Most teachers would want the latest technology for their classrooms. Not many can find a special use for a teaching tool that’s 100 years old.
But if you’re heading up an automotive class, a classic 1923 Model T Ford is something invaluable. Because if you’re going to be a car mechanic, you may as well learn the basics, and nothing gets more basic than a vintage car made a century ago.
That’s why Thomas Fischer was thrilled when the car was donated to the Escambia Career Readiness Center, in Brewton, Alabama, where he guides the mechanics of the future. Mr. Fischer developed a love of cars in his uncle’s garage and began his teaching career at his own high school. He has been honored as the County Teacher of the Year, and sees the Model T as a unique part of his classroom.
While today’s vehicles are loaded with computerized parts requiring mechanics to understand technology, cars still run on the original concept.
“When a car doesn’t work, you still have to know the basics. You need air; you need fuel; you need spark. The Model T makes it easy to show students what makes an engine run,” Mr. Fischer said. “And there’s a coolness factor.”
He went directly into teaching right out of college, returning to his Salem, Illinois, high school for his first job. While he could have been a mechanic, he felt a job as an educator was more important.
“It’s one thing to do something, but to train others is something else,” Mr. Fischer said. “My high school automotive instructor was a good role model, and I saw a need for teachers. Being able to build a future and train students ... I enjoy the outcome.”
His hour-long automotive class is an elective for high school students and eighth graders, with 50 teenagers choosing the course this year. The curriculum is set by The National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence (ASE) Education Foundation, which lists tasks that students must master during a semester—everything from replacing brake shoes to checking the master cylinder for proper performance.
Aiden Lasala, 14, is homeschooled, which allows him to spend three hours every day in Mr. Fischer’s garage classroom. Although his generation is obsessed with technology, Aiden loves the basics of the Model T.
“I like that it’s simple. It has what it needs, and if it doesn’t need it, it doesn’t have it,” he said. Like Mr. Fischer, Aiden has an uncle with a garage, and he has already decided on his career path as a mechanic.
“I really like working with my hands,” Aiden said.
Mr. Fischer, who has been teaching at his current job since 2021, pointed out other qualities that make the Model T a magnet for students.
“There was a trust factor with this car. It has no keys, and no door. It was designed so that an owner could make a repair. If you had any mechanical ability, you could maintain it,” he said.
And those who think that the push-button starters in today’s cars are a modern innovation may be surprised to learn that the Model T starts the same way—with the push of a button. (Electric cars aren’t a new invention, either. Long before EVs dominated every television commercial, the Ford Motor Co. tried its hand with a battery-powered car in the early 1900s, but the internal combustion engines of gasoline-powered cars won out.)
Mr. Fischer demonstrated how the taillights operate by flipping open the glass cover: They’re not electric, but actual kerosene lanterns that have to be lit. And there are no turn-indicator lights, so those old-fashioned hand signals on every driver’s license test come into play. Surprisingly, Aiden already knows that an arm extended straight out signals a left turn, while an arm bent at the elbow pointing up means the driver is turning right. The car is a perfect example of how things can work just fine without any computerized technology.
As for having a Model T in the garage, Mr. Fischer said the only problem with the car is that students get very excited when they first see it. “They want to hop on it. But there’s a delicacy to it; you have to preserve it, keep as much of the original as possible,” he said.
Mr. Fischer hopes to have it in perfect running condition for the town’s Christmas parade.
He also uses another vintage teaching tool—his personal car—which he occasionally brings to the garage for the students to examine. The classic yellow 1964 1/2 Mustang is another low-tech vehicle, without functions such as power steering and power windows. If you want air conditioning, you can roll down the windows by hand and get a breeze in your face by opening the little vent.
In a world dominated by computers, it’s notable that teenage students are actually drawn to something built 100 years ago. Perhaps, it’s an indication that newer isn’t always better, and that using old-school stuff is an excellent way to teach.
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