Snape as Neville's teacher / JKR's sexy men roll call

[phoenixgod2000]

No: HPFGUIDX 168523

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "Shaun Hately" <drednort at ...> 
wrote:

<snipped lots of stuff I agree with>

> No, no one teacher can get them all. No one teacher can be an 
affective teacher for every 
> single child in their classes. *BUT* that is the reason *why* the 
teacher who does things 
> differently and winds up targeting a different group of students 
from other teachers (and 
> therefore has a different group 'falling down the cracks') is a 
good thing. 

Is there any evidence really that Snape's methods are targetting 
kids that are slipping through the cracks? Harry isn't in any danger 
of that.  Neville isn't a great wizard but the only class he almost 
seems paralyzed in is potions.  If Snape was able to modify his 
style to more closely mimic Sprouts, might he be more successful 
with Neville? I don't see Snape really reaching students with his 
methods.

I suppose the debate boils down to our personal opinions on Snape's 
methods.  You've seen them do a lot of good. I've seen them do a lot 
of harm outside of very narrow circumstances.  One place I do think 
Snape's methods could work well is in a school system that was 
mostly discipline centered like in a school for kids with criminal 
records or a continuation school. Snape's remorseless nature and 
management style would go far in breaking them of bad habits.  But 
that isn't Hogwarts. 


> Shaun:
> 
> Harry's OWL results:
> 
> Astronomy: A
> CoMC: E
> Charms: E
> DADA: O
> Divination: P
> Herbology: E
> History of Magic: D
> Potions: E
> Transfiguration: E
> 
> One 'Outstanding', Five 'Exceeds Expectations', One 'Acceptable', 
One 'Poor', One 
> 'Dreadful'.
> 
> Harry's marks reveal he is an 'E' standard student. What mark did 
he get in Potions? An 'E'.
> 
> Harry did as well in potions as his marks give us any reason to 
think he should have done. To 
> me, that seems a pretty clear indication he was taught to a 
reasonable standard in that 
> subject. He may not have enjoyed the experience - but he seems to 
have been as successful 
> as he had any right to expect.

I see Harry's Potion results as an anomaly.  IIRC, he gets lucky by 
having his essay question on a potion he knows intimately.  If the 
question hadn't been about polyjuice, I'm not sure he would have 
done so well. and you can't attribute his polyjuice knowledge to 
Snape--just their ingredients :) 
 
> Shaun:
> 
> I really don't think he is marking time. I think he is passionate 
about his subject, and, yes, I do 
> think that's why he teaches the way he does.

Passionate about his subject yes, but passionate about teaching his 
subject is very different beast and I just don't think he has it in 
him.  I think that if Dumbledore had been the Supreme determiner of 
Cauldron bottom thickness, Snape would be a Cauldron Tester.

> To me that is a man who *loves* his subject. And who wants to 
teach it - to students who are 
> capable of learning it.
 
> But that's just my interpretation.

I disagree, but that's what makes these books so great.

phoenixgod2000