2004. "The students in Darien are extremely brilliant, so of course there's competition. But because the school doesn't rank, it doesn't seem like they are endorsing that competition.

But the schools are endorsing that competition in a de facto sort of way. Here's proof:


The pressure to lead the pack at Greenwich High is so fierce, Hindman said, that the only way to have a shot at being named valedictorian is to take all honors and Advanced Placement classes where the grades are weighted. Taking an elective for fun was not an option because it would have brought down his average, he said. All five valedictorians that year graduated with a 4.8 GPA.

"Toward the end of my career, I was even taking honors band to give my GPA that extra little boost," he said. "The joke was that the next thing was going to be honors gym -- that's how competitive it is."

Honors Band?