Sifu is using cell phone a lot during class - advice needed.

[Aiki Lee]

If this guy is learning and the instructor is good then what's the problem. Plus, maybe its a test. Maybe the instructor uses this process to weed people out. Maybe the instructor doesn't care to teach actively, does this mean his knowledge is any less useful?
.

The instructor may be skilled and knowledgeable but the behavior being described is not professional or even safe for martial arts. I agree with pretty much everything Xue and Celtic crippler said. If the instructor is not watching the students then he is not actively teaching. He is being paid to share his knowledge of martial arts and that goes beyond just introducing new movements every 15 minutes.

I do know that some instructors will purposefully not correct students when observing minor, lower danger risked errors. Often times the instructor does not want to overwhelm students with too many corrections at once or give them the false impression that they can't do anything right. Sometimes instructors leave you to your own devices to see if you can correct your own mistakes. However the teacher should always be watching for safety reasons.

I recommend asking politely that your instructor monitor your movements to see if they are correct. If this behavior continues and you do not get the service you want, you may need to look elsewhere. It would be sad though if this is the only guy in the area who can teach this art.

 

[Blindside]

There is something to be said about letting the students struggle with and work thru things that they have been taught. It's part of the learning process, and Sifu doesn't need to be there watching all the time, or even making corrections. But then at some point, yes, he needs to pay attention, make corrections, and give instruction.

We work in my Sifu's back yard. He sits in his study, watching TV with the window open so he can keep an eye on us. Often it seems he isn't watching. But then he suddenly appears with scathing criticism about what we've been doing, and he's always dead-on, it doesn't escape him. And then he gives correction and gives instruction and it's extremely valuable. But it's up to us to be responsible for our own practice.

But no, he isn't there every moment watching us like a hawk.

Does he do that with three week beginners?

I let people work through things as well, but those are more than newbie students, a new student doesn't have the background to work through a problem.

 

[Tez3]

I'd give the instructor a call to see how I was doing.........

 

[Dirty Dog]

There is something to be said about letting the students struggle with and work thru things that they have been taught. It's part of the learning process, and Sifu doesn't need to be there watching all the time, or even making corrections. But then at some point, yes, he needs to pay attention, make corrections, and give instruction.

We work in my Sifu's back yard. He sits in his study, watching TV with the window open so he can keep an eye on us. Often it seems he isn't watching. But then he suddenly appears with scathing criticism about what we've been doing, and he's always dead-on, it doesn't escape him. And then he gives correction and gives instruction and it's extremely valuable. But it's up to us to be responsible for our own practice.

But no, he isn't there every moment watching us like a hawk.

I'm guessing you've had more than three weeks experience though.
Letting experienced people work through things that they've been taught really has no connection whatsoever with abandoning someone who knows nothing to fumble through exercises without instruction.

 

[Dirty Dog]

I'd give the instructor a call to see how I was doing.........

Maybe set up a webcam and send him the videos for feedback.

 

[jasonbrinn]

Maybe set up a webcam and send him the videos for feedback.

You might want to know more than he does before attempting this. LOL.

 

[jasonbrinn]

In my system the first things you learn require the least amount of direct instruction. Really all you need is some guiding points and the actual practice itself is self-correcting. So in my system it is perfectly fine, in fact it is a really good practice to leave the student alone during that stage.

It is better to let the teacher teach and anyone with differing opinions find somewhere who teaches them the way they like or think a teacher should. Gosh, that sounds so silly to me.

 

[Xue Sheng]

I'd give the instructor a call to see how I was doing.........

:lfao:

That...that RIGHT THERE is the absolute BEST response and there will be none better :asian:

 

[KenpoDave]

He can charge what he wants, and teach how he wants. It is up to you to determine whether you feel that the value you get is proportional to theory he gets.

What of senior students? Are they any good? Are they also perplexed? Or are they awesome, and this is how he trained them?

It doesn't work well nowadays, but there are instructors who feel that you are paying them for the opportunity to, through your work and dedication, prove yourself worthy of what they have to offer.

But unless you see something there that you really want, I'd start looking around.


Dave Hopper

 

[Blindside]

It is better to let the teacher teach and anyone with differing opinions find somewhere who teaches them the way they like or think a teacher should. Gosh, that sounds so silly to me.

Agreed, but nothing wrong with giving the instructor some feedback.

 

[Tez3]

Agreed, but nothing wrong with giving the instructor some feedback.

By text?

 

[Monkey Turned Wolf]

In my system the first things you learn require the least amount of direct instruction. Really all you need is some guiding points and the actual practice itself is self-correcting. So in my system it is perfectly fine, in fact it is a really good practice to leave the student alone during that stage.

