The Wizard Education System Does Not Prepare you for Real Life

So, lately I've been reflecting on the wizarding world of Harry Potter and I've got to say, I don't think Hogwarts prepares you for real life (by real life, I of course mean wizard life). Don't get me wrong here, I love the Harry Potter books and I would totally go to Hogwarts if I could, but upon further reflection, it doesn't seem to be the great, educational institution that it's made out to be. I mean, this isn't just Hogwarts' fault, really, the trouble is with the wizard system of education and, in general, the lack of common sense logistics that seems to trouble wizard society (perhaps, facilitated by a lack of education). And Hank Green expresses this as well.

Like, consider it, the average wizard goes to Hogwarts for 7 years (unless you drop out like Harry), and that seems like a lot until you consider that the average kid in America goes to school for twelve years (not counting kindergarten and college, which make it seventeen years). So, by the time I'm done with college I'll have ten years more education than most wizards, which is concerning for a number of reasons.

Firstly, allowing someone with the equivalent of a seventh grade education to practice magic that has the ability to like kill lots of people and destroy bridges and make people forget their whole lives kind of worries me. I mean, when I was in seventh grade, I definitely don't think I was up to that sort of education, I was much more preoccupied by cafeteria politics ( :P ).

Secondly, school doesn't start for wizards until they're eleven. Now, I don't know about the rest of you, but I started school when I was five, which leaves the question, what do wizards do up until then? I mean, presumably everyone can already read and write and do basic stuff like that when they get to Hogwarts because they have to write papers and stuff, but I don't see how they would even be able to if they don't start school until age eleven. Like, I know that Harry and Hermione went to muggle school and learned the same muggle school stuff that the rest of us learned, but what did everyone else do? Is there some special wizard elementary school that's not mentioned in the books? I mean, people like Draco Malfoy would not be caught dead in a muggle school. Actually, we know that wizarding families don't send their kids to muggle school because, if they did, no one would be surprised that muggles have non-moving chess sets and photographs. Which means that most wizard kids were probably home schooled.

Now, that's probably okay for most families, like the Weasleys and the Malfoys. But what if both your parents work? What would you do then? Take lessons from your family house elf? Besides, even if you have a family situation that works for home schooling, you're still going to have families like the Lovegoods who have no idea of what passes for normal education. I mean, Luna believes in nargles! Nargles! And, as far as I know, if you miss all this early education and stuff, Hogwarts is not going to teach it to you. I mean, there are no English classes and math isn't even required at Hogwarts (actually, I really like that idea).

Anyway, this leads to a really inconsistent wizard education. No wonder wizards have to have goblin bankers; none of them can do math! I mean, what sort of job can you get with only seven years of formal education? Some of us muggles go to school for seventeen years and we have trouble finding decent employment. I guess that most are small business owners or work for the ministry, but what sort of government is that? I mean, you should at least have to go to college to work for the government (is there even a wizard college?). No wonder Voldemort was able to take over the ministry so easily! If no one can even write a five paragraph essay, how do you expect them to hold back a force of psychotic Azkaban escapees?

This is how these evil wizard dictatorships get started.

Just sayin'