OOP: More Flints/O.W.L. s

[mtwelovett]

No: HPFGUIDX 62951

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "Marie Jadewalker"
<marie_mouse at h...> wrote:
> Hey everyone,
> 
>   I'm about 1300 posts behind (man this place is hopping!) but I did 
> a search for Flint and I haven't seen either of these mentioned.  If 
> they're repetitive, I apologize.  

> Secondly, there's the matter of the OWLS.  From my count, Hermione 
> took OWLS in ten subjects: Charms, Transfiguration, Herbology, DADA, 
> Ancient Runes, Care of Magical Creatures, Astronomy, Arithmancy, 
> Potions, and History of Magic.  Harry and Ron each took 9, substitute 
> Divination for Ancient Runes and Arithmancy.  So far so good, right?  
> But if you go back to Chamber of Secrets, we get these lines: 
> 
> "Wish I knew what he was up to," said Fred, frowning.  "He's not 
> himself.  His exam results came the day before you did; twelve OWLs 
> and he hardly gloated at all."  
> "Ordinary Wizarding Levels," George explained, seeing Harry's puzzled 
> look.  "Bill got twelve, too.  If we're not careful, we'll have 
> another Head Boy in the family.  I don't think I could stand the 
> shame."  (COS Chapter 4, p 40 in the British Paperback edition)
> 
> I find this really odd.  How could Bill and Percy both have taken and 
> passed twelve OWLs when Hermione only even took 10?  She was taking 
> more than is normal.  At the height of her crazy time-turner schedule 
> in third year she had 12 subjects, but that was portrayed as highly 
> unusual.  I suppose Hermione *could* have taken an OWL test in Muggle 
> Studies, even though she hadn't studied it for the last 2 years.  
> Being a Muggle Born, she probably could have still passed.  But that 
> still only 11.  We know she didn't take the Divinaiton OWL because it 
> was the same time as Arithmancy and Harry would have noticed if she 
> were there when she hadn't been in class.  So are we supposed to 
> assume that both Bill and Percy used a time turner for three years to 
> get to twelve different classes?  Or is the scoring not strictly one 
> OWL per subject?  (Is it, perhaps, that if you get enough OWLs at "O" 
> level, you get an extra OWL just for being so smart?)  Can anyone see 
> something I may have missed?  
> 
> ~Marie Granger, who adored OOP but is really bugged by these small 
> things and can't wait to find out how the Trio did on their OWLs.  
> I'm guessing Hermione got all ten, Harry probably 6 or 7, and Ron 
> also 6 or 7.


now me (mtwelovett)
I think I've read some discussion on this before, but I'm not
convinced that 1 subject = 1 O.W.L. In the US standardized testing
subjects have different parts. Language arts which would be taught in
an English Class (1 Subject) might have testing parts for 1.
vocabulary, 2. reading comprehension, 3. word usage, 4. Literature,
and probably several other categories. Math and Science are the same
having different parts, even history has categories into such things
as World, or US, or even state. and I'm sure world history has many
categories as well. So I was under the assumption that the WW would be
similar. There may be 4 or more parts of an Herbology subject (maybe
something like 1. identification of different plants, 2.
identification of plant parts (botany), 3. growing/care 4. usage) and
maybe you can get an o.w.l. in one or two without getting all 4. It
seems that 12 O.W.L.s are impressive, but what is the Average? Are
Fred and George average or below average when it comes to o.w.l.s?
what can we reasonably expect to be a really high number for O.W.L.s?
(Hermione, surely she is up there...and will probably IMO have more
than 12, since I doubt there are many if any other students that have
taken teh number of classes that she has) And then, what is the
highest number of o.w.l.s you can get for a single subject? or does it
depend on the subject and it's delineations? Since 12 O.W.L.s is
really good, they must not be remedial either or most would be getting
more. but if there are more than one passing grade, do you only earn
an O.W.L at the highest passing grade? (is that an "O"?) (I need to go
back and read the stuff about the grading again it seemed kind of
muddled, or else it was from me reading for so long at one sitting.)
If that is the case, then you could pass some subjects on the test
without earning an O.W.L. which seems to me maybe what Fred and George
did, since they aren't stupid by any means, they just don't apply
themselves to schoolwork.... but apparation isn't easy to do either.. 

Anyway, I guess we have to wait and see.. not that the ins and outs
may be explained, since it probably isn't relevant, but to see how
they did. Hopefully it won't be 3 years. 

Mtwelovett