Bringing Dojos/Dojangs into the 21st Century...

[brokenswordx]

Does your dojo have a membership booklet for each member? It could include the ranking system, terminology, rank requirements, and history of your martial arts founder and maybe even your sensei.

[NewEnglands_KyoSa]

Does your dojo have a membership booklet for each member? It could include the ranking system, terminology, rank requirements, and history of your martial arts founder and maybe even your sensei.

yes, we have a training manual thats around 70 pages long, with everything you can imagine. and it has all those things you mentioned in there as well.

i think it's equally important to have on the site. especially for the students who claim they cant purchase a manual or cant afford one(they're only 15 bucks) but whatever the case may be, we're making a members section to condense all that stuff and put it in one area. i say it all the time, but a big key for us is making students more accountable. you break a rule, you cant count in korean during drills, no excuse...simply go online at your library and print it out from the site. making the students more accountable makes things run smoother and allows me to keep my voice for a few weeks instead of a day or so.

[brokenswordx]

70 pages! At my dojo the booklet is about the size of a passport, and there's still room to fit all the things I asked about. I'll note that it has the basic terminology of the kicks, punches, and blocks. Also the kata needed for each ranking and the dojo principles on the first page. I wish I could show you what it look like. I think it would be a great thing to have at your dojo. ^^

[NewEnglands_KyoSa]

yes, i think ours is very similar but it is a full training manual for ranks white through masters Black Belt. It just makes life easy for us, and the students love it. we've had it around for ten or so years, we're on the fourth edition and im creating it based on the third edition which of course is based on all the others. its very helpful and i love it. we use it during class, out of class, seminars, whatever. its just great all around. we produce around 200 copies, mostly black and white, some pages are colour and it is spiral bound, with laminated cover and back. we charge 15 bucks for it, we probably make like two bucks off of each. but when it comes down to it, it's all for the student.

[ps1]

Overall the website looks nice. I think that it has all the necessary information plus some bonus stuff. I think the instructor Bios are certainly a must. It helps the process of researching the school if a person so chooses. In addition, I like that you have the rules listed. It gave me an indication of the type of school you run. Of course, nothing beats going in to observe a class or two. But if I was looking for a traditional Korean Dojang, I would certainly look into your school based on your website.

[NewEnglands_KyoSa]

Overall the website looks nice. I think that it has all the necessary information plus some bonus stuff. I think the instructor Bios are certainly a must. It helps the process of researching the school if a person so chooses. In addition, I like that you have the rules listed. It gave me an indication of the type of school you run. Of course, nothing beats going in to observe a class or two. But if I was looking for a traditional Korean Dojang, I would certainly look into your school based on your website.

Thanks, your feedback really helps(anyone else's is welcome too! )

But yes, i think the rules are crucial and we actually sat down and spent a long time thinking of what belongs and what doesnt. It's a little long, but i think that everything in there has a direct, and conceivable purpose. It took a really long time to research for the rules, and im glad to hear you think they came out ok. and in the FAQ i dropped many hints about coming in and actually VIEWING a class because i think that's crucial. i like the instructor bios but will be adjusting the pictures in a few months, as i've seen a set up on another site that's nice and i wanna try. im also going to make a member's page when im done with my computer problems im having, it'll help condense some of the stuff that's only useful to students, not visitors. again thanks for the input!

anyone else's is welcome to!

[NightOwl]

I personally always appreciate it when a brief outline of what can be expected at an average class is given.

[Rateh]

Of course, nothing beats going in to observe a class or two..

I wonder if anyone ever tried to put that on a website. By that I mean record a general class. Keep everything on it, including parent sounds. It would kind of give you the feel of the class before you went in to see it. I wonder if people would be more likely to go into your school to find out more information if they could watch a class online. Not even a full lenght, just like a condensed version of a regular class. Like maybe teach a 10 minute class from start to finish touching lightly on different areas.

[bushido_man96]

The website does seem very easy to navigate. It isn't too hard on the eyes, either, which I like. Some sites just kind of jump out you, and are so busy that it can be overwhelming. I like it.

[DWx]

Its nice & informative. Easy to use too