Rotating curriculum. Yes or No?

[Spartacus Maximus]

Teaching larger groups of people who are at different stages can be difficult to manage. Especially for the new instructor starting out. The rotating curriculum is one solution.

The concept is that the curriculum is divided into cycles. Each cycle is made up of a predetermined number of training sessions, and all the students train the same content for that time. After completing all the cycles, everyone reverts to the first one.

Here is a very simplified example:

First month: basic techniques and fundamental principles(punches,kicks,stances etc). Kihon kata, solo and two-person drills.

Second month: in-depth coverage of first 3 kata with basic bunkai, oyo kumite and drills for each.

Third month: same as second month but covering the next 3 kata or series of kata.

Fourth month: Repeat material from first month.

Does your dojo/school use a rotating curriculum? What do you think of the idea?

[sensei8]

Rotating curriculum. Yes or No?

Yes, by all means. It breathes newness and freshness out and away from the mundane normality infesting many schools of the MA. However, it might depend on the school/style/CI/etc because there is the old argument that why fix it if it's not broken.

Why? Because the MA ISN'T from a cookie cutter mindset. No. Eclectic mindset is needed because there's different ways to skin the cat. Through trail and error, newness in effectiveness is birthed.

I first used the rotating curriculum with great success when I was teaching "Karate" at the Los Angeles Valley College. It opened up quite a lot because teaching at a college, imho, isn't the same thing as teaching at my dojo. How so? The classes are designed around a semester, and not for long durations as one might find at a dojo.

That being said, once I saw the impact that the rotating curriculum was having at the college level after two semesters, I immediately brought that to my dojo. It was a hit. Albeit, the rotating curriculum is a side-kick to my dojo's original curriculum.

Then to that, when I was elected to Kaicho and CI of the SKKA Hombu, I initiated the rotating curriculum, and it too, was a success. Often times after my college teaching days, I would speak to my Sensei, the then current Kaicho, about this rotating curriculum. At first he was hesitant, but our Soke, his Sensei, denied it, yet in time, my Sensei found its worth. So much so that he tried to apply it against the wishes of Soke, but in time, Soke too, saw that the rotating curriculum was a valuable tool to run along with their original curriculum. Our Teaching Department has the final say in matters pof this concern at the Hombu, and them alone!!

[Nidan Melbourne]

Personally i think it depends on your school and how your timetable is organised.

My club we have different classes that require you to be of a certain rank. And you have to attend that class, as each class focuses on curriculum required.

[JR 137]

I think it ultimately depends on the size of the school. My dojo is small; we have about 45 students. My teacher does a somewhat rotating curriculum. He'll spend more time in class on certain aspects, month to month. At our school, we basically have 3 different classes - adults, kids, and black belts. We don't have other rank specific classes because we don't have the class sizes to make it a necessity nor really a possibility. We have a kata specific class offered once a week that's immediately followed by a green belts (4th kyu) & up class though.

Our honbu is the opposite. There's several hundred students, and therefore rank specific classes (along with a few "all ranks" classes). Their classes are more specific; they have kumite classes, kata classes, and general classes. It's the student's responsibility to make sure they attend a mix of class types.

My old Sensei used to closely follow a rotating curriculum. On a 3 month cycle, he'd focus on kata the first month, kihon and bunkai the second month, and putting it all together with kumite the 3rd month.

Black belt class was different. He'd somewhat follow a rotating schedule, but there wasn't the promotion time table like with kyu ranks, and students varied quite a bit more in rank and experience than in kyu classes.

[Wado Heretic]

I follow a semi-rotating curriculum in that I do choose a particular sets of skills to work on, which are all connected, and have the club work on that for three weeks. Every forth week I sort of wing it as the saying goes; so I can figure out what the next rotation needs to be focused on. It is a little more complicated in practice but the basic logic is this:

First I pick a kata, and isolate a particular technique or sequence from it. For example Pinan Nidan; Oi Zuki Jodan.

