Open online courses are a gift to humanity, with quality education now made more accessible. Right from the confines of our homes, we can finally enter the doors of the dream school whose acceptance letter we’ve yearned for a long, long while. And no, I’m not talking about the Ivy League. Hogwarts is now open for (online) classes.
Fans have unearthed the 2014 unofficial network Hogwarts is Here, an immersive wizarding experience that takes you right to the start of classes like you’re 11 years old again. As a massive open online course (MOOC) and an RPG hybrid, players can take part as themselves, while completing several classes prescribed for their year. The first-year curriculum includes courses such as Astronomy, Charms, Defense Against the Dark Arts, Herbology, History of Magic, Potions and Transfiguration. If you subscribe to Hermione’s school of thought, you have the option to take these classes simultaneously. Otherwise, they can be navigated at your own pace while you roam around the castle during your spare time.
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While this sounds like a fantasy straight out of a Potterhead’s brain, expect to buckle down and get to work. Each course includes nine lessons involving reading assignments, essay writing and quizzes—lots of ’em. After a course is completed, the professor nominates two students for Head Boy and Head Girl based on academic performance. Snape isn’t in attendance here, but let’s hope you get on their good side nonetheless.
Classes go all the way up to seventh year. Graduate with top marks and you can fly your way to the Ministry of Magic, have a successful career as an Auror and peacefully retire once you reach the age of Dumbledore. That, or wait till Voldemort’s inevitable resurrection.
Still from “Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets”