Are self-reported grades a good estimate of academic achievement? / ¿Son las notas auto-informadas una buena estimación del rendimiento académico?

Abstract

The use of self-reported grades in psychological research may be necessary since sometimes it is not possible to obtain school transcripts. This study analyses the accuracy of self-reported grades among Spanish high-school students considering actual level of achievement, sex/gender, and age. Results indicate that high-school students tended to over-report their grades, although as they got older, and in higher school achievers, differences between self-reported and actual grades tended to disappear. No differences between girls and boys were found, and overall Grade Point Average (GPA), calculated by averaging self-reported grades for subjects common to all classes, seemed to be a more reliable measure of self-reported grades than self-reported grades for individual subjects. It is concluded that self-reported grades are a good estimate of actual grades, especially among older adolescents and students with better grades.