[HPforGrownups] Re: Snape's teaching style

[IreneMikhlin]

No: HPFGUIDX 147819

dumbledore11214 wrote:

> 
> Alla:
> 
> Oh, I am not asking that at all. How about proving that Snape IS a 
> good teacher, if you wish of course, I understand if you don't.

Several people achieved Outstanding in his class, which is 100% canon. I 
don't know what is the result of Transfiguration or Charms OWL, but in 
DADA it's quite clear to me (though not 100% canon fact) that Harry is 
the only student with an O.

Several Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws were ready to continue Potions with 
Snape on NEWTs level (and so was Hermione). No one wanted NEWTs class 
with Hagrid (including Harry, which is quite hypocritical of him).

  Really, IMO all that Rowling
> needed to do if she wanted to show that Snape is a good teacher for 
> anybody except Slytherins is to let ANY older Gryffindor make a 
> passing remark, about his class being good, challenging, interesting. 
> Twins, Angelina, I don't know, could have said something during 
> Qudditch practice or some place else, like mention that Snape is a 
> tough bastard, but they learned a lot during his class.

But the deeds speak louder than the words! :-) Hermione was going to 
take another two years of Snape. And it's funny that you mention twins - 
they own most of their success to their superb knowledge and application 
of Potions. Did they need to say it out loud, that Snape didn't put them 
off the subject?

> 
> Irene brought the bezoar example and I think the analogy is right on 
> point, although I make the opposite conclusion from her. I don't 
> think that Slughorn praised him because he had special relationship 
> with Harry, but because Harry achieved the GOAL of the exercise, 
> which was to find antidote to all those poisons.

No, no, no, it was NOT the goal of the exercise. :-) (And Hermione 
agrees with me, so that has to count for something). The exercise was a 
practical application of the Galpagot's law.
Oh, and JKR was really over-egging the pudding with Harry being so 
completely unable to understand it. My 9 year old child understood it 
while we were reading. Surely 16 year old Harry can't be so dim?

> Harry did not exactly do what was required there either, but he found 
> the poison. He should not have been praised because he read it in 
> HBP, BUT if he remembered it on his own, I absolutely think that he 
> would have fulfilled the purpose of the exercise perfectly.

> IMO the purpose of the nonverbal spells exercise was DUAL - to learn 
> how to do nonverbal spells and to overpower your opponent. Harry did 
> not do the first part, but he did the second one perfectly.

Nope. In greko-roman wrestling you don't get points by using legs, in 
football (the proper one) you don't score goals with you hands, in 
boxing you don't win by hitting your opponent under the belt.

In all the cases above one would be punished, not praised, even though 
the opponent is overpowered.

> Should he 
> had been acknowledged for that? Not even praised, just acknowledged 
> as to how good his shield was, even if performed verbally? Yes, I 
> think so.

That wizard that Flitwick once mentioned, the one that had produced a 
buffalo sitting on his chest, do you think it brought him some 
satisfaction, the fact that it was such a perfect buffalo?

> 
> Alla:
> As you wish.

Could not resist. :-)

Irene