Student or Teacher?

[mjdcgb]

When does a student become a teacher?

AFter 10 yrs and/or rank of Sandan any Uechi-ka has learned all of the basics, all of the drills and all of the katas for the system.

Long before Sandan, the uechi-ka should have been assisting in training new students.

So when does the uechi-ka become a teacher and stop calling himself a student?

And I don't just mean repeating word for word and drill for drill those things taught by his own instructor or perhaps two instructors.

I ask when does the uechi-ka stop calliing himslef a student or a senior student and start originating his own ideas, drills, techniques, analyses, imorovising and developing heretofore unheard of applications and integrating concepts form other systems?

When does the Uechi-ka stop living in the past and repeating those drills which have now been discredited or for which new developments have transpired? For example, the hojo-umbo exercises which were developed decades ago can now be replaced by more scientific exercises or by more effective execises taken out of other systems such as Yoga.

One more example, Sparring has advanced to much a more mobile degree than that which was practiced 20 or 30 years ago or 50 years ago. If the Uechi-ka stills spars in this old and slow manner then, in my opinion, he has failed to grasp the essential concept of Uechi-ryu. That being to develop an effective set of fighting tools and techniques derived from the three main kata, innovating and building from that which was done long ago.

I contend that being a technician does not a teacher make.

Original thought and effective transmission of ideas and technique make for an effective teacher not mere repetition of that which was taught decades ago.


Comments?


Mike DeDonato
Mike

[Bill Glasheen]

Hey, Mike! Good to hear from you. It has indeed been a while. Give my best to the "Ahti Clan."

I'd be careful about some of the things you write...

Sparring has advanced to much a more mobile degree than that which was practiced 20 or 30 years ago or 50 years ago. If the Uechi-ka stills spars in this old and slow manner then, in my opinion, he has failed to grasp the essential concept of Uechi-ryu. That being to develop an effective set of fighting tools and techniques derived from the three main kata, innovating and building from that which was done long ago.

I would venture to say that Bobby Campbell in his competitive sparring prime (early to mid 1970s) could have taken many present-day "champions" and essentially toyed with them. And so could his main rival of that era - the incomparable Shinjo Kiyohide.

And I know the likes of Jimmy Malone, Art Rabesa, and Walter Mattson were no picnic in the sparring ring.

But...what made them that good? In the case of Bobby C, he took his material outside the dojo and into Boston Chinatown. He was a walking sponge, and a dojo rat. And he gave as much as he took.

So, what makes a teacher as opposed to a student? When does someone graduate from master technician to master? In a phrase - when they start thinking/working independently AND coming up with intelligent ideas.

But there's more that can be said on this subject.

BTW, you are right on the subject of the junbi undo.

- Bill

[suede]

when the student open his or her own school.. then he or she can set his or her own terms....

[mjdcgb]

Bill,

You are right.

Van Canna, Jack Summers, Ahti Kaend, Bob Campbell, Bob Bethony, Walter Mattson, Jim Maloney, etc. are all great fighters and are innovative in their techniques.

Creating, energizing, effectively transmitting skills and succesfully motivating students make one a teacher. All of the men mentioned above are, in my opinion, teach as well as they fight - excellently!

Opening a dojo does not, in my opinion, make one a teacher.
I was not referring to these esteemed teachers. I was referring to those who have not yet moved beyond these teachers' drills, techniques and innovations and have not yet developed originality in their approach to training or teaching.


So, once again, when does a student stop thinking as a student and start thinking as a teacher?

Mike

[Ted Dinwiddie]

I do not think a teacher ever stops thinking as a student. For one, teaching helps a person learn. As senior students teach junior students they increase the depth of their own knowledge. A senior teacher is always learning, always studying and practicing. The senior teacher is self guiding in his/her research to a greater extent than his/her students. A PhD candidate does not have daily classroom assignments given to them for homework, but their course of study and research is supervised and guided to some degree. A professor is researching and publishing independently even as they have responsibility for teaching classes and/or supervising TAs (junior instructors/senior students).

[maxwell ainley]

Hi Mike,
Good question's ,but first of all Ted make's a lot of sense .
But I think you still want a true transition point , mike there is all this communial knowledge , then there is your own ,that seperates you from everybody else .Its got your stamp on it ,you have done the graft ,nobody as given you that knowledge ,you have earned it ,by blood sweat and tear's .
But when you do first of all come up with something original within the uechi structure ,you will see you are still a student ,but to somebody struggling with the basic's they might think you are some kind of genius .
Back to the transition point ,no matter what' said some one still might think there is one .A lot of us got chucked into the teacher mode,for various reasons prematurly, and were we teachers ?
So mike the starting point will vary across the board .