For some high school students, summer marks the end of another school year and the beginning of a much-needed break. Others take a different route — they become the teacher.
Belmont Free Lessons (BFL), a student-founded organization, offers free classes for local students and beyond during the summer. The teachers are themselves students at Belmont High School.
The organization was founded in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, when the manner in which students were learning began to transform. BFL Co-President Ethan Gong was one of the organization’s first students before becoming a teacher a few years later.
“I always wanted to learn more, and during COVID, it was a time where I just had a lot of free time, with nothing really to do at home,” Gong said. “Now it’s kind of my way of giving back to the community.”
Today, Gong leads BFL alongside Lawrence Tu, both rising seniors at the high school. BFL offers classes in algebra, physics, computer coding, drawing, and more. In past years, there have been classes in civics, piano, and Chinese, among other subjects.
“We really want to inspire them to keep learning, or just keep being curious about the things that they’re interested in,” Tu said. “It doesn’t really matter exactly what subject they’re focused on, but we want them to continue pursuing the things that they’re interested in, and that if we can be like a medium for that opportunity, then that’s our goal.”
BFL teachers come up with their own syllabi, run their own classes on Zoom or in person, and designate whether the course will assign homework, Tu said. Some teachers use materials and experience from classes at Belmont High School, while others utilize online resources from other educators or come up with exercises themselves.
The organization is entirely student-run, with a management team and an advisory board, made up of former BFL teachers who are now in college.
While some students sign up for classes in hopes of learning a new skill, many use it as a way to deepen their understanding of a subject or help themselves prepare for school in the fall. While the subject matter may look similar to that of a math or science class, being taught by a peer can make learning more approachable and even fun.
“These students, a lot of them need extra help with different subjects, and so it’s just a way for us to build their confidence, and help them achieve more than they originally thought that they could,” Gong said.
For BFL teachers, getting to teach a range of subjects and students means not only deepening their understanding of a subject, but making connections to local kids.
“It’s really helped me grow a lot as a person,” Tu said. “I’m explaining things to the next generation, so it not only helps me build my own understanding about the subject I’m teaching, but I’m really able to influence kids.”
