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Chapter 62: The Aftermath of the Exam
2022-07-14 Author: I'm Just a Pigeon
Facts are more persuasive than any words. Repeating "you're the worst year I've ever taught" ten times will only breed resentment among the students. But defeating them with an exam? Once is enough.
"I know that the reason for your poor foundation isn't entirely your fault. I've checked the class records from previous years. Your year has had about a third of your lessons without a professor's guidance, relying entirely on self-study. Your textbooks have been a chaotic mess, with no discernible structure. That's not your fault."
"However—" William's tone grew heavy, "—no matter what excuse you have, the Wizarding Examinations Authority won't be putting an Acceptable on your report card because of it."
"Falling behind in your grades isn't a disaster. Fortunately, we still have an entire year to address and fill in the previous gaps. As your Professor, I will do everything in my power this academic year to help you improve your foundation, ensuring that today's scene doesn't repeat itself in the OWLs Examination Hall."
"In order to have enough time to make up for the material you've missed, we'll have to speed up our teaching pace. To be honest, this exceeds my original plan, but it seems I now have no choice but to make some changes."
"Alright, everyone open your textbooks to the first page. Fold up your exam papers; I'll collect them now."
As he spoke, William walked down from the podium and began to collect the papers.
He had a test with Slytherin and Gryffindor that afternoon. Leaking a few questions wouldn't affect the grades, but if the entire test paper got out, he'd have to use the backup—the one he had originally saved to crush their egos during the midterms.
"If you've followed my previous instructions carefully, then all of you should have read the first twenty pages of the textbook by now. So, let's begin our first lesson."
...
"Ding!!!"
The end-of-class bell rang. William, who had been engrossed in his explanation, glanced out the window and gave all the students a smile.
"I got a bit carried away, but we managed to complete the newly revised teaching plan. Because the lesson was fast-paced, I hope all of you will go back and carefully reread the textbook twice, and pre-study chapters two and three. There's no homework for this class, but please, all of you, be sure to complete the review and pre-study tasks."
"And with that, class dismissed."
In truth, he had already prepared a large test paper related to the material, but unfortunately, now was not the time to bring it out.
With a hint of regret, William walked out of the classroom. As he closed the door, he could clearly hear many students gasping for air inside.
—
"That was terrifying. I felt like I couldn't even breathe."
"The Professor was smiling the whole time, but I couldn't smile at all."
"Alright, you few are the only ones with the nerve to talk. Can you please quiet down?"
The loudest students were shot a harsh glare by the Prefect in the classroom and didn't dare say another word.
For the first time ever, the students in the classroom didn't rush to leave after class ended. Instead, they remained in their seats, unsure of what to do.
The students from both Houses turned their gazes to the Prefects, desperately hoping they would say something. However, the two Fifth Year Prefects from Ravenclaw were staring at their textbooks, lost in thought. Only the male Prefect from Hufflepuff seemed to have some semblance of his usual composure.
Although countless older students and professors had warned them about the horrors of the OWLs, the pressure they had only ever heard about was now weighing down on all of them for the first time.
Ravenclaw House's average grade was typically higher than the other Houses, something Ravenclaw students had always been proud of. As a result, almost every Ravenclaw student had been left reeling by this exam filled with past OWLs questions.
For students who still wanted to improve their learning, there was nothing more frightening than a long string of questions they couldn't answer, especially when they would have to face those very problems themselves in a year.
After a long while, the male Hufflepuff Prefect finally stood up.
"Alright, the next class is about to start. We shouldn't stay in the classroom any longer. The Professor is right; if we have gaps in our knowledge, we should fill them. Do you really think hiding from it will help us pass the OWLs?"
"Let's go, let's go, everyone get to class. Next up is Transfiguration. Our professor is Professor McGonagall. Do you really want to be late?"
The fear of Professor McGonagall clearly outweighed the fear of failing an exam a year from now. The group of thoroughly discouraged students finally began to begrudgingly pack their things and leave the classroom.
—
"What on earth are you all thinking?"
"Without serious study, practice, and application, you will not be able to pass your OWLs exam."
Professor McGonagall spoke angrily to the group of listless students.
