by Many know that my son has been helping administrate a Minecraft server. This server has enough people, that administrating the server means working at the Linux prompt level, looking at top output, editing configuration files, restarting application processes when the watchdog process fails, etc. He also deals with the end users, helping them use the server, dealing with malicious users as well. He's still learning some of the command line scripting tools, and that's the point.
This is application administration. The level of responsibility is appropriate to his age, and doesn't interfere with schoolwork. I used to bemoan the lack of more primitive computing because it made it harder to learn the basics that are needed to train up the next generation of application and system administrators. But here, I mainly have to step back and let things go. Sure, not every Minecraft server admin will learn everything, but that's not the only method to train up. It just means that there is a way that teenagers can and do learn the skills needed for a successful career in IT.