So during kihon, I will place extra emphasis on Oi Zuki Jodan, but we will still do other kihon-waza. During kata practice we will palce extra focus on Pinan Nidan, but also bunkai resolving around Oi Zuki Jodan. Lastly, during kumite, emphasis will be on the use of the Oi Zuki Jodan in self-defence and kumite, and resolve around drills including said technique. Also, Hojo Undo will focus on hand speed, accuracy, and power developing exercises.

I find this works due to how I structure my lessons; I have a dedicated kumite, and Kihon/Hojo Undo session after standard classes each week, so this gives focus to that structure. However, such a model I have used with a club that has become established. Originally I used a rotating/advancing curriculum I planned to take place over 23 weeks or so, so it would rotate, but each rotation would then be more challenging by introducing more difficult drills and so on. I do find rotating works, but you must be flexible and work on a scale which suits your student base, and can be adapted to the individual needs of students; some will advance much quicker than others and some much slower.

[Spartacus Maximus]

The rotating curriculum seems like an idea better suited for larger groups with a single instructor supervising everyone.

[Luther unleashed]

So I have to say I really like this topic, I'm a little confused so and I don't want to seem ignorant but I do not understand the rotation of the curriculum. I do understand rotating the curriculum to a certain extent, AZ I have trained under and tots a rotating curriculum for weaponry however it was not something students tested on. My question is how do you rotate and still test, so in the advanced student gets back to the basics what is your reasoning for this? I am essentially asking the original poster and anybody else of course and this is not directed at any one person. I do find it extremely difficult to teach many different levels of curriculum too many students, the more help you have as instructor it becomes easier because you can break off into groups, with my wife becoming pregnant and my daughter becoming ill I have essentially been teaching classes 90% alone and it is very difficult as I have been pulling higher-ranking students to help out but not all have the ability to convey in the proper way. Maybe somebody could break it down in even more a simple way that was already done LOL

[JR 137]

Lex,

Either you're overthinking it, or I'm under thinking it. I'll give you a bit of how it's been done in the 2 dojos I've been at...

Lower kyus (10th-6th-ish) promote every 3 months, upper kyus (5th-2nd) promote every 6 months, and 2nd-1st is 1 year.

In a 3 months cycle, you break up the emphasis of class into 3 parts - kata, kihon (basics, combinations, and other standardized stuff) and kumite. You emphasize on aspect every few weeks to a month. You have 1 hour class time, including 5-8 minutes of warmups, bowing in, etc., followed by another few minutes of light stuff to get going. Let's say 45 minutes of class of really being into things.

1st month- Once you get going, you dedicate 20 minutes to kata. Teaching new kata for rank, polishing older kata, etc. Once they've got the kata down, you start breaking the kata down into application. The remaining 25 minutes are spent as a mix of polishing previous material, some introduction to new basics/combinations, and sparring.

2nd month - 25 minutes spent on new basics. In Seido, we have standardized combinations in line drills (numbered to make them easier), standardized "self defenses" (numbered again), etc. The remaining 20 minutes are spent on kata and kumite.

3rd month - 25 minutes of kumite stuff. Standardized prearranged stuff, more situational drills, and emphasizing how to tie in basics and kata into kumite. The remaining time is spent on the other stuff.

A week or two before testing - going through the syllabus, making sure everyone's on the same page, fine tuning, etc.

Students who are on a 6 month cycle go through it twice. Their material is more in depth, and often more material overall for rank.

There isn't an abrupt stop from one month to the next; it's a gradual progression. You don't have to do that order of things, you can do whatever order works best for you. The point of it all is to ensure that you've given the proper amount of emphasis on each aspect.

Black belt level doesn't follow this. There's different time frames, promotion time tables, and so on. But there is an emphasis on aspects for durations of time.

My old Sensei, who I used to teach under discussed this with us explicitly. I don't teach under my current Sensei, so I'm not sure how much he's planned it out or if that's the way it naturally works out. He does follow this, intentionally or unintentionally.

