this is a very interesting issue which i have had long debates about...this year 73 has a student coach, and 1511 has both (they alternate)
having been a coach both as a mentor and a student there are different things you have to keep in mind before you make the decision of who to put in there.
student advantages:
- more students on the field
- peers communicate better
- most of the time more creative at on the fly moves
student disadvantages
- students can get dominated by mentors in strategy sessions
- need to be able to think quick on the fly (this goes for mentors also)
- need to look at the whole picture instead of just the robot (i have found
- this particularly difficult for students mainly although i suppose that adults have the same problem)
mentor advantages
- more likely to stay cool and collected (not always the case but i wont say team numbers)
- gets mentors to have a change to "be in the thick of things"
- would be able to communicate better with other adult mentors
- will not get dominated in strategy discus sons
mentor disadvantages
- not necessarily good communication with the drive team (age difference)
- makes team look to have a mentor lead image
- reduces the number of students that can be on the field
overall i think that each team needs to weigh the options and make their own decision and there is no right and wrong. in my personal opinion i like to have a student out there but like to attend all the strategy sessions to make sure they don't get dominated by an adult. what it comes down to is who does the best job at getting the information to the drivers student or mentor you should put the best person out there.