Is there really inspiration in teams?

[Philip W.]

Originally Posted by Cory

I don't think you can measure inspiration in terms of how many students go on to study engineering. You can be inspired in different ways. You could have always wanted to do something else with your life, but still gain a respect for engineering. While FIRST's main goal is to inspire students about science and technology, I'm sure some students have been inspired on the business/management side of thing as well.

Originally Posted by J Flex 188

Quantifying the benefit of FIRST and being inspired is pointless unless you are attempting to count the reach of the program, in that it continues to expand. There will always be the subtle nuances of when a student first picks up a tool and learns not to be afraid of it, or to ignore when some mentor claims that one can put in a washer back wards, compared to when someone realized their ultimate destination should be engineering, as opposed to business. Personally, I think FIRST strives for this type of balance, or at least it should.

These are definitely truthful points. Understanding how to orientate a washer and experiencing the business and leadership aspects of a FIRST team are very important parts of the FIRST program, but they're not the main objective. FIRST was created to solve the problem that there were not enough youths starting careers in science, technology, engineering and math. The questions in this thread are a crude method to investigate the degree of engineering inspiration on differently run teams. How effective does your team achieve FIRST's main goal in the current way it is run?

While I'm at it, here's my two cents and tangent to the topic. The business and leadership aspects of a FIRST team seem to be neglected by the FIRST vision. Both aspects are very important in running an efficient team, and leadership can easily be applied to later in life (not that business can't). The most recognition FIRST has for these aspects is the Entrepreneurship Award. I suppose it's underrated because FIRST is focusing on quantity over quality, we don't really hear any success stories about a FIRST alumnus that is extremely successful from joining FIRST. This is understandable, but still a shame. (If you want to go off topic by continuing this tangent, please do the very least and answer some of the questions if you haven't already)