DBC First Impressions

Kitchen vs. Table

Posted by 'Tine Zekis on April 12, 2015 · 3 mins read

Assignment: Cultural Blog | Chefs in the Kitchen

After watching Shereef’s Fireside Chat, I have a bit of an idea of what the culture of Dev Bootcamp (DBC) looks like. Shereef likens the experience to a kitchen with lots of chefs, rather than a restaurant with lots of customers. The idea is that I, as a student, have not purchased a product to consume (I’ll have the DBC, extra spicy, and I can send it back if it’s not what I ordered). Instead, I should think of myself as a fellow chef, or co-creator, of the experience. The hope is that each of us will walk in saying, “I’m gonna co-create this with my cohort and with my teachers, and I’m going to surprise myself by how generous I am, how giving I have been, and how much I could possibly receive.”

I enjoyed Shereef’s take on what DBC is all about. What resonated the most with me was when he discussed the “educational trauma” we have all experienced. In general, we’ve been trained to receive education, not to do learning. We have been trained to figure out what will be on the test, learn which boxes to check so we can demonstrate our ability to regurgitate information, and we call that education. In this dynamic, we are the empty vessels, passively waiting to be filled by the all-knowing instructors. But in real life, learning is active and, more importantly, interactive. I really like the idea of learning together with my cohort and with my teachers. I believe that we all have a lot to contribute and that our experience will be richer if each and every one of us brings our unique perspectives to the table. Additionally, I love the notion of owning my experience at DBC. I understand that how much I get out of it will be directly proportional to how much I put into it.

That said, I’m totally nervous. I’m pretty sure I had an idea that this is what I was signing up for when I decided join the DBC community. But I’m terribly shy. I get intimidated in new groups of people, especially if they seem to know what they’re talking about. I also have a hard time socially if it seems like people have already developed a bit of a rapport with one another without me. I’m going to have to work hard in the beginning to put myself out there. Once people get to know me, I’m very outgoing, and I’m sure I will be much more comfortable sharing my opinions and asking questions. I think I will do well once I really feel that ownership. Until then, baby steps…

Hi DBC! I’m ‘Tine. Get at me, Bumblebees.