The times are ballpark amounts of time. The number of weeks/month to month is a ballpark amount. It's all driven by the students' comprehension of the material.

[Luther unleashed]

Lex,

Either you're overthinking it, or I'm under thinking it. I'll give you a bit of how it's been done in the 2 dojos I've been at...

Lower kyus (10th-6th-ish) promote every 3 months, upper kyus (5th-2nd) promote every 6 months, and 2nd-1st is 1 year.

In a 3 months cycle, you break up the emphasis of class into 3 parts - kata, kihon (basics, combinations, and other standardized stuff) and kumite. You emphasize on aspect every few weeks to a month. You have 1 hour class time, including 5-8 minutes of warmups, bowing in, etc., followed by another few minutes of light stuff to get going. Let's say 45 minutes of class of really being into things.

1st month- Once you get going, you dedicate 20 minutes to kata. Teaching new kata for rank, polishing older kata, etc. Once they've got the kata down, you start breaking the kata down into application. The remaining 25 minutes are spent as a mix of polishing previous material, some introduction to new basics/combinations, and sparring.

2nd month - 25 minutes spent on new basics. In Seido, we have standardized combinations in line drills (numbered to make them easier), standardized "self defenses" (numbered again), etc. The remaining 20 minutes are spent on kata and kumite.

3rd month - 25 minutes of kumite stuff. Standardized prearranged stuff, more situational drills, and emphasizing how to tie in basics and kata into kumite. The remaining time is spent on the other stuff.

A week or two before testing - going through the syllabus, making sure everyone's on the same page, fine tuning, etc.

Students who are on a 6 month cycle go through it twice. Their material is more in depth, and often more material overall for rank.

There isn't an abrupt stop from one month to the next; it's a gradual progression. You don't have to do that order of things, you can do whatever order works best for you. The point of it all is to ensure that you've given the proper amount of emphasis on each aspect.

Black belt level doesn't follow this. There's different time frames, promotion time tables, and so on. But there is an emphasis on aspects for durations of time.

My old Sensei, who I used to teach under discussed this with us explicitly. I don't teach under my current Sensei, so I'm not sure how much he's planned it out or if that's the way it naturally works out. He does follow this, intentionally or unintentionally.

The times are ballpark amounts of time. The number of weeks/month to month is a ballpark amount. It's all driven by the students' comprehension of the material.

I see what your saying, I appreciate you taking the time to explain it to me. I like that, and I'd like to think about that some. I'm always open to trying new things and new ideas. Sometimes they don't work and I just revert back. I'm open because I want my program to be a living thing that evolves, that's why I love these topics so I may feed off of them and take what I like lol.

I do my main curriculum currently once a week, and do something different and often new on the opposing class day. An example would be on Tuesday I may do forms, then on weds day I could do sparring, or weapons, or kicking drills (I enjoy kicking drills) or whatever I see fit. I like having an open day each week to break up the monotony and do what I think will fit at that time.

Its an interesting idea to rotate it in the man error described above though.

[JR 137]

Lex,

Either you're overthinking it, or I'm under thinking it. I'll give you a bit of how it's been done in the 2 dojos I've been at...

Lower kyus (10th-6th-ish) promote every 3 months, upper kyus (5th-2nd) promote every 6 months, and 2nd-1st is 1 year.

In a 3 months cycle, you break up the emphasis of class into 3 parts - kata, kihon (basics, combinations, and other standardized stuff) and kumite. You emphasize on aspect every few weeks to a month. You have 1 hour class time, including 5-8 minutes of warmups, bowing in, etc., followed by another few minutes of light stuff to get going. Let's say 45 minutes of class of really being into things.

1st month- Once you get going, you dedicate 20 minutes to kata. Teaching new kata for rank, polishing older kata, etc. Once they've got the kata down, you start breaking the kata down into application. The remaining 25 minutes are spent as a mix of polishing previous material, some introduction to new basics/combinations, and sparring.

