HVAC Classes

When I first started college earlier this year it was all new. I was Homeschooled all my life and never had I been a in a class room situation. As a result I scored 89 and 87 on my first two test in HVAC. (one for Basic Electric and one for Refrigeration Principals.) But after that I took off. I have found it much easier now that I have started interacting with my fellow students in lab. At first I just did what I was required to do and left it at that. I soon learned that I am the most experienced tech in both classes, with my 2 1/2 years in the field. There is one guy who has been working longer but with a bigger company, thus he has been over looked as far as training goes. Everything seems easier when you teach others. I was very happy when my instructor appointed me to help him tech the rest of the class in lab. I think it has given me the confidence I needed to focus more on what I am learning, and then teaching in labs. A lot of people seem to think that everything I am helping them with comes from my field work. But I have found that though the work in the field has help me grasp things better, most of what I use to help my classmates I learn from the teacher first. It is odd, like when I was trying to figure out a problem that was not clear to me, and had me scratching my head, a student came up to me and asked the same question that I was having the problem with. When he asked it I came up with the answer right then and there, seemingly without thinking about it. When I had just spent two minutes stumped on the same problems.
Earlier this afternoon I went over to the AC building after finishing my math class and signed up for an EPA exam. While there I got to see the afternoon class (I am in the night class) be tested on the wiring diagrams that we had been working on for the past month. Out of maybe twelve students one failed badly and four barely past. Out of fifteen in my class how took the test later that night everyone did fairly well, save for one guy who was having trouble, but who, I think got a chance to redo it and I believe he past. Which was good because I had been helping him right before class started. I had also helped a guy who was convinced he was going to fail, but with those last five minutes before we headed into the test I was finally able to get the difference between contactors and fan relays and what they were used for to make since to him. He past with a 100. So in a way I fill proud of the people that I have come to view as my students. That we out did the afternoon guys by about 5-1 with D's or worse is something that I fill in someway responsible for. After all, we have the same teacher...the only difference is that my teacher has help in his night class...He goes it alone in his afternoon class.

Robert L.