Recently I heard a conversation that troubled me. I was talking with a woman who was in part in charge of hiring and in part in charge of funding for various grants in the STEM field. She was mentioning how many applicants, particularly young applicants, are lacking in real world experience. She used as evidence the increase in applicants citing Google searches as a teaching tool to learn skills she deemed as necessary to the roles and for the grants she helped give out. While she is a professional with many years of experience under her belt and is not meaning to belittle the applicants, I put forward the opposing view.
In this, the information age, there is very little one cannot learn online. I myself have used YouTube, WikiHow, and online blogs to learn a number of skills. Skills that would have been difficult to acquire in any other way.
Example 1: YouTube and the art of motorcycle maintenance
A few years ago I bought a 1973 Honda CB500 motorcycle. It hadn’t run since the 90s and was mostly in pieces. It had boxes of components, but was only really a frame, flat tires, and an engine. Over a year and a half, I rebuilt it with the help of blogs and YouTube. In the end I got it running and used it as my commuting vehicle until I sold it last year.
I learned how to take apart engine components, clean them and rebuild them. I refitted old corroded carburator floats and changed the float needles. I removed the old-style points ignition system and changed it to a modern electrical ignition. And, where YouTube came in the most handy, was when I rewired the entire bike. I wrote out a wiring diagram and learned how to do electrical work without ever having had any experience doing so before. I made plenty of mistakes, but in the end I acquired a skill I’ve used at least a dozen times since.
Example 2: Carpentry Smarmentry
I love working with my hands and have taken on a number of small woodworking and carpentry projects. I’ve helped my step-dad with projects when I was a child, but most of the work I’ve done as an adult was done with the help of the internet and YouTube. In the last year alone, I’ve built shelves, made a spice rack, built chests and rough cabinets, and a hanging wood art project. I’ve double checked my plans with those online and had inspiration for more than one project through WikiHow and DIY bloggers.
Example 3: Camper Van Conversion
My last personal example is of my camper van. Last year I bought an old plumbing van and have worked to convert it into a camper. It is an interesting project for a number of reasons, but largely because it mixes a lot of skills I’ve acquired online such as mechanical work, metal work, and wood work. So far, I’ve built a set of benches that have built in storage and also fold down into my camper bed. I’ve done insulation and flooring. And, the scariest part so far, was cutting a 12 inch x 12 inch square hole in the roof to fit a vent fan.
Plans for the future include a number of electrical installation, including a solar panel, 12V plugs, a second battery, etc. I’ll build and put in a table, and perhaps some welding to make a roof rack. All of these skills will have been acquired online.
And so, in sum, I cannot discount the immense amount of skill acquisition someone can have through online means such as YouTube. There is so much online and so many talented teachers instructing people in almost every topic online. To discount people for noting that they’ve learned skills online is to do everyone a disservice. It is a disservice to the applicant who possibly has a very real skillset. It is also a disservice to the industry for being withheld these talented individuals who have had the drive and motivation to learn a complex skill on their own in their own time.
