granitemiller

I feel that a class should always be led by a black belt, and for training purposes, a brown belt can instruct some of the class.

I personally have to travel for my dan testings (fortunately it is only every two years), but we do all testing in house up through 2nd dan.

Maybe it boils down to why someone is doing martial arts. For some, it is a belt race (how fast to achieve their goal is all that matters). For others, it is more of journey, learning and learning as you go.

I don't really think it is all that important to get national/international recognition from one organization. I was at a tournament where there was a guy from a TKD school (and I am not knocking TKD, it was just one individual) who was a 2nd degree and did his Kata and it was horrible. I remember looking at the other black belts and we all had the same look on our face - how did he get a 2nd degree? So even though he had recognition from a large, international group (TKD), he lost all credibility as soon as he demonstrated his techniques. My school is under the umbrella of a large group, however, before we joined them we were a small outfit out there on our own. Our former Sensei was trained in an ISKA school in Baltimore, then he left and moved to Pittsburgh and never kept the ISKA membership. He then retired, and we floated by ourselves until we came under another umbrella. We joined because we liked the organization, they had the same goals and principals as we held, and it gave me the opportunity to advance in rank. Just some thoughts.

I think it is important too that the person has the ability to teach and wants to teach. There are those that have no desire to instruct. So I wouldn't say that someone is "rushing" to teach, but if they have the aptitude and desire, why not start getting their toes wet at Green?

Green belt - just getting started Blue/Purple - add in a little more (eg: help with katas) Then at Brown start to lay into teaching

I agree with your assessment, money does talk and if you pay into an organization enough of it, you will be held up to high esteem - sad to say this especially if the group is not up to basic levels. I also feel that many large organizations (TKD, ISKA, WTA, ITA, etc) also probably suffer from this. I guess it is to be expected.

There are good benefits with belonging to a large organization, and I think it is necessary if you are looking to further your own rank, promote the school and standardize. However, there are also many benefits to a small school or organization. The comfort of a small community, your sensei knows everyone, and you have a tight knit group. Some negative aspects of a small organization is that you may not have the ability to grow in martial arts as you are limited in the number or resources you have available. A negative aspect of a large organization is complacency. While I know that not all JKA dojos are like this, I do remember visiting one where the head instructor was so full of himself, yet he completely mispronounced nearly every Japanese word he attempted (I am fluent in Japanese), and the katas I saw were no where near the level I expected (mistakes, add-ons). So I think the bottom line is that first: go to a school that you are comfortable in (big or small), and then after you have reached your Shodan, you may want to branch out if you are really interested in having a full and rich martial arts education and experience.

I had a comment in another topic about when should a Dan become an instructor. I think students (kyu) should begin instructing from Green Belt (where they assist - maybe lead warmups, etc.) Brown belt is where the most learning about being a "teacher" takes place. A brown belt can lead nearly the entire class, and during and afterwards get pointers from the head instructor. Once you make Shodan, you should be able to lead a class entirely. 2nd and 3rd degree is when you consider opening your own school, if so motivated. What are your thoughts?

I am going to create a new topic about what dan should an instructor be as I think this is a good question. I think students should begin instructing from Green Belt (where they assist - maybe lead warmups, etc.) Brown belt is where the most learning about being a "teacher" takes place. Once you make Shodan, you should be able to lead a class entirely. Just my opinion.

Exactly. I feel that most parents treat it as a "goal" to accomplish, and then move on. Regardless of how many times it is stressed that the BB is just the beginning, it does not seem to register.Perhaps they are thinking that wanting the kids to continue is just the school's way of keeping them tied in and earning revenue. Really pretty sad, there is so much more that they will never see.

In my old school whenever a youth received their black belt, it generally wasn't within two weeks when the parents pulled their child out of school. It seemed that they were there just to accomplish this task, and then they were moving on to something else.

That is an interesting point. If the adult members of the class don't think that the younger students have learned as much as they have, then this would be another contributing factor for the resentment and lack of respect given to a young BB trying to lead an adult class. I have to admit and I am not very proud of this, but I felt this way myself towards the youth BB leading class when I was a kyu rank.

I understand what your saying. This is the kind of thing that diminishes the value of earning a black belt.

8 years old - has to be a junior black belt. I mean, come on, can an 8 year old really meet black belt criteria? The only thing I can guess is that he is in a belt school where you get a belt every other month just for showing up and the parents paying the belt test fees.

I enjoyed Kempohand's post, and it shows that if done correctly, a young person can become an effective teacher. The approach of teaching the kids classes while you were 14, and then the adults on occasion when you hit 16 was a good idea. I think that most older adults will look at a 16 or an 18 year old differently than say a 13 or 14 year old, especially if the 16/18 year old is emotionally mature and has been working at instruction for quite some time. As I stated, becoming a good instructor takes a lot of time and development.

I think you have to bring someone into teaching slowly, it takes a lot of time. But you can tell when they are "getting" it because of the buzz amongst the students when they know that person will be teaching, and also comments made to the head instructor about how they liked that person.

With the "Ni" at the end of Gojushiho Dai Ni most likely means Gojushiho Dai #2, so perhaps this is a variation on the original Gojushiho Dai which is why you have those additional moves. Sorry I can't be more help.

I like your thoughts on this, and you are right about being a teacher and being able to attract and maintain students. The person that drives people away should not be considered for black belt promotion, because I have seen that when they are promoted, they begin to drive other students out of the school, and eventually the senior instructor/owner has to ask that person to leave.But as for asking the adults if they are okay or not with the young instructor, this becomes tricky because the adult may not give a straight answer for fear that they may be asked to leave and not come back. I think that the best test is to see the result. If the adults are still with you and actively participating and enjoying the class, I think you have succeeded.

Nothing - I have no problem with it, especially if they do not qualify and it takes them more time. However, if a parent of a child who has been there prior to someone else (like an adult), and they see them come up from white and pass up their child, then there will be problems with that parent.

The number of kata's the youth learn are limited compared to the adults. Also, the number and type of self-defense techniques are different.

The problem here is what do you do with a child that starts at 7 years old, and is now 13 years old (so six years in your system). Do you keep them at Brown belt until they reach a certain age (15/16?). If that is the case, then you will have someone in the system for 8 years before they get their black belt. Or do you promote them to "children's black belt" but restrict their entitlements?

Confidence and Peace. MA has really helped my anxiety.

I like the idea of a white stripe through the center, and then when they are ready for the adult class, they can test to see where they stand in the adult curriculum.

There are legal reasons as well if the youth is being paid, which I did not bring up, thank you Dobbersky (go ManU! ).