For the 2 Week Bootcamp curriculum (the 2019 course ran from April 28th to May 10th, 2019), we took the most significant learning moments from our 15 Week Professional Culinary Program and boiled them down to about 10 essential fundamentals, each one with its own science, history and fascinating details. At first we thought perhaps we were over-shooting the potential of a short-term, enthusiast course. Would the home cook be ready for the same hardcore basics we inculcate in our pro students? Do they need to learn, for instance, how to sharpen a knife on a stone, bone a chicken, or filet a whole fish? To our surprise, they sopped up these hardcore basics with an enthusiasm beyond our expectations.
Then again, why shouldn’t they be just as motivated as the pro students in taking detailed notes, asking curious questions, performing artisanal skills, and get excited about anticipating new aha! moments every day? After all, they put aside two weeks of their life to do this. So why not do it wholeheartedly?
The goal of any education is to achieve beyond your expectations. The key ingredient, as usual, is a well-crafted curriculum, a thoughtful script which allows the teacher-student relationship to develop and perform to its best potential. The bootcampers started day one as pure learners, ready and willing to absorb our best intentions. They may have given us better insight into curriculum writing and teaching strategies than we could have ever expected. We look forward to the next one and anticipate new expectations.
Note: For more information on the next year’s class you can visit here.