Generation gaps

[N7UJJ]

One of the things I like about the FIRST experience is the "generation mixing"

Once we start kindergarten, we spend most of our time in our own age groups. The only adults we work with are the teachers who are the authority and know all the answers. Organized after school activities tend to be grouped by age (U12 soccer, McDonald playground.) Even religous activities! We tend to be segregated into age groups in college. When we have a choice, we still self select our age group.

Yet we evolved in tribes and large family groups. We may have wanted to be with our age group, but chores would require working with elders and those younger. We spent a lot of time with grandpa and grandma as well as being in charge of the younger kids. Think of all the traditions, wisdom, crafts, skills that were taught/learned. There was no school, yet we learned.

It's only recently that we started learning so many skills in schools, where one authority works with a class.

FIRST, like many work environments, encourages a range of experience and ages. Teachers, mentor, students (frosh to senior) and throw in mentoring a FLL team and that is quite a group that has to respect and discuss and spend a lot of time together. We all learn an awful lot about, not just the engineering task at hand, but all the life skills.

We older crowd find that kids are a lot more kinder, smarter, and capable than they are port raid in the news. I'm sure the younger crowd sees their elders in a more positive light. It's a win-win.

So among other things, our FIRST experience shows what a fertile learning environment our "extended family" provides. Maybe more effective than traditional classroom, age grouped, teacher-directed exercises.

Learning from the elders and being responsible for the youngers. It's worked for 100,000+ years and it works in FIRST groups. It works in the "real world"