You are in charge of Hogwarts

[Laura]

No: HPFGUIDX 56670

mongo62aa wrote:
> > >
Critical Thinking (1 class per week)
Ethics (1 class per week)
Writing Skills (1 class per week)
> > > 

Kelly wrote: 
> > >
These three things can easily be implemented within the class 
structure of other classes.  DADA was suggested as one plausible 
place for Ethics, and I could see Critical Thinking come into play 
there.  They already get a lot of practice with research in classes 
such as History of Magic and Potions.  As for Writing Skills, the 
only lack I really see at Hogwarts is in Creative Writing.  The kids 
get a lot of practice writing essays and chapter summaries, but never 
do we see them write a story or poetry for a class.  Now that we 
mention it, there is no music or art program at Hogwarts, and little 
extracurricular activities (with the exception of Quidditch and the 
short-lived Duelling Club).
> > >

Now me:
Just to add a personal touch =), I can relate to this particular 
topic.  Focus is good, but nothing is good in excess.  

I go to a technical high school.  It's a very good school, very 
competitive, I'd say borderline insane. =)  It's an engineering 
school.  Our only electives are engineering-based and for the first 
few years we don't have electives.  "Extra" class periods not taken 
up by core cirriculum (English, History, Math) are designated 
engineering courses.  We write theses about biological engineering in 
science and program our graphing calculators in math class.  We have 
no teams- unless you count robotics.

None of us know the first thing about art, music, literature.  We 
skipped the section on color in our Physics textbook because no one 
could get the concepts of additive and subtractive color.

Now, before the "wow you're such a computer geek," let me just say 
that obviously, focusing can be a bad thing.  I go to school to learn 
engineering just as Harry goes to school to learn magic.  But there's 
more to life than that.  We're not even talking home ec stuff.  

Hermoine admits in PS/SS that most wizards don't have an ounce of 
logic.  How do we really know just how well the students do on essays?

I personally think they should have two classes- "Muggle Life," which 
is just a new name for what they currently call "Muggle Studies," and 
a *new* "Muggle Studies" class, in which they study Muggle concepts, 
like logic.  If all A's are B's and all B's are C's, are all C's 
necessarily A's?  Logic is life skill, wizard or not.

Besides, I just want to see the look on Draco's face when he's told 
hhe has to take a class to learn the way Muggles do. =)

I'd also vote for a PE class- Quidditch lessons.  I bet wizards are 
all couch potatoes. =)

-Laura