As we all know, personalities, looks, age, and teaching methods vary from instructor to instructor. To prevent me from going on and on about how they vary, I'll cut to the chase: Let's see what kinds of instructors the MAP community has! I've got two middle-aged instructors who are husband and wife. They're two of the coolest, nicest people I've ever known. Both are great all-around teachers, and it's kinda cool: the wife is particularly good at working with the kiddies while the husband is particularly good at teaching the adults. They make a great team. Doing TKD with them rocks because they discovered the ideal class: a wonderful balance of fun and toughness. A very good aspect about their teaching is they know your physical limits, so they know exactly how hard to push you. Laziness is not an option. The harder you work, the more fun it is. They're highly respected by all of the students, and not only are they our instructors, but they're also our friends ("our" being my fellow students). I'm not sure why I'm uncomfortable mentioning names. *shrug* I had an Karate sensai (sp?) in the past who was pretty cool. That was ages ago though, so I can't say too much. Anyway, what's your instructor like?
big, tongan, ex bouncer, and one of the nicest guys ive ever met. loves everything about the sport even after hes been doing it for decades. i think the only thing he loves more is his son, who he brings along to every lesson. little guy is gonna be aterror once he can walk properly (hes got the punching down already!)
my instructor back home always brings his kid too, he can barely even walk yet best instructor i've ever had. i train at an MMA gym while i'm at school, but when i go back for the summer i'll be training with him to get ready for a kickboxing fight (hopefully before the end of summer, but i'm not holding my breath). he doesn't usually carry an oar around like that, but that was the only picture i could find.
Both my instructor's are absolutely wicked, I've known them since I was 9 so they're pretty much part of the family, pretty much the same as flutterfists a couple she's great with kid's him adult's. My female sensei helped find me my first job and even when I wasn't training in my early teen's she would make a point of remembering my birthday and bringing over present's. I've also been told that if they ever get married me and the kid sis are bridesmaids and that we get to wear Gi rather than dress, Bonus! i regard everyone at my club as family I've grown up with most of them so it's natural, It's just like having a few extra aunt's an uncle's really.
Although in the Bu'sen I've trained under lots of different instructors sensei Carol, being the assistant chief instructor, does stand out. He's over 50 now but amazingly flexible and fast. I sometimes stay after for the advanced class and see him sparr with other black belts and he is still good and I think might even just be toying with them. He's a really great instructor, tries to remember everyones names in the dojo, keeps the training hard but at the same time puts a bit of humour in it. He also shows alot of humanity by sometimes even making intentional mistakes (it seems)to show that everyone is still a learner. At the start of doing seiki-juku karate I didn't actually talk to sensei Carol very much but now we have gotten to a very personal stage. We greet each other and we do often talk in the dojo. I heard from other long-term members that he can keep motivating you when you're down and thats great as well. Other great instructors, by the way, are sensei Ben Spillard and sempai Steve. Each have their own way of teaching and also have a sense of humour and personality they bring into the teaching. Here below is a pic of sensei Carol (on the left) & chief instructor Perry. Christian
love how even though they are getting kicked in the face, their hand is still at their waist. yep, pretty much what you expect of karate these days i guess
lol, Ragnarok2005, this photo is taken from Frank Perry's book and he is demonstrating a technique here so of course one of the ppl has to take the kick, in this case the "student", which is sensei Carol. Christian
Comes up with some strange comments, and enjoys a laugh. Will use ANYBODY as an uke if it looks like they're not paying attention. He knows how far he can push us, and is most dangerous in a good mood. You can tell when he's done a fitness test because then we'll get one too. He's great with the children's classes, but can be really evil towards the adults. He's the assistant national coach, and as such likes his dojo to be top of the organisation. He's the reason that we're all completely mad. Not very good at remembering everyone's names, but eventually manages.
My instructors are like an extention of my family. They know how to push us and make us work hard but every lession is fun.
http://www.martialartsplanet.com/photos/showphoto.php/photo/2399/sort/1/cat/500/page/1 My instructor has been at it for a lot of years and he has a wealth of experience. He is on the floor nearly every night teaching and training and runs a great class. His martial arts skills are matched only by his teaching skills! He is also open minded and more than willing to go to any seminar (of any style) that's available... and at the seminar he works as hard as he can (bell to bell!), which is a real treat if you like going to seminars and actually working! In the classroom he is always open to questions, comments, and "a better way" to do something. He is willing to listen to and learn from anyone. And, to top it off, he's a great role model and a very humble man. I appreciate the great amount that he gives to us all the time. I just hope that when I "grow up" as an instructor that I'll be just like him!
All the comments so far have been glowing. That's excellent. Keep 'em comin', guys! We've all got instructors. Let's talk about them.
My head instructor is the quiet stern type. Easy to talk to, and always willing to demonstrate exactly why we hit or step in a certain manner. My assistant head instructor is a big black man with a downward elbow that feels like a mountain decided to share its bulk with you.. Used to play speed metal for like 10 years before he got into Kung Fu. Haven't quite seen someone use strength with mantis boxing as effectively as him yet.
my instructor is totally awesome. as an instructor, he knows what he's talking about. If you're a really good student, he'll show you sneaky ways to add pain to your opponent. Like rolling your wrist over their thumb to bend it back while going into a joint lock. Then he'd laugh when you do it to another student. He always looks out for us, too. I usually go twice a day. The first time, he ran my endurance into the ground, so by the second time, i was dead. So he did muscle work instead. He was like, "I changed it for you. Now, you can feel two different kinds of pain." With the little kids, he's just awesome. He makes up games for them to play, while learning the skills. But when they get out of hand, he's really good with the disicpline. He demands that they're respectful at home, too. And the parents use that to their advantage. They send them to instructor whenever they're bad. haha, it's awesome. He's such a joker, too. One day, i got there early and we were both just standing at the window, watching another student try to park his car. And this guy cannot drive. So we were just watching and laughing. He's a really good friend, too. We go out for lunch sometimes after class. And I feel so comfortable talking to him about everything. We even got on the topic of my ex boyfriend and his up coming wedding.
My instructor is pretty cool. He teases me sometimes (good teasing, not bad teasing). He acts like he's my big brother (even though I didn't know him 'til I was 17). According to him, I'm not allowed to start dating until I'm 35! He can be tough on me (and the other students--but mostly me for some reason), but only cuz he knows I have potential!
The general consenus of instructors is : 1. one of respect , trust and admiration 2. Humour = they see the instructor as a bit of a joker i.e. "hmm no sensei thats not funny " or they actually do find their instructors jokes funny? hmm mine dont :cry: 3. The atmosphere between student and instructor is one of a humourous and "at ease" nature with the instructor. The students take the **** (within reason) out of the instructor as well.
