OOP: minor plot details I'm thinking about

[mooseming]

No: HPFGUIDX 65446

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "Melissa Worcester"
<beelissa at n...> wrote:
> snip
> We still didn't learn what James and Lily did for a living

I believe they were both aurors

> I'm still quite confused about the O.W.L. and N.E.W.T. grading system --
> Melissa
> 
These are based on old style British exam systems. We used to sit 'o'
levels at 15 and 'A' levels at 17. 'O' stands for ordinary and 'A' for
advanced. Each exam was graded A, B,C, D or E (simply the 1st 5
letters of the alphabet) where 'A' is the highest grade and 'C' is the
accepted pass mark and 'E' the lowest grade. There was also 'U' which
stood for unclassified i.e. not worth a grade at all (Troll?).

Depending on ability and enthusiasm (both pupil and school) you could
sit anywhere between one and twelve (or upwards!)'O' level exams at
the end of the year. Most people studied 8 or 9 subjects although some
like Hermione did more. Hence you could receive say 5 'O' levels all
at different grades.

How you did at 'O' level determined what 'A' levels you went on to
study, most people did 3, at most 5. Although in Scotland and Ireland
they didn't have 'A' levels they had 'highers' of which it was normal
to study 5, this is what JK seems to have opted for at Hogwarts.

So for OWLs and NEWTs you can study a number of subjects, pass some,
for  which you'd say "I got 3 OWLs" at grades 'E', and two 'A's.
Therefore, everyone can get different numbers of exam passes and
different grades.

Hope this helps. I don't know the system now I'm too old!