Before I start, I want to note that this post is inspired by another post on another blog. For the source article, please read here. We are facing a problem which, in many ways, has been accumulating for quite a while now. In the martial arts, the problem has the potential to fundamentally change how…
Category: Teaching
Children in the Martial Arts
As everyone who knows me is aware, but for the benefit of those who may not know me but still read my posts, I teach martial arts for a living. I work for Chuck Norris’ KICKSTART KIDS Foundation. We teach a karate class as an alternative PE credit elective. We are a part of…
For the Martial Arts Instructors out there…
Always on your mind should be the idea of team building. There are those who find this contradictory to the individual nature of martial arts training, but within your school or organization, you should be functioning as a team. Encourage your students, but teach them to encourage each other as well. The best teammates are…
Keep it real
I would like to see Instructors take that leap of faith, and stop teaching metaphysical garbage. When I teach, I am open and honest with my students. I teach them that everything in martial arts needs to be seen under the scientific method – any claims need to be observable, explainable, testable, and repeatable. If…
To McDojo, or not to McDojo? THAT is the question.
I often joke that “if I had it all to do over again, I’d open a McDojo.” The truth is not really all that far from the statement. See, for years I took an almost masochistic pride in NOT being successful in my commercial schools. I taught, and made little to no money for it,…
A Better Approach to Teaching Martial Arts
This post is in response to an email from an instructor wishing to know more about how teachers teach. Working in a public school, I have had the chance to study up close the methods used by some very effective teachers, and apply what I learn from them in my own classes. This is just…
Worlds Youngest Black Belt
http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/features/2671421/Worlds-youngest-black-belt.html In the above link you will read about a five year old child who has a black belt. She is a cute kid, and is obviously being promoted by the instructor, but it is another case of black belt nonsense. Earlier I mentioned that being a black belt used to mean something. There was…
New Book
Within the next week or so, my latest book will be available. This one, titled “Kick it to the Next Level, Improve your martial arts instruction without selling out” is not about Hung Gar specifically, but is a collection of articles on teaching martial arts. I will post the link once it is available!
Random thoughts on the arts
In a comment on a previous article, someone mentioned that there is still the “art” in martial arts which must be considered. Not furthering on the comment, but rather using it as a point of departure… This comment really made me start to think. One of the first things which popped into my mind…
The 80/20 Rule
Vilfredo Pareto designed a mathematical formula to describe the grossly unequal distribution of wealth in his country. He discovered that 80% of the wealth was controlled by just 20% of the people. Later still, he observed that in his garden 20% of the peapods produced 80% of the peas. After Pareto first made his observations…
Wallace Smedley 