2nd month - 25 minutes spent on new basics. In Seido, we have standardized combinations in line drills (numbered to make them easier), standardized "self defenses" (numbered again), etc. The remaining 20 minutes are spent on kata and kumite.

3rd month - 25 minutes of kumite stuff. Standardized prearranged stuff, more situational drills, and emphasizing how to tie in basics and kata into kumite. The remaining time is spent on the other stuff.

A week or two before testing - going through the syllabus, making sure everyone's on the same page, fine tuning, etc.

Students who are on a 6 month cycle go through it twice. Their material is more in depth, and often more material overall for rank.

There isn't an abrupt stop from one month to the next; it's a gradual progression. You don't have to do that order of things, you can do whatever order works best for you. The point of it all is to ensure that you've given the proper amount of emphasis on each aspect.

Black belt level doesn't follow this. There's different time frames, promotion time tables, and so on. But there is an emphasis on aspects for durations of time.

My old Sensei, who I used to teach under discussed this with us explicitly. I don't teach under my current Sensei, so I'm not sure how much he's planned it out or if that's the way it naturally works out. He does follow this, intentionally or unintentionally.

The times are ballpark amounts of time. The number of weeks/month to month is a ballpark amount. It's all driven by the students' comprehension of the material.

I see what your saying, I appreciate you taking the time to explain it to me. I like that, and I'd like to think about that some. I'm always open to trying new things and new ideas. Sometimes they don't work and I just revert back. I'm open because I want my program to be a living thing that evolves, that's why I love these topics so I may feed off of them and take what I like lol.

I do my main curriculum currently once a week, and do something different and often new on the opposing class day. An example would be on Tuesday I may do forms, then on weds day I could do sparring, or weapons, or kicking drills (I enjoy kicking drills) or whatever I see fit. I like having an open day each week to break up the monotony and do what I think will fit at that time.

Its an interesting idea to rotate it in the man error described above though.

What I posted was a very general outline. We do different stuff and my teachers have made it up as they go. It's not a 'I have to spend this much time on kata (or whatever else) today.' And just because you're focusing on kata for a while doesn't mean you're doing one kata over and over, with no variation. My teacher likes to keep the classes similar for a week. I usually go Wednesday and Saturday. There's a lot of similarity on Saturday from Wednesday night's class, but they're not the same. Sometimes he'll do something completely different from one night to the next, but not too often. A lot of it also depends on who's there that class.

Casually observing, you wouldn't know he was following a format. It took me about 6-7 months to see the pattern. I like his pattern because everything gets covered in time, and it all comes together near the end. We're not going into a test thinking we have any outright deficiencies.

I've seen other schools split the week with kata emphasized days and kumite emphasized days. My old organization's honbu did kumite on Monday Wednesday and Friday, and kata on Tuesday and Thursday. There was other stuff done on those days and you might spar on kata night and vice versa, but the emphasis was on one or the other.

Seido's honbu does it differently. They have specific classes scheduled for different aspects. They have beginner, intermediate and advanced kumite classes, rank specific kata classes, etc.

No one approach is inherently better than another. It all depends on the number of students, the diversity of ranks and ages, and what works for you. Seido's honbu schedule wouldn't work at our dojo, and ours wouldn't work there. My teacher likes to cover a lot of things in class and keep the pace up. Some guys from honbu come to our dojo periodically and love the change of pace. Our honbu reportedly focuses far more on specific things and class moves at a slower pace. The guys who come to our dojo say it's the toughest dojo in Seido because we cover so much and don't stop; it's go, go, go. Our students reportedly stand out (in a good way) when they're taking class and/or testing at honbu, so my teacher's approach works. That's not to say my teacher is better; just different. I haven't gone to honbu to confirm or deny any allegations

My advice is experiment, but don't make drastic changes. Try to follow a pattern for 3 months (not scrapping your routine completely) and see how it works. If it's making a positive difference, go with it. If not, you didn't lose much. A week or two isn't really going to show you an overall picture.