What Dan Level is appropriate for instructing?

[Kempohands]

Also, I stated that I wouldn't mind if a student under black candidate assisted class. When I'm teaching if I have an assistant lower than 3rd brown but I know that they know a certain few techniques very well I may have them teach a technique to a lower ranked student for a couple of minutes before I can come over and check it and explain it. That I don't have a problem with. I have a problem with students under 3rd brown teaching a class as "the instructor" for that class. A few minutes here and there is ok though.

[tori]

Around the time a student reaches blue belt, the head instructor starts to evaluate whether or not he feels they will be a good candidate to train to teach others. Once picked, the students go through several personal instruction courses and learn more about teaching others. By Brown belt level, if they have been chosen, they will begin to teach others, supervised by the head instructor. No one has instructed a class unsupervised by him except on 3 occassions where he was very ill. At that time, I was Shodan level or above and did instruct the classes in his absence. He never misses, so he must have been very sick to miss those 3 times.

[Shotokan-kez]

We do encourage teaching in our club. We have a 13 year old 2nd dan who helps occasionally, but because of her age she never takes a full class. I didn't really get a taste for teaching until i reached Shodan because my sensei has always had plenty of instructors. I know help to teach the kids class on a Saturday afternoon. In that class there are so many kids at different ages we split them up into groups and each instructor gets a group. We have a 4th kyu senior assising us at this class but he just walks around the group he has been put with and assist. He is never given his own group.

[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.

[Tiger1962]

I feel that a black belt should be third degree (or third dan) before they become a certified teacher.

That being said, I also feel that the only ones who should be allowed to assist in teaching or be intern teachers (or whatever the correct word to describe it is) are first dans and up - and only if they proved to know their stuff. (I've had dan(s) or two higher than me, who were teaching stuff incorrectly.

[Traymond]

My teacher's only problem with me teaching when I was a purple belt was that I was to hard on the students, now that I am nidan I have cooled down a bit, haha.

[NightOwl]

I know I don't practice karate and that I might be in the minority here, but I don't that there is a set level when it is appropriate to teach.

Knowledge doesn't mean teaching ability IMO. You might be a great instructor at 2nd kyu or a terrible 4th dan instructor. I don't personally see teaching as being part of being a great martial artist, just like I don't think you have to teach business to be a great businessman. It is a separate skill set that while essential, isn't for everybody.

[Traymond]

I know I don't practice karate and that I might be in the minority here, but I don't that there is a set level when it is appropriate to teach.

Knowledge doesn't mean teaching ability IMO. You might be a great instructor at 2nd kyu or a terrible 4th dan instructor. I don't personally see teaching as being part of being a great martial artist, just like I don't think you have to teach business to be a great businessman. It is a separate skill set that while essential, isn't for everybody.

I like what your saying...

Because I have seen 5th and 6th dan members who completely hated teaching, because they could never get with it. So I agree with you totally.

[Wa-No-Michi]

I agree in part, but there comes a point where a teacher needs to be expert in what he is teaching.

A good teacher with a fairly limited grasp of Karate might do a great job with beginners, but when it comes to teaching senior kyu grade/dan grade students, this is perhaps where you do need the experience / know-how to fall back on.

There is a risk that inexperienced, enthusiastic individuals can do more harm than good, if they teach technique beyond their comprehension - even if they have a flair for teaching.

This is perhaps why such diversity of standards exist throughout various karate clubs of the same style.

That said, if its only teaching beginners I see no real correlation between technical grade and the right to teach - as long as its done under the watchful eye of a senior instructor (3rd Dan plus would be my preference).

I have dan grade senpais now, but in the past I would not have had a problem delegating the teaching of beginners to a green belt, as long as I felt he/she could get the point over clearly.

[Traymond]

I have yet to find and expert Karate Instructor...even my own teachers are not experts, they are constantly referring to their teachers and calling them and inviting them to come and show us the 'real' techniques of the style.

So in reality, I think when the Head instructor ok's it for you to go out and teach, then your finally able to say you can teach...IMO that is.