With all this talk lately about mma , tcma and whether you have spent time in the ring using moves at full force against resisting opponents is it important or necessary to have fought in the ring to be a good teacher?
I myself have had my share of encounters and fights through the years… some I didn’t fair to well and others came out better for me. I have fought a little in tournaments but a lot of that was B.S. and never in the ring and don’t have any of that on tape (who could afford a video camera back then). At 50 being in the ring is something for my dreams only but I still try to spar at least once a week, although with a new hip it has become very controlled with the kicks and sweeps.
At the end of the day I try to keep everything as real as possible with the students… the ones that want to fight, they can but I also don’t push the ones to fight that don’t want too.
Love doing and living my kung fu and love the mma for keeping it real
encourage you to take ownership of what you are learning
will not treat anyone as more special than anyone else - the class helps each other.
is patient and won’t repeat an erroneous lesson and instead will find a different way for you to learn.
understands alternate learning styles
fully understands the subject matter and is well trained in it him/her self.
I agree with the above but will add that i believe whether its the ring or the street, having used their gung fu in real life situations (not just studio stuff) prior to teaching is important.
Martial Arts is about learning through self-discovery and although I had some great teachers, my accomplishments were of my own doing. The point being, a good teacher is essential but the student is the one who must sacrifice the time, effort, and work ethic outside of class to become great.
[QUOTE=JamesC;1109826]By cross train, I don’t necessarily mean take up another art.
More like have experience at least sparring/rolling with people from other arts.[/QUOTE]
This is incredibly important.
The more people, from different backgrounds, you can work with (in terms of sparring/rolling) the more chances you get to identify the “holes” in your own abilities.
[QUOTE=donjitsu2;1109836]This is incredibly important.
The more people, from different backgrounds, you can work with (in terms of sparring/rolling) the more chances you get to identify the “holes” in your own abilities.[/QUOTE]
And, on a related note to another thread, you’ll most likely gain a lot of respect for other arts and the people that train in them. Sure helps to reduce all the martial art elitism.
knowing how to teach is very important imo. i think sometimes we find people teaching who dont know the art of teaching in itself. which can severly diminish your students ability to absorb what you are trying to transmit.
the best teachers are…well…teachers. this is different than coaching.
