Definition of a FIRST Mentor

[gblake]

The description I like the best is to be the guardrails on the road the students drive the team along.

I agree with that person in that I always want to encourage the students to take the reins and test themselves. I want them to learn by doing and hopefully learn when to ask for help.

However, as that other mentor pointed out, when $10,000 to $50,000 of student/sponsor money is being spent, instead of letting them learn by catastrophically failing (i.e. driving the car into the ditch), mentors supply the guardrails that put them back on course when they stray dangerously far afield.

The guardrails need to be close together when the team is learning something new or putting something valuable/important at risk. They need to be far apart when the students are following the right processes and are managing themselves well (inexperience might lead to sketchy/imperfect outcomes, but attentive students' learning/efforts are leading to improvements)

In summary, my take on "Mentors are the guardrails"

• Show the students how to do what they need to do
• Step back and let the students do what they need to do
• Nudge them back on course when they need a nudge
• Insist, when necessary, that no one tries to juggle the chainsaws

Blake