Quote:
True maturity is when you find a differing opinion, and you can accept it, even if it does not change yours.
Live and let live, my friend.
-John
PS - You're not the only one who has had unique perspectives on FIRST.
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I think everyone has (or will have to) faced this particular challenge at some point.
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My opinion on the two matters concerning mentors and the competitive levels of competition: learning & experience curves are exponential. If you want to take a group of students and let them fumble around when the curve is flat, then you're more than welcome to. However, if you inject them with the knowledge & experience of a few mentors and let the students learn by teaching and by example then those students will be much further along in their learning than they would have been without the mentors. It then becomes apparent why teams that follow this process are very successful on and off the field: they're much further along in the curves. Go figure, this is one of the main FIRST principles that is repeatedly emphasized at kick-off.
Not only does this apply in the build season, but it also applies on the competition fields. Allowing an adult mentor as a coach gives the students an opportunity to learn from someone who is leading by example rather than leading by lecture. My personal opinion on field coaches (I am one so maybe it's biased) is that if an adult isn't the coach then you better have a very mature student as the coach. If you want to actually be high-caliber competitive at the competitions, you will need someone who can handle the pressure and thought processes that need to occur to be successful, as well as be proactive in the preparation of strategies for the matches. The first step to a student being able to coach well is that he/she must want to coach and not to drive...unfortunately many students simply do not understand the difference (and most will never read this post either...)