The Perfect Espresso Making Process and The Perfect Learning Process

in #steemiteducation6 years ago

As a daily routine, I would pull at least two double shot espresso. I enjoy the process and the sweet smelling aroma that is produced. Today, I had one of those brain-farts and forgot to press my coffee grounds.


How it is supposed to look like


What I did today

The problem with not pressing it down or tamping it probably is that it produces a very under-extracted shot of espresso. Think of it as having half a glass of beer that is half water, half beer, or a glass of hot chocolate that is more water than chocolate. The point is, the coffee would taste horrible. As I was pulling myself another shot of espresso, the thought occurred to me that the espresso making process, once done right, is the perfect learning process. Let me explain...

The Right Amount of Pressure


The Pressure Gauge on My Machine

The right amount of pressure needs to be applied when making coffee. As seen in the picture above, if the gauge is under or over the highlighted area, it produces either an extremely weak shot of espresso or a very bitter one. Incidentally, learning is based on the same principles.

I am lucky to have observed several different education systems. I have observed those that allows the students to roam free and have fun. I have also observed those that requires its students to stay in class from 7am-10pm. Both these systems represent extreme ends of the pressure gauge. While both systems have its merits, applying too little or too much pressure impedes the students' learning.

If too much pressure is applied, it demotivates the students' drive to learn. Imagine arriving at school before the sun rises and leaving it after the sun sets. It can be rather depressing and like an over-extracted shot of espresso, it leaves a rather bitter and unpleasant taste. Conversely, too little pressure may make learning fun but it does not necessarily prepares the students to face the realities of the world.

The child unfortunately has to be given some level of pressure in the form of exams or projects. Doing so helps the child learn how to manage stress and anxiety. This is crucial in the child's development, or else they may be at a disadvantage once they enter the work force.

Thus, the right amount pressure applied would yield the best outcome, preparing them to face the possible challenges of the future while allowing them to enjoy learning as well. The perfect espresso and learning process is not just confined to the pressure applied, the coffee beans' grind size do matter as well.

Grind Size & Content Delivery


Image source

One similarity between the bean's grind size and the delivery of learning content is that they are both trial and error. Different batches of coffee beans would taste differently despite coming from the same manufacturer. It takes some experimenting in finding the right grind size for the perfect shot of espresso.

The same goes for the delivery of learning content. In other words, teaching the content in a way that helps the students learn requires experimentation. Some students learn best with music while others prefer a quiet environment, thus the challenge to deliver the content in the most effective manner takes practice as what works for one group may not work for the other.

It should be noted that if the beans were grounded too finely, no espresso gets extracted from the portafilter. Grind the beans too coarsely and the coffee would gush out quickly. The same goes with learning, the extraction of the coffee represents the students ability to apply the knowledge taught. Thus, if the teacher were to grind the content too finely, breaking down the content for the student without allowing them space to form their own understanding, the students may not be able to apply the content learnt. Beans grounded too finely will yield similar results whereby a little to no coffee will be extracted.

If knowledge was grounded too coarsely and limited explanation was given to the students, the students could still complete their work but the work produced could be of a low quality. This is the case for rote learning where memorization is the focus. As such, it creates an impression that remembering knowledge is all there is to learning. Thus, this may hinder the students from exploring the knowledge deeper. When compared to the espresso, the students' knowledge would be weak and lack depth.

Perfection Takes Time

While coffee making may sounds really complicated, it is quite easy to do. The problem is perfecting it and even after years of practice, one may still find their skills lacking. As a teacher of 8 years, I have yet to fully perfect my craft (both in coffee making and teaching). With every class, subject and year, there's always something new to learn.

Even with the students, teaching them to gain a full understanding of the content taught takes time. That being said, even if perfection is not achieved, perseverance is important. It would not be long before we learn how to produce the perfect cup of coffee or student.


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Wah! So nice a proper coffee machine complete with all the "ka chang" You make me a cup of coffee if I go visit you ya. I love coffee but I decided that a Nespresso machine was more practical for me! Hahaha! I love my Nespresso!

An Interesting read, I am one of those weird people who never drinks hot drinks so i would totally mess it up if I ever had to make a coffee for someone LOL

Lol, but you could always cold brew? That's another great way to make some awesome coffee without hot water

I forgot to add as well as not liking hot drinks the taste and smell of tea and Coffee is one I have never acquired a like for lol

I'm sorry, is there a grammar error in my post?

nevermind. My english also not perfect

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even if perfection is not achieved, perseverance is important. It would not be long before we learn how to produce the perfect cup of coffee or student.

Without perseverance, perfection won't kick in...
Practice makes perfect... :D
But then again, we also would need the 1% of talent + 99% perseverance to get the 100% perfection...

This reminded me when I first got my espresso machine with about 8 bar pressure but I have to pack into capsules in my CBTL machine.

I think I need to do that again after you have enticed me once again..

Just pack it aside in the fridge and wait for my ulcer to get well... haha...

But I didn't know extra fine is for Turkish coffee though, I always thought that those are for espresso.

So I wonder for those Dolce Gusto machines, when they use cold pressed coffee, which grind are they using?

We gotta make sure we don't end up like a gas station cup of coffee.

You know what? I had the same thought until I cell to this gas station once who had a pot of elephant beans coffee.. Cheap stuff but man it tasted so so good

All that wonderful caffienated goodness what a great post I see you got a curie vote aswell. Very good man well deserved. I got the shakes of the caffiene in the pictures.

Oh God. I almost drooled at this post. My brain runs on caffeine. I would snort it if I could, I think.

Can't wait for a decent, big kitchen where I'll have room for an espresso machine. Right now, my French Press does well, but still...

It is amazing how you link the coffee making to school learning progress. It is really challenging yet rewarding job. Both coffee making and also learning progress. You know what, I feel like drinking coffee now. Lol.

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