eduCation

It has recently come to my a en on that the esteemed educator Dolores Umbridge did not return to Hogwarts this year, neither as the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor nor as the school’s High Inquisitor. As a parent, allow me to take this opportunity to thank her for the hard work she put in last year to bring Hogwarts, the only school of magic available to the children of this na on, back to the standard we all expect of this dis nguished ins tu on. I understand the role she took on was not a popular one, but it was necessary to provide oversight to guarantee best prac ces at Hogwarts. So I was even more disappointed to learn that the posi on of High Inquisitor has not been re lled, and it seems that the Ministry is abandoning its campaign of educa onal reform. I had hoped that this misstep was a ributable to the transi on of administra ons and merely temporary, but it is becoming clear to me that Rufus Scrimgeour intends to go back to the way things were, allowing Hogwarts to have complete autonomy over how it teaches our children. This is a grave error.

I’m afraid that Albus Dumbledore’s tenure as Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcra and Wizardry has shi ed from ‘eccentric’ to ‘misguided’. This is a man who will always be known in my mind as the greatest wizard of our age. But it cannot be denied that his age is con nuing to increase, and at some point re rement is inevitable. Rumors are that Professor Dumbledore recently received a grievous injury to one of his hands, and yet I’ve heard no discussion on how much longer he can con nue serving as Headmaster or how many of his responsibili es may have been passed onto others to do or even abandoned en rely. I get it that no one is comfortable broaching the subject, but this is too important to let lie. Even the legendary must diminish, though their legacy lives on. What will the legacy of Albus Dumbledore be? His posi on there has always given Hogwarts an undeniable amount of pres ge. People always liked to know they were sending their kids o to learn from the most gi ed wizard alive. I always found it odd, therefore, that Professor Dumbledore doesn’t teach. It seems a real shame that no students actually get access to his mind and abili es, that they might stand on his giant shoulders and have the chance to become the next great witch or wizard of their age. Looking back now, that strikes me as a needless loss.

Perhaps Professor Dumbledore was unable to commit to a class schedule due to dedica ng his me elsewhere. All I can say is, I wish he were devo ng that me to increasing the value of a Hogwarts educa on for its a endees. Apparently though, Professor Dumbledore has other concerns. It has been noted that the man is more o en than not absent from the school. Where he goes and what he does, nobody seems to know, but I certainly don’t see how one can run Hogwarts e ec vely and correctly from outside its walls. I’ve heard some defenders say he is working towards defea ng He Who Must Not Be Named. That is an admirable goal, and I wish him success if that is so. I believe the Ministry could use all the help it can get with this war e ort. They would most likely be very glad to give him an important posi on there. Because that is how you help. You must pick one or the other. You can’t be deser ng your post to go ght He Who Must Not Be Named; you then end up part- me at both. Even in these dark mes, especially in these dark mes, we must keep in mind what is most important. We can’t allow our community’s future to slip from our grasp while we are the stewards of it, and in order to ensure that that future is passed on to the next genera on, whole and undiminished, we must ensure that they can become stewards of it as well. The protec on, discipline and magical pro ciency of our children are paramount. But while Professor Dumbledore’s focus is split, he will priori ze some things above helping his pupils become capable and ready witches and wizards.

The sta of Hogwarts does not come up to snu . There are s ll a few benchmark professors at our beloved alma mater, but they are now the excep on, not the rule. One of Dolores Umbridge’s chief goals as High Inquisitor was to improve teaching standards and to change the curriculum where necessary. The area she found to be most lacking was Divina on, and she planned to remove the elec ve en rely. No great loss there. It is well known that Seers are not made, they are born. However much of prognos ca on can be learned without a natural gi for it is debatable. I believe Professor Dumbledore himself has spoken nega vely on the subject. So why is it that this year there are TWO members of sta teaching Divina on classes at Hogwarts? This seems most absurd. There isn't a be er use to which the budget can be put? What value does this class add to a student’s educa on, how does it improve a child's chances at securing the future that they want? This is the s cking place. What lies ahead can only be guessed at, and so one must be prepared for any eventuality to have hope of success. Hogwarts stands to teach our young and impressionable sons and daughters about the gi s they possess, about the many branches of magic available to them, and to allow them to pursue exper se in any of them, to con dently take any path ahead of them. Is this not the case?

The administra on of Hogwarts that Professor Dumbledore has assembled is limi ng the career op ons for its students by not maintaining any teaching standards. This comes in part from the split focus I men oned. Professor Dumbledore is using his hiring power as Headmaster as a tool in his chess game with He Who Must Not Be Named. His sta must play the role of soldiers in addi on to educators, and one of those func ons is secondary. For many years, Severus Snape has taught Po ons at Hogwarts. During that me, his behavior has been characterized as terrifying and abusive, both in and outside of the classroom. Even if one were to ignore past allega ons of his being a Dark wizard, it is clear he has no place working with children. He has no quali es that make for a good professor other than an understanding of the material. There is more to teaching than that. But because he is a trusted advisor of Professor Dumbledore, he con nues to be housed and paid by Hogwarts and kept at a job that ac vely does harm to its students. This is unacceptable. On top of this, Professor Snape sets the absurdly high bar for his N.E.W.T. classes at only accep ng those who get an Outstanding in their O.W.L. Thus only a handful of Hogwarts students can con nue to learn about po ons in their nal two years there, the result being very few graduates enter the job market with the skills necessary for important occupa ons such as Auror or Po ons Master. This is a looming problem, one not limited to po oneering. Many

N.E.W.T. classes bar students from joining them even with a passing O.W.L. grade, all at the professor’s discre on. Why are so many future prospects for students being winnowed down before they even come of age?

