In Fire Emblem: Three Houses, you split your time between fighting battles and teaching students at a monastery. As you teach, there are key moments where you can encourage students down different paths toward new jobs. While the mechanic mostly exists for you to grind stats and try new battle combinations, these small moments realistically capture one of the most rewarding challenges of teaching: recognizing potential and deciding what a student can offer the entire class.
I’ve worked with students in the past by helping in outreach programs and summer camps. Taking in a class of 15 to 20 students can be daunting You need lesson plans and assignments to keep things organized. The trickiest part, though, is understanding students’ gifts and working to help them grow. Is a shy kid in theater class? Get them on stage so they’ll loosen up, but also give them the option of learning practical crafts like design and backstage work. It can be challenging to constantly shift and accommodate students’ needs, but navigating those moments is often deeply gratifying.
Fire Emblem: Three Houses captures this feeling through simple dialogue options that pop up from time to time. As students grow, they come to the player suggesting job paths they can embark on. Some of this is guided by stats, some of it by characters’ personalities. For instance, the exchange student Petra might suggest that she become an assassin due to how much other students say she has a penchant for sneaking. The boisterous Caspar might ask to focus on axes and become a warrior. You can say yes in these moments or guide characters down custom paths of your choosing.
You don’t have to accept any student’s suggestions. Instead, you might look at their skills for areas that they have secret potential in. Felix is great with swords but has high growth in certain magic. Petra might be sneaky, but she also enjoys riding. In my own playthrough, I decided that she would become a Pegasus Knight. It wasn’t what she suggested, but it worked out.
Obviously, it’s more important to listen while teaching than anything else. Hell, it’s important to listen in all things you do. There aren’t many chances in life to tell someone to fly on a pegasus rather than shoot a bow and arrow. But there are moments where you need to adapt and think on your feet for the sake of someone’s future. Teaching has those moments in heaps, and Fire Emblem: Three Houses exemplifies that.