"You are in your Fifth Year! I'm sure more than one professor has emphasized the importance of the OWLs exam! Why is every single one of you in a daze? Was the last class—" Professor McGonagall caught herself, "—Divination Class again? You're Fifth Years now, Fifth Years, not some Third Year child just starting Divination!"
"Which student's death did Professor Trelawney prophesy this time?"
Her tone was clearly laced with anger.
"It wasn't Professor Trelawney, it was Professor William."
A student answered.
"Professor William?" Professor McGonagall's voice carried a note of surprise.
"But his course has nothing to do with Divination. Did Professor William give you corporal punishment?"
Although the Defense Against the Dark Arts course had changed its name, it couldn't change the fact that the class would involve a significant amount of wizard dueling. It wasn't impossible that some of the confrontations had gone too far.
"No, Professor. Professor William prepared a test paper for us. It was all content from the OWLs exam, but we all failed."
"All of you?"
"Yes, Professor. Only three students received a Poor. The rest of us scored even worse."
"I will discuss this matter with Professor William. I am certain that he is more concerned about your grades than you are. But for now, children, you should be more concerned with the content of our lesson. This lesson covers a notoriously difficult spell, and one that is very likely to appear on the OWLs exam. If you continue to dwell on an exam that is already over, I suspect you will be receiving many more P's."
Professor McGonagall's words recaptured the students' attention—if they kept agonizing over the last exam, they would probably end up with another exam paper full of things they didn't know.
But halfway through the lesson, it became impossible to continue.
This class covered a notoriously difficult part of Transfiguration: the Vanishing Spell. This spell was challenging even for Seventh Year students to practice.
After the entire class had struggled for nearly an hour without managing to make a snail's shell even slightly paler, the girl who usually had the best grades suddenly found her eyes turning red. She gave up on spellcasting and threw herself into her friend's arms, starting to cry.
It was likely a chain reaction. Several other girls' eyes reddened, and the sound of sobbing filled the classroom. Professor McGonagall's classroom had never been in such a state of chaos.
PS: Apologies, as I was writing, I suddenly discovered a more interesting approach, so this ended up a bit more dramatic than one of Tony the stylist's drastic haircuts...
(end of chapter)
2022-07-14 Author: I'm Just a Pigeon
Facts are more persuasive than any words. Repeating "you're the worst year I've ever taught" ten times will only breed resentment among the students. But defeating them with an exam? Once is enough.
"I know that the reason for your poor foundation isn't entirely your fault. I've checked the class records from previous years. Your year has had about a third of your lessons without a professor's guidance, relying entirely on self-study. Your textbooks have been a chaotic mess, with no discernible structure. That's not your fault."
"However—" William's tone grew heavy, "—no matter what excuse you have, the Wizarding Examinations Authority won't be putting an Acceptable on your report card because of it."
"Falling behind in your grades isn't a disaster. Fortunately, we still have an entire year to address and fill in the previous gaps. As your Professor, I will do everything in my power this academic year to help you improve your foundation, ensuring that today's scene doesn't repeat itself in the OWLs Examination Hall."
"In order to have enough time to make up for the material you've missed, we'll have to speed up our teaching pace. To be honest, this exceeds my original plan, but it seems I now have no choice but to make some changes."
"Alright, everyone open your textbooks to the first page. Fold up your exam papers; I'll collect them now."
As he spoke, William walked down from the podium and began to collect the papers.
He had a test with Slytherin and Gryffindor that afternoon. Leaking a few questions wouldn't affect the grades, but if the entire test paper got out, he'd have to use the backup—the one he had originally saved to crush their egos during the midterms.
"If you've followed my previous instructions carefully, then all of you should have read the first twenty pages of the textbook by now. So, let's begin our first lesson."
...
"Ding!!!"
The end-of-class bell rang. William, who had been engrossed in his explanation, glanced out the window and gave all the students a smile.
"I got a bit carried away, but we managed to complete the newly revised teaching plan. Because the lesson was fast-paced, I hope all of you will go back and carefully reread the textbook twice, and pre-study chapters two and three. There's no homework for this class, but please, all of you, be sure to complete the review and pre-study tasks."
"And with that, class dismissed."
In truth, he had already prepared a large test paper related to the material, but unfortunately, now was not the time to bring it out.
