Issue retrieving firebase child node swift - json

Question

Xcode 9 - Swift 4
No Permissions set on Firebase Data - read/write everyone
I imported json data into firebase and my data looks like this..
I am trying to get to to the title of the jobs listed in FireBase Database, place the list of titles in an array and into a tableView and it will not return anything
My swift code looks like this..
import UIKit
import FirebaseDatabase
class PostViewController: UIViewController, UITableViewDelegate, UITableViewDataSource {
#IBOutlet weak var jobPostsTableView: UITableView!
var ref: DatabaseReference?
var databaseHandle: DatabaseHandle = 0
var searchJSONQuery : String = ""
var jobsData = [String]()
override func viewDidLoad() {
super.viewDidLoad()
// Do any additional setup after loading the view, typically from a nib.
jobPostsTableView.delegate = self
jobPostsTableView.dataSource = self
//Set the Firebase Reference
ref = Database.database().reference()
// Retreive the posts and listen for changes
databaseHandle = (ref?.child("positions/title").observe(.childAdded, with: { (snapshot) in
//Code to execute when a child is added under "positions"
//Take the value from the snapshot and add it to the jobsData array
let list = snapshot.value as? String
if let actualList = list {
self.jobsData.append(actualList)
self.jobPostsTableView.reloadData()
}
}))!
}
func tableView(_ tableView: UITableView, numberOfRowsInSection section: Int) -> Int {
return jobsData.count
}
func tableView(_ tableView: UITableView, cellForRowAt indexPath: IndexPath) -> UITableViewCell {
let cell = tableView.dequeueReusableCell(withIdentifier: "PostCell")
cell?.textLabel?.text = jobsData[indexPath.row]
return cell!
}
}

Answer 1

When using child() you only go one level down the tree at the time. Because you have a lot of positions you can not simply access the titles by using child("title").
When calling the observeSingleEvent you're looking for the values of the key you have stated in you database-reference.
The way written below you get a snapshot of all the values beneath your "positions" key. Therefore you use the for-loop to access the "title" value of every single object.
You should write it as a separate function and call it from viewDidLoad() rather than write the firebase code inside viewDidLoad itself.
func retrieveJobTitles(){
let positionRef = ref.child("positions")
positionsRef.observeSingleEvent(of: .value, with: { (snapshot) in
// Iterate through all of your positions
for child in snapshot.children.allObjects as! [DataSnapshot] {
let position = child as! DataSnapshot
let positionsInfo = position.value as! [String: Any]
let jobTitle = positionsInfo["title"] as! String
if jobTitle != nil {
self.jobsData.append(jobTitle)
}
}
self.jobPostsTableView.reloadData()
})
}
}