Good Vibes Only: Typing teen shows off speedy skills

EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) -- Throughout the year, students worked hard to earn good grades as they refined their skills in the classroom.

14-year-old Alan Rubio is one student who came out on top. He went from being the worst typist in his class to the best!

However, it took considerable hard work and dedication to reach this milestone.

“I used to be the worst one in this class. I used to get, everyone was getting 30s (WPM) and 40s, and I was getting tens and fifteens. Then I started, I was like, 'No, I can't let this slide.'”

Sibrena Sinegal, a business teacher at Charles Middle School, said she decided to start the six-week typing course after discovering that many of her students did not know how to type the correct way.

Alan, the soon-to-be freshman at Andress High School, immediately got up to speed. He told ABC-7 that he practices constantly at school and at home using his school-issued computer.

He was committed to improving his score. The teen told ABC-7 he would practice up to four hours every night.

Sinegal said she was impressed by Alan's dedication and initiative to keep practicing even outside of school.

She said she even put Alan's skills to the test!

"And I'm like, well, this race, he beat me. And I felt so good about him beating me because we always want our students to do better than us.”

Within weeks, Alan was able to raise his score from an average of 10 words per minute to 110 WPM. Alan said it happened quickly!

“I don't know. I just looked at everyone's screens, and everyone was getting 50s and 60s. And I'm over here getting 70s and 80s. I was like, 'Oh, that's. That's awesome'."

Despite criticism from his peers, Alan knows typing can take him far in the future. He said he takes typing very seriously.

"It’s very useful to know how to type because you're going to need it later on in life. It's it sets up a lot of different opportunities for jobs and stuff," he said.

Now, Alan has a goal to reach 147 WPM.

“I just love typing so much.”

Alan said he still doesn't know what he wants to study in college.

But he hopes he can follow in his brother's footsteps and become an immigration court interpreter and make typing his full-time job.

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