At some colleges over 50% of the grades given are A’s. And while students may be happy, it begs the question: What does an A grade mean?

Well, this is not terribly surprising. As we move toward a more pure entitlement society, it is no wonder we are becoming more and more accustomed to rewarding nothing. “I deserve it,” is the new mantra – with no reason necessary. Trophies for ninth place, and ribbons for “participation.”

Now we see it in our teaching institutions. But here’s an interesting point:

Subject matters as well. Mathematics departments tend to grade more rigorously than liberal arts. The easiest subject? Education, where 71 percent of all grades are ‘A’s.

You think your kid’s teachers are really well-educated? They took the ‘easiest’ classes, giving proof to the old adage that those who can’t, teach.

Numerous studies have found that today’s average young person thinks he possesses above-average intelligence.

Julia Twenge, a psychologist and author of the book Generation Me, in a previous statement to The DC News Foundation, wrote, “Students are getting better grades for less work, which is probably one reason why they feel so confident.”

The trend of self-delusion among teenagers is a particularly American problem, Kosakowski noted.

“The only things our kids rank the highest in are confidence in their abilities,” he said. “Math, science, and everything else has gone down.”

The underlying question the articles on this don’t attack are whether students really are ”happier.”

“In a fair grading system, you reward people for their outstanding achievements,” said Rojstaczer. Grade inflation “lowers the intensity and intellectual level in many classes.”

If you don’t have to work for it, can obtaining it really make you happy, long term? These institutions, and society in general, are robbing individuals of their potential joy, by patronizing and coddling them until there is nothing else to do but submit to mediocracy.