And it doesn’t stop there. Another of Professor Dumbledore’s nepo s c hirings is Rubeus Hagrid, the Keeper of Keys and Grounds at Hogwarts and close friend to the Headmaster. He was given the posi on of Care of Magical Creatures professor a few years ago. Like Professor Snape, Professor Hagrid seems to be an expert in his eld. However, due to a lack of con dence and teaching experience, he is apparently unable to impart these skills to his students. He also has li le regard for the safety of novices when they interact with dangerous beasts, which must be the top priority of any instructor there since that will always be a constant poten al hazard in that class. I have come to understand that there are currently no students taking Care of Magical Creatures at the N.E.W.T. level, owing to a lack of interest in the subject as it is taught by Professor Hagrid. The same has been true for years with History of Magic. Cuthbert Binns is a ghost and teaches his subject in the same way without devia on: he recites the facts and gures of history in monotone without pause. Students could get the same thing from just reading their textbooks, except you can put a bookmark in those when you need a break. That’s not teaching. If it were, we wouldn’t need Hogwarts when we have Flourish & Blo s. By all means let Professor Binns keep haun ng his classroom, but don’t keep making students sit in there with him. It makes no di erence to him but would make all the di erence to them to go to a di erent room with an actual professor who will answer their ques ons and engage with them on this subject. As it stands now Hogwarts is no longer producing po oneers, magizoologists or magical historians and that simply cannot be allowed to con nue.

The last subject su ering from low standards, and the most important one now as ever, is Defense Against the Dark Arts. This one has been the problem the public has been aware of for the longest. No professor has held the post for more than a year for ages now. As such, there is no dependability with how this class is taught or what aspects of DADA are emphasized or ignored. And so students leave Hogwarts with a very spo y grasp on this vital branch of magic. The ‘jinx’ on this o ce is fairly undeniable at this point. And so, if this is the way things are, why can’t it be an cipated and dealt with in some way? If not undone, at least mi gated? Stop permi ng the new professor of the year to breeze in with free agency to run the classroom however they see t. Set up a strict structure of what curriculum will be taught, regardless of who is doing the teaching. Plus, start taking in applica ons con nuously. If you know the job opening will be there in June, you should be interviewing for the next DADA professor in January!

And I cannot stress this enough: nd candidates who have, rst and foremost, the ability to teach. As it should be with all of these professors. Mastery of a subject is all well and good, but that does not equate to being able to convey that knowledge to young minds which are developing and struggling and all di erent in their own way. Teaching is a di cult task. And one that is cri cal. The brooms ck we’re ying on is dri ng towards a dark stormcloud, and this cannot be ignored. Hogwarts requires correc on. It needs a new direc on. And it needs it now. A golden age may be passing for the school, but there is no need or expecta on that Hogwarts should join Albus Dumbledore in his journey towards twilight. I would very much like to know how the Ministry of Magic and the Board of Governors plan to save our children from this grim fate.

By Ra’s R. Rasserson

Hello, my wizarding friends. Today is the time I tell a tale not commonly known by our wizarding world. The founders are beloved by all, but perhaps two were loved by one another. Now I know you’ve all read the scandals of Helga and Godric but BEWARE THE FALSEHOOD. I am here today to tell you of another love, the love of the courageous and the cunning, ambitious and chivalrous, the love of friends turned enemies: Godric and Salazar.

The Lovers began their romance as many do in their youth, Godric and Salazar were friends who one day realized they had a common goal: build a school where people like them would be safe from the Muggles who had hunted them. We have to give Godric his due, no better a duelist with either wand or sword existed in his era. However, there was a reason for this: he had a sword stolen from the Goblins and a Wand won from death himself, which brings us to the Elder Wand. The Elder Wand, last wielded, as we know, by the Chosen One himself, has had a long history of powerful wizard and witch wielders. Similarly to another past wielder - the great Albus Dumbledore and his suspected ex-partner Grindelwald - Salazar and Godric began their love on a hunt for this hallow. They had a famous duel to decide who would wield the Elder Wand, and the Wand, with its magic, chose Godric, as he would wield it fairly but with great power. The Snake and the Lion began their quest to build a school alongside the Raven and Badger and made many a great stride. Godric and Salazar's love grew and the Elder Wand for the first and only time since decided that it had two masters. The reality of it all is that Salazar had a view we all view as abhorrent, one of only pure blood. Godric was nothing if not someone believing that the bravery required to go from muggle to wizard deserved a chance. Over time this thorn in the Lion's paw grew until he could no longer bear it. The love he once felt for Salazar had turned into hatred.

Yet the Elder Wand left one more gift to Salazar: a child of his and Godric's kin, what they had wanted, a true Master of Death. Salazar, defeated by his friend, fled to the United States with the child, trying to raise the child only for the child to fall ill to a magical curse given to it by the one true master of the Elder Wand. Godric’s price for power, a price he never knew he paid. As the child fell ill, Salazar realized the folly of his ways. Perhaps Helga or Rowena could have helped him save their child or perhaps the other father, Godric. But no, the child was to die.

Salazar the Great and Powerful was unable to save the only child he had left. This caused Salazar to lose all the love he had for a pureblooded society. He lost all love he had for magic and life itself, he was a cold shell, a skin the snake had long shed, the deathly hollowing, to put it bluntly. Salazar lived the rest of his life angry, bitter and alone waiting for the end to take him; he snapped his own wand and buried it. The legendary snapped snakewood wand buried lay dormant for a generation until they say Godric joined his true love in death and the wand began to stir miraculously. A Mighty tree grew and Salazar never knew that he had accomplished the goal of his and his love. Ilvermorny alumni will know this very tree well as it stands on the grounds of Ilvermorny as a testament to all being lost only to eventually find itself again.

This concludes a correction of the history of magic you learned in school. Stay Cunning and Courageous and may your love never be clouded by foolish bigotry.