grade grubbing
noun1
US, Derogatory, Slang The practice of a student (especially one in college) seeking to improve their academic grades through negotiation, flattery, or persistent argumentation without substantive justification.
- My grade grubbing was so intense that my Latin teacher called me the "millimeter bandit."2017 July 2, Jay Mathews, “My dream of being valedictorian was tragically unrealized”, in Washington Post:
- Academics report that "grade grubbing" (the practice of university students trying to negotiate better grades) is on the rise. Some tutors put this down to parents overpraising their children, turning them into fully fledged narcissists, who feel so precious, gifted and talented that they can’t deal with a world or a marking system that doesn't agree with their own appraisal of themselves.2018 April 1, Barbara Ellen, “Grade grubbers are simply preparing for the real world”, in The Guardian: