do you do extra

[tshadowchaser]

This is for students , preferably those that have studied under 3 years, but open to all who study under someone else.
How many of you volunteer to stay after class ( or show up before class ) to help clean the place you train in?
How many of you show up if there is a snow storm to help clear the entrance or mop floors ?
What extra things do you do with out being asked at your school.
Do you expect anything for your efforts?

OR do you feel your instructor is running a business and it is their responsibility to take care of the place seeing as you are paying for their services?

 

[Bruno@MT]

Our dojo is a community dojo in which we rent timeslots. My sensei is not making any money, and always prepared to help us with any questions or issues.

Ergo, I help out whenever I can. This includes, but is not limited to helping clean up if there is some to do, giving feedback when appropriate, offering to be uke after class so that he can practice his grade specific drills, carrying bags, etc.

My sensei does a lot for me, so I try to give back whenever I can.

 

[chrispillertkd]

This is for students , preferably those that have studied under 3 years, but open to all who study under someone else.
How many of you volunteer to stay after class ( or show up before class ) to help clean the place you train in?
How many of you show up if there is a snow storm to help clear the entrance or mop floors ?
What extra things do you do with out being asked at your school.

Many of the students at my instructors' school show up early and clear the room we train in. The school is located at a local community center and so there are times when we need to straighten up if a class has been in it before us and left things in disarray. Likewise, at the end of class we take down the flags, the board holders, the heavy bags, and any other equipment that was used during class so it's clean and ready for whoever will be using the room in the morning.

Last year my instructors hosted a seminar with a very high ranking Master instructor and there were people from five different states attending. About 5 minutes after the seminar was over the room we were in was basicaly spotless because the students put everything away. My instructors had people from other school commenting about how nice it was and asking how they got the students to do that (their reply: "We don't, they do it on their own."). As one of their students, it was nice to see that the example of courtesy that my instructors give to the students had been appropriated and, in turn, had made an impression on other people.

Other things the students do is seting up the table and chairs for the test board, helping get the instructors carry their bags (either in from the parking lot or out to their car after training), one of the younger black belts will usually wait for our instructors at the front of the building and open the doors for them on their way to room (and they usually get there an hour or more early to do their own training so he's there before that), etc.

Similarly, when there's a class function such as a formal dinner we usually try to keep etiquette as best we can (waiting until the senior belt is served and begins eating before we eat, turning our head away from the senior when drinking, bowing when the senior enters the room, pouring drinks for people, etc.).

The instructors have never told anyone they had to do any of these things. They are just things that students decided to do on their own to show their appreciation for the training we get.

Do you expect anything for your efforts?

OR do you feel your instructor is running a business and it is their responsibility to take care of the place seeing as you are paying for their services?

Of course, teaching Taekwon-Do is a business in that it's done for money (at least theoretically; I've had to tell my instructors I was just going to leave the money if they didn't take it after more than one private lesson). But that in no way means the students can't show their appreciation by doing the things I mentioned above. We don't expect anything in return for doing these things, as they're just considered to be good manners for students, part of the class culture, really. That being said, I know our instructors are very appreciative of the respect the students give them and will often thank people for doing these things.

Pax,

Chris

 

[Benevolentbob]

I help clean and sanitize the mats whenever my instructors do. I also help setup class pretty much every time but just about everyone else does that too. In the rare occasion that the instructors are short-staffed because of sickness or any other reason I help with the younger or lower ranked students in regards to instruction and just keeping them busy sometimes.

 

[jthomas1600]

I've trained at two different schools. The fist one was fairly small with a family feel and it was routine that I would help out with a number of things. In fact the school was heated by a wood stove and I was probably the primary provider of wood. I also used to bring the instructor fresh dungenous crab.

The school I attend now is larger, bigger, more organized, and business like. There is a hierarchy in place and I will help out when I'm asked. It actually seems to be a "privilege" that comes at a certain point in certain students progress. Mostly it seems it is high school black belts that take care of the cleaning up etc.

 

[ralphmcpherson]

Our general day to day class doesnt require much, if any, work to be done before/after class. We train in a school hall which is always kept neat and clean by the school as part of the rent we pay. It has seating up the back for parents and onlookers and a stage up the front and is about 70 metres long by 30 metres wide and is already to go when we arrive. Gradings however, are held in a hall in town and do require some preparation to get the hall ready. All black belts are encouraged to come to these gradings and we all help out with putting out the seating, setting up mats for self defence, getting the paperwork ready, organising the cameras for videoing etc etc. I think its the least we can do, we all work together to set up and pack up and many hands make it light work.

 

[Dirty Dog]

Our dojang is located in a shared community room, as with others. My wife and I (and usually the two of my kids who are training) show up about an hour early to clear the room and get it set up for TKD. I also take it upon myself to take care of things like sign in sheets and test applications.

We don't expect anything for this. Sabumnim is not making any significant money off this program, and anything we can do to help him is still inadequate to repay his work, not just with my family but with the community.

Being early also gives us old farts time for a looong warm up.

 

[Cirdan]

How many of you volunteer to stay after class ( or show up before class ) to help clean the place you train in?

Everyone in the Dojo does this (forced volounteering if you will).

How many of you show up if there is a snow storm to help clear the entrance or mop floors ?

If I anticipate something, I will show up early to do it.

What extra things do you do with out being asked at your school.

Whatever needs to be done.. from cleaning up a blood stain to driving a kid who missed the bus home.

Do you expect anything for your efforts?

No.

OR do you feel your instructor is running a business and it is their responsibility to take care of the place seeing as you are paying for their services?

Our Dojo is not a commercial one, Sensei certainly has a responsibility to keep the place running but so do the rest of us.

 

[harlan]

The first class I asked 'what do you expect?' The teacher said, 'I expect you to show up and practice.' As far as I'm concerned that is the extent of the committment.

 

[Bill Mattocks]

This is for students , preferably those that have studied under 3 years, but open to all who study under someone else.
How many of you volunteer to stay after class ( or show up before class ) to help clean the place you train in?
How many of you show up if there is a snow storm to help clear the entrance or mop floors ?
What extra things do you do with out being asked at your school.
Do you expect anything for your efforts?

OR do you feel your instructor is running a business and it is their responsibility to take care of the place seeing as you are paying for their services?

I've been studying Isshin-Ryu about 2 1/2 years. I'm a san-kyu (brown belt).

I come in early on Monday nights to help Sensei teach the kids as often as I can (nearly always). I bring in various cleaning supplies to keep the place stocked when we can afford it.

Sensei has a day job; the dojo doesn't pay for itself, he charges very little. It's a labor of love for him. So I do what I can. I have no objection to coming in and cleaning, but I haven't done that so far. Perhaps I need to add that to my New Year's resolutions. I do have a key to the place, so I have no real excuse.

 

[jks9199]

A few thoughts, and I'm too lazy to rewrite them...

Training Responsibilities



How have you paid for your training?

 

[tshadowchaser]

Thanks for those links.

Much of what was said in them was what I was looking for but then again I'm od and I know things have changed over the years