[HPforGrownups] Re: What if other teachers behaved like Snape?

[Lady Macbeth]

No: HPFGUIDX 101579

Barbara (bd-bear ) Wrote:

Perhaps this is a cultural thing. I'm in the US and speaking only for my
experience, if any teacher treated me like Snape treats some of his
students, I would definitely NOT have felt motivated to learn or do well. In
fact, in my senior year of high school, I had a math teacher who always
spoke in a patronizing tone to the class as a whole, calling us animals,
making ridiculous jokes. I thought he was awful and that we, although
students and much younger, still deserved respect. In contrast, whenever I
had a teacher who made me feel special or worthwhile or just gave me a
little extra time, I not only wanted to do well for me but also because I
didn't want to let that teacher down. Of course, that might just be more
about my own personal dynamics with authority figures, but I still think
it's more of a cultural thing. I don't think many US teachers would get away
with insulting their students, or openly favoring others (and I wish I could
think of a RW equivalent to taking points of one's "house" but I can't.)

Lady Macbeth replied:

Cultural, and a patter of perspective.  I suffered through exactly what
Hermione's going through in school - being "an insufferable know-it-all" who
gets picked on and ridiculed by others for being such, who idolized teachers
and other people who had seemingly endless wisdom, and continually wanting
to learn more.  Hell, I even had the scraggly brown hair that wasn't as
pretty or as polished as other girls' hair was, and I had (and still have)
big front teeth.

While I was in elementary school and middle school, I really respected
teachers that doled out praise and stickers and smiley faces, and hated ones
who "dared" mark anything wrong on my papers or who said I was anything less
than perfect.  In my Junior and Senior year of high school, however, I had
an English teacher who didn't play the "4.0 student" game.  My English
papers ALWAYS came back with at least a few red marks on them, no matter how
many times I'd revised them.  Something ALWAYS wasn't good enough.  I got an
irritated look instead of a smile when I tried sucking up for better grades.
He purposely ignored my hand in the air when he wanted an answer and I was
the only one in class trying to answer it.  The few times that I screwed off
in class (passing notes, talking, etc) I caught hell WAY worse than the
idiots whose life goal seemed to be seeing how many pencils they could stick
in the ceiling.

Sound like any teachers we know?

During my Senior year, however, I did a lot of maturing.  I started looking
at the world from an adult perspective instead of a child or teenager's
perspective for the first time.  And by the end of the year I had a respect
for my English teacher that I've NEVER had for any of the teachers who
showered me with praise. Now that I've been in the real world and am in
college for the second time, working on a second degree, I only wish MORE
teachers had been like him.  All that praise and happy feelings did nothing
but set me up for a huge fall when I got to college and found out that the
world doesn't work that way.

That's why, as cruel as Snape is, and as much as I can feel what Hermione,
Harry and the others are feeling, I also can understand better why Snape's
behaving the way that he is.

-Lady Macbeth




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