With a hint of regret, William walked out of the classroom. As he closed the door, he could clearly hear many students gasping for air inside.
—
"That was terrifying. I felt like I couldn't even breathe."
"The Professor was smiling the whole time, but I couldn't smile at all."
"Alright, you few are the only ones with the nerve to talk. Can you please quiet down?"
The loudest students were shot a harsh glare by the Prefect in the classroom and didn't dare say another word.
For the first time ever, the students in the classroom didn't rush to leave after class ended. Instead, they remained in their seats, unsure of what to do.
The students from both Houses turned their gazes to the Prefects, desperately hoping they would say something. However, the two Fifth Year Prefects from Ravenclaw were staring at their textbooks, lost in thought. Only the male Prefect from Hufflepuff seemed to have some semblance of his usual composure.
Although countless older students and professors had warned them about the horrors of the OWLs, the pressure they had only ever heard about was now weighing down on all of them for the first time.
Ravenclaw House's average grade was typically higher than the other Houses, something Ravenclaw students had always been proud of. As a result, almost every Ravenclaw student had been left reeling by this exam filled with past OWLs questions.
For students who still wanted to improve their learning, there was nothing more frightening than a long string of questions they couldn't answer, especially when they would have to face those very problems themselves in a year.
After a long while, the male Hufflepuff Prefect finally stood up.
"Alright, the next class is about to start. We shouldn't stay in the classroom any longer. The Professor is right; if we have gaps in our knowledge, we should fill them. Do you really think hiding from it will help us pass the OWLs?"
"Let's go, let's go, everyone get to class. Next up is Transfiguration. Our professor is Professor McGonagall. Do you really want to be late?"
The fear of Professor McGonagall clearly outweighed the fear of failing an exam a year from now. The group of thoroughly discouraged students finally began to begrudgingly pack their things and leave the classroom.
—
"What on earth are you all thinking?"
"Without serious study, practice, and application, you will not be able to pass your OWLs exam."
Professor McGonagall spoke angrily to the group of listless students.
"You are in your Fifth Year! I'm sure more than one professor has emphasized the importance of the OWLs exam! Why is every single one of you in a daze? Was the last class—" Professor McGonagall caught herself, "—Divination Class again? You're Fifth Years now, Fifth Years, not some Third Year child just starting Divination!"
"Which student's death did Professor Trelawney prophesy this time?"
Her tone was clearly laced with anger.
"It wasn't Professor Trelawney, it was Professor William."
A student answered.
"Professor William?" Professor McGonagall's voice carried a note of surprise.
"But his course has nothing to do with Divination. Did Professor William give you corporal punishment?"
Although the Defense Against the Dark Arts course had changed its name, it couldn't change the fact that the class would involve a significant amount of wizard dueling. It wasn't impossible that some of the confrontations had gone too far.
"No, Professor. Professor William prepared a test paper for us. It was all content from the OWLs exam, but we all failed."
"All of you?"
"Yes, Professor. Only three students received a Poor. The rest of us scored even worse."
"I will discuss this matter with Professor William. I am certain that he is more concerned about your grades than you are. But for now, children, you should be more concerned with the content of our lesson. This lesson covers a notoriously difficult spell, and one that is very likely to appear on the OWLs exam. If you continue to dwell on an exam that is already over, I suspect you will be receiving many more P's."
Professor McGonagall's words recaptured the students' attention—if they kept agonizing over the last exam, they would probably end up with another exam paper full of things they didn't know.
But halfway through the lesson, it became impossible to continue.
This class covered a notoriously difficult part of Transfiguration: the Vanishing Spell. This spell was challenging even for Seventh Year students to practice.
After the entire class had struggled for nearly an hour without managing to make a snail's shell even slightly paler, the girl who usually had the best grades suddenly found her eyes turning red. She gave up on spellcasting and threw herself into her friend's arms, starting to cry.
It was likely a chain reaction. Several other girls' eyes reddened, and the sound of sobbing filled the classroom. Professor McGonagall's classroom had never been in such a state of chaos.
PS: Apologies, as I was writing, I suddenly discovered a more interesting approach, so this ended up a bit more dramatic than one of Tony the stylist's drastic haircuts...
(end of chapter)
