Are all bad teachers mcdojos

[Balrog]

I can’t edit now... it should’ve said branded gear DOESN’T mean McDojo.

Ooopsie.

 

[WaterGal]

The aftercare portion and even the business portion don’t automatically make the instruction poor. If my kids (5 and 7) were going to sit around somewhere until 6 pm-ish or even a traditional daycare, I’d much rather them go somewhere like the place I described. They get their homework done and have physical activity. It’s a win-win. I’m not knocking that, but just showing an overall trend developing for the big picture.

Yeah, I get what you mean. A lot of schools, I think, make up for poor programs by providing aftercare, but aftercare isn't in itself a bad thing. Personally, if I could enter into some kind of arrangement to be next door to a childcare center, and have them walk the kids over a few times a week, that would be so perfect.

I have several issues with the money aspect though...
The black belt plan sounds great on paper. It costs $4k, with all testing fees including 1st dan included. You pay that price regardless of how long it takes. If it takes 5 years, you pay $4k total. If it takes 15 years, $4k total. If you pay it off and leave before black belt, you can come back whenever you want and don’t pay until you pass your black belt test. So you have a 5 year old who stays a year then quits. Then when he’s 15 he decides he wants to go back. It’s already paid for, so there’s no charge. and at the alleged average of 5-7 years, at 5 years it’s about $80 per month. The average commercial dojo in the area is $125-$150, so it’s a great deal. On paper.

Here’s where it falls flat - the real average is about 2 years. $4k for 2 years is almost $170 per month.

Yeah, that's shady. They're trying to hide how much it costs. I'd be really uncomfortable with that.

Then there’s the requirement for teaching issue. If you’re regularly teaching, you should be compensated somehow. Free or discounted merchandise, free movie nights, free SOMETHING. Nope. The way I see it, it’s a way to maximize profits. Tell them it’s a requirement so you don’t have to pay more staff.

Agree on all counts.

All would be excusable if the teaching was great. The classes aren’t structured as you theorized when I was there. They all bowed in together, then the various groups went their separate ways, seemingly separated by age. There were 14-16 year olds running their own groups, assisted by a 12 year old, if I had to guess ages. The two senior instructors didn’t teach anything. They circulated, but they weren’t telling the instructors what to teach, nor did I see them correct anything. And each group was doing their own thing. The floor was decent sized, but way too small for 4 groups of at least a dozen students each. I honestly had a headache from the noise level when I left, which as about a half hour into the 45 minute class. Not that I expected anyone to look razor sharp, but no one really looked very good.

Ugh. Yeah, that's no good.

 

[WaterGal]

One thing I dislike is that to compete in tournaments you have to buy equipment from them. They say it is quality control but really it is a business decision. I wish they would just say that up front.

It may be a bit of both. We don't require student to buy gear from us, but we do encourage it. We have had some students buy some cheap/used gear online and it often ends up 1) not being the right kind of gear, 2) not fitting them right, or 3) not being good quality and falling apart quickly. We retail gear that's high-quality and will last them for years, and they can try it on before they buy it.

 

[JR 137]

It may be a bit of both. We don't require student to buy gear from us, but we do encourage it. We have had some students buy some cheap/used gear online and it often ends up 1) not being the right kind of gear, 2) not fitting them right, or 3) not being good quality and falling apart quickly. We retail gear that's high-quality and will last them for years, and they can try it on before they buy it.

I’ve got no problem with the organization requiring someone to buy their approved gear. My current organization doesn’t have an official list of what brands and models are acceptable, but they’re pretty specific about the type of gear. Everyone having to wear the same stuff really comes down to everyone being protected. I don’t want to spar someone who’s got stuff that’s too heavy or too light. Then the head of our organization made the rule that the gear has to be either all black or all white. People were showing up with ridiculous colors and designs. Some people were wearing all different colored stuff, like every piece was a different color. While it’s not that big of a deal, it kind of goes against our tradition - everyone wears a plain white gi with our organization’s patches (one on the chest and one on the arm). Everyone wearing the same thing keeps everyone on the same level and prevents a fashion show, outdoing each other, etc. I don’t know why I like that so much, but I just do.

My former organization required us to buy their gear. It was about 10% less than catalog prices. It was Macho gear with our organization’s logo on it. This was before the internet. They weren’t doing it as a cash grab; it was so people were protected adequately and no one was coming in looking like a clown.

 

[Michele123]

You all have some good points about the gear. I just tend to buy everything we have (especially kids stuff) second hand to save money. It never occurred to me that the things I bought wouldn’t be allowed. I don’t see why not since it looks the same as their stuff. Other than not having a record of my purchase I don’t know how they can tell it apart.


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[hoshin1600]

Other than not having a record of my purchase I don’t know how they can tell it apart.

i think sometimes that is the issue right there. items may look identical but but have a quality difference. gloves may look the same but the padding could be sub par and injure people. the only way for the instructor to know that every pair is decent is to have people buy the item he provides. it could be a quality assurance issue, or it could be for profit margins. who knows.

 

[WaterGal]

You all have some good points about the gear. I just tend to buy everything we have (especially kids stuff) second hand to save money. It never occurred to me that the things I bought wouldn’t be allowed. I don’t see why not since it looks the same as their stuff. Other than not having a record of my purchase I don’t know how they can tell it apart.


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If it looks exactly the same, and fits them, it's probably fine, though it might fall apart more quickly if it's not high-quality. But I know we've had some parents that bought stuff second hand to save money, and got karate point sparring gear instead of Olympic-style TKD gear. The parents didn't realize there were more than one kind of martial arts sparring gear.