Crash 1,
I would love to know where you learnt so people can know to avoid it!
I can understand the instructor not giving time before a flight to crawl around the aircraft if they had a full book - they either cut your lesson short, so instead of getting an hour (50 mins airborne), you only get 45 (35) minutes which which does make the flying time less effective, or they are running into the next students time - what I WOULD have done though is suggested a time when you COULD come in and do this. Without a full book, there is NO excuse!
I am amazed you had not covered stalling properly prior to Solo - solo is exercise 14, and when I was taught maths 10 comes a few numbers before this!
The other examples you give also sound a little a though you were dealing with an instructor who was not very good and probably low experience to book!