As soon as I started working with ProTrainings, I heard the team talking about the Student CPR program, and I thought, “Man! That is SUCH a cool program! I hope I get a chance to be a part of it.” So, naturally, I was REALLY excited when I was asked if I’d like to tag along to interview, film and photograph the student program in action. I was like, “ABSOLUTELY!”
The school they were going to that day was Algoma Christian High School, and I DEFINITELY was not disappointed.
Even before we got to the classroom, there was a buzz in the hallway about who we were. The students were transitioning classes when we got there, and it was so neat to watch the students file in.
You could see there was a little bit of apprehension in some of their eyes about the skills testing, which is what they were going to be doing that day. They’d already gone through the online training and testing.
It was interesting to watch the classroom dynamics. The girls all grouped together on the left side of the room and the boys all on the right side…I remember laughing a little to myself…it reminded me of a middle school dance…
But, as the teacher turned on the “Stayin’ Alive” song, the students knew what they were supposed to do…
(PS: Did you know? If you think of that song while doing CPR, you’ll do the correct number of compressions per second, if you do it to the tune of that song.)
…they all started practicing on the manikins and to be honest, I was REALLY surprised at what I saw.
They REALLY knew what they were doing!…And they were REALLY enjoying it! (even the boys)
I liked being able to be a fly on the wall as I watched each of the students practice with the manikins and then go and perform in front of their teacher, demonstrating how well they grasped these life-saving techniques.
Just thinking about them now, I am SO proud of these kids. I don’t know them, any of them. And I’ve never met them besides our brief interactions on that one trip.
But, believe it or not, they made an impression on me.
I realized several things on that trip:
1. This new generation of life-savers we are raising up truly WILL make an impact in the world, because they genuinely have a DESIRE to do so.
2. Not only do they have a DESIRE to, they have the ABILITIES to do so, because they’ve put in the work to learn these concepts and techniques.
3. Collaborative learning should not be overrated. When asked what they liked most about the Student CPR program, most said that they “could do it with their friends.” They enjoy learning more when they can learn with OTHERS. And the unique format of our Student CPR program allows for this and even CATERS to it to allow for a more interactive learning experience.
