Describe your idea of what a perfect instructor should be.

[senna_trem]

individual looks... model

 

I completly agree! I need someone who looks like a model! Nothing was taken out of context, what are you talking about?

[ninjanurse]

An instructor is someone who should be focused on not only building a better martial artist, or athlete or whatever, but on building a better person

 

You hit it right on the head!

 

[TigerHeart]

Well, a good Instrutor, hmm good at the art, likes his student even he gets angry sometime Idon't mind as long as he teach well...agree with pineapple,

[cathal]

The best instructor is the one who will help you hide the body! Er, nevermind... I said the loud part quiet and the quiet part loud again

[MASIsshinryu]

To me, a good instructor is:

 

1) Always hungry to learn more, themselves;

 

2) Excited about sharing their own experiences with deserving students;

 

3) Patient;

 

4) Focused on developing the mind, body and spirit through setting an example and guiding the experiences of others;

 

5) Quick of mind;

 

6) Realistic and open to new ideas;

 

7) Not hung up on appearance, pretense or ego (although pride in excellence is not a bad thingi!)

 

Luckily, I have had this kind of instructor, although I have also experienced some who still had some work to do.

[swdw]

The higher up you get in the Karate world, the less flexible one is allowed to become.

 

I disagree in part because it depends on the organization- you said you were in Japan in '79, so I guess you weren't very high rank back then and it's at the low ranks where there's no flexibility.

 

I have the privilige of knowing some very high ranking practitioners (7th and 8th dan) who got their rank from the head organizations in Okinawa. True, they don't change the kata or the basic bunkai, but they do things that are definitely not the same things you see the Okinawans doing. They have bunkai that are approached differently than the Okinwans would do. Do they get in trouble? No. At that level, they are EXPECTED to come up with their own ideas.

 

Do they encourage senior students (nidan and above) to go to seminars, train with people from other styles, or even learn another art- yes.

 

Back to the uqestion-the ideal instructor is Yoda!