Instructor License

[kivikala]

Do you have to have a special certificate to teach your own style of martial arts?

For my school we have a teaching certificate/license given to those black belts that I feel could sucessfully operate a dojo on their own. (whether or not they persue this is up to them.) Not all black belts got them. This was instituted some 25 years ago when I learned some one (not a student of mine) claimed to have studied under me and was even teaching my specific curriculum (which they were not). I suppose mimicry is a sincere form of flattery but I was not amused. To avoid such confusion I issued specific certificates to indicate who was "authorized". Not that the certificates were worth anymore than the paper itself, it was a matter of pride (and good marketing) for the legitimate teachers to beable to identify themselves. It was sort of a "If it doesn't say Sunkist on the label, you don't know what you are getting" sort of thing. The certificate thing was hardly original as we received similar certificates from Seishinkai many years before when we were promoted to identify us as teachers. For what it's worth...

[bushido_man96]

Nope, as far as I know, you just have to open your business with the chamber of commerce. However, not have any certification can lead to people questioning your legitimacy.

Something to look out for, is all.

Good luck to you.

[bushido_man96]

Out of curiousity, how many years have you been studying?

Long enough to know that I need to study a lot more. Short enough to know I have a long way to go. And just right for where I am. In other words, it really doesn't matter. I have enough experience to teach what I know, and not so much that I can consider myself very accomplished, but I also know that I can hold my own if I needed to defend myself or someone else.

I am not trying to offend anyone here; I have seen statements like these many times so far. I am just making a point, so please be open minded>>>

I think we need to be careful about how we use terminology like "I can hold my own if need be." There are a lot of street fighters out there that can make the same claim (Tank Abbott), but they don't go and start their own gym. There is so much to consider, as opposed to just "handling oneself."

[Shinobu]

Streetfighting - yeah, its good to know how to do streetfighting, since that seems to be the buzzword around the block these days, because what is real is what is on the streets, right? I hear that a lot - "but this will work on the street." If you want street-effectiveness, buy a gun, learn how to use it, and get yourself certified to carry and conceal. That's what works on the street.

Ironically, martial arts also works on this so-called street. When you ask yourself why you have to do the same thing over and over a million times, its so that it becomes a mindless response. Wasn't empty hand created for street-fighting? What has changed in fighting in the last 100 years or 300 years or 600 years that makes it any different from today?

Create your own style. Cool! Keep the basis in tradtion. Cool! Everything you ever need to know about brawling or street-fighting is in the traditional systems -even throws and ground-fighting...if you just know where to look. And do your basics over and over - and your kata over and over - because the only way to be street-effective is to reach no mind - your mind is no-where and everywhere at once. Train so hard you forget everything you've learned.

[bushido_man96]

That is an interesting response, Shinobu. I like some of it, and disagree with a few ideas. Bruce Lee was a proponent of the idea that the best form of practice for an event is the performance of that specific event. I do feel that this goes along with streetfighting, just like anything else.

Now, I don't want to be misunderstood. I feel that the repetive practice of martial arts techniques, inlcuding basics, forms, and self-defense segments can all help us to be able to better defend ourselves should the situation arise. However, if one has never been confronted before, then the initial feelings of anxiety, adrenaline, and what-not can set in. It is very difficult to train these feelings in the dojo/dojang. However, the ideal place to experience them is on the street itself. I don't condone this behavior, I just accept the fact that there are somethings that are hard to account for unless you have direct experience with them.

As far as things that have changed in street fighting over the last 1000 years or so, the biggest impact has been the firearm. Once a gun becomes involved, I don't refer to it as a street fight, it is now a gun fight, or just plain shooting.

[jnpnshr411]

Bruce Lee was a proponent of the idea that the best form of practice for an event is the performance of that specific event.

although you make a good point I have to disagree with you. I think its better to understand the technique well then just practice defense against certain attacks, or as you say "practice of that specific event. No one attacks the same and people are completely unprecitable in a fight. There are so many "specific events" that you can not possibly cover every single one and how they variate from person to person. In my personal experience it helped me more to understand techniques than practicing a certain event.

[bushido_man96]

Bruce Lee was a proponent of the idea that the best form of practice for an event is the performance of that specific event.

although you make a good point I have to disagree with you. I think its better to understand the technique well then just practice defense against certain attacks, or as you say "practice of that specific event. No one attacks the same and people are completely unprecitable in a fight. There are so many "specific events" that you can not possibly cover every single one and how they variate from person to person. In my personal experience it helped me more to understand techniques than practicing a certain event.

You are right, but allow me to explain a little further. Take football, for example. The best way to get better at football is to play football. Now, I do agree that learning the basic techniques of football, like stances and tackling principles, is very important to learning the game. But, specifically practicing the event will help you excel at the event.

[jnpnshr411]

Bruce Lee was a proponent of the idea that the best form of practice for an event is the performance of that specific event.

although you make a good point I have to disagree with you. I think its better to understand the technique well then just practice defense against certain attacks, or as you say "practice of that specific event. No one attacks the same and people are completely unprecitable in a fight. There are so many "specific events" that you can not possibly cover every single one and how they variate from person to person. In my personal experience it helped me more to understand techniques than practicing a certain event.

You are right, but allow me to explain a little further. Take football, for example. The best way to get better at football is to play football. Now, I do agree that learning the basic techniques of football, like stances and tackling principles, is very important to learning the game. But, specifically practicing the event will help you excel at the event.

I understand that of course, but the problem with that is that there are too many different events for on to rely solely on practicing events.

[bushido_man96]

This is true, but once you get into performing the event, you will experience these events anyways.

[jnpnshr411]

well that is a given that you will experience the event once you are practicing it. The problem is that what if the few events that you can fully grasp do not occur in an actual confrontation. Im sorry I did not understand your post completely so let me know if I misunderstood.