What went well?
The First Robotics Competition organizers have a lot of useful information and instructions on the official website. FRC also has an official YouTube channel with some instructional videos on operating the robot and using Java to program it.
For the students, I think I helped them get a good start on the project by explaining the existing code, how it differs from the Python that some of them have already encountered, and giving them heavily commented code to implement specific functionality, which they could use as a starting point for other features they need to implement.
What was the most impactful part?
On my part, it was impactful in that I spent a lot of time thinking about how best to organize information and present it so that it's easier for people to receive and digest it.
What challenges did you face?
Communication between the students and me was challenging. On one hand, I am busy, so I cannot work with them daily. On the other hand, when we do meet, it would go much more smoothly if I could either see them during our tutoring sessions, so that I could read their faces for understanding, or alternatively if they were more responsive in chat or by voice. It felt like I was talking to an empty room.
On my end, some of the challenges included setting up and learning about their VS Code implementation, the robotics control library, setting up follower mode, and other details.
What would you improve?
The only thing that comes to mind is that the portal for tracking and approving SL hours feels clunky and can probably be improved.
What advice do you have for future SL students?
I would advise future SL students going into tutoring programs to be prepared for unique teaching formats and to be ready to ask questions to get students to talk, while letting them know that there are no dumb questions and encouraging them to ask.