And what system is that? In almost any martial art or sport (both martial and nonmartial) thats when they need the most guidance. They don't know whats good or bad, and can easily give themselves horrible habits if no ones putting in effort to help them.

It is better to let the teacher teach and anyone with differing opinions find somewhere who teaches them the way they like or think a teacher should. Gosh, that sounds so silly to me.

Except when, you know, the teacher isn't actually teaching, and instead is on facebook. And, I'm pretty sure that everyone's berating the teacher, and suggesting he leaves (or making jokes XD), which would follow your logic of "anyone with differing opinions find somewhere who teaches them the way they like or think a teacher should."

 

[Flying Crane]

Based on my expereince with these old school Chinese MA teacher...yes, yes he is... we just don't know it:anic:...and that is exactly how they like it :uhyeah:

well yes, what I meant was, he isn't necessarily right there making it obvious that he's watching us like a hawk. But really, he misses very little of what's going on.

 

[Flying Crane]

Does he do that with three week beginners?

I let people work through things as well, but those are more than newbie students, a new student doesn't have the background to work through a problem.

well, I dunno. He doesn't really take new students. I'm the newest in the group, I've been with him for close to four years now. Before that, I had trained under one of his students for about 11 years before I was able to become his student. I had a lot to correct and improve, and he definitely gave me the guidance to do that, but he also gave me the time and space to just work thru it once the instruction had been given. But I wasn't a complete newbie when I started with him either.

The other guys have been with him for decades, over 40 years in some cases. I think it's been a long time since he's taken any new students before I was the last, and probably much longer since he's taken a new student who was an actual total newbie.

 

[jks9199]

Hey, everybody...

Let's avoid taking shots at each other and stick to the topic. What DO you think about this instructor spending class apparently paying more attention to his gadgets than his students. Any advice for the OP? Any questions for the OP, like are there senior students doing correction and instruction?

 

[mook jong man]

He's a lazy bastard.
Get out of there and find another school.

 

[pgsmith]

It wasnt a personal attack sir.

I am only pointing out that somehow, scientifically and omnisciently you are giving the definition of standard as to what a good instructor does or does not do. I get it that it has been your experience and personal opinion that a good instructor does A B and C, but until more data is in we can not say that a good instructor does not do D.

My first response is that some of my BEST instructors acted in that way, not the movie. I thought the movie was funny. I also think the clip points out, even though it is a movie, that uneducated people looking at events only decipher them the way they can understand which usually isn't the whole picture at all.

If this guy is learning and the instructor is good then what's the problem. Plus, maybe its a test. Maybe the instructor uses this process to weed people out. Maybe the instructor doesn't care to teach actively, does this mean his knowledge is any less useful?

It is true you often pay for what you get but it can also be true that you get what you try to learn even if you have to pay for it.

How good or bad this particular instructor happens to be is completely irrelevant. The fact is that the original poster is paying money. He is not satisfied with what he is paying for. Therefore, I advised him to leave and find what he is looking for. It doesn't matter if the instructor in question is the second coming of Bruce Lee, if someone is not satisfied with what they're paying for, stop paying.

 

[WaterGal]

Sounds like this teacher doesn't care much about teaching, or doing martial arts, or his students. Why isn't he up and doing the exercises with the students, to demonstrate? It's one thing if he needs to go out and take a business call and has one of the senior students run the class for a while, but if he's spending the whole class playing Angry Birds I don't think he deserves to be called a teacher.

 

[WaterGal]

There is something to be said about letting the students struggle with and work thru things that they have been taught. It's part of the learning process, and Sifu doesn't need to be there watching all the time, or even making corrections. But then at some point, yes, he needs to pay attention, make corrections, and give instruction.

We work in my Sifu's back yard. He sits in his study, watching TV with the window open so he can keep an eye on us. Often it seems he isn't watching. But then he suddenly appears with scathing criticism about what we've been doing, and he's always dead-on, it doesn't escape him. And then he gives correction and gives instruction and it's extremely valuable. But it's up to us to be responsible for our own practice.

But no, he isn't there every moment watching us like a hawk.

Feel free to correct me, but that sounds more like you guys are just practicing together with some supervision. I think that's useful (and can be a lot of fun), but to me that's different from a formal class. I think in a formal class, the teacher should be at the very least "watching like a hawk", if not actually demonstrating the techniques or doing the exercises with the students.

 

[Carol]

If other MA schools in the area are charging a similar amount, for a similar number of classes, and offer teachers that pay attention to their class for the entire duration of their class...then think very seriously about whether you are getting your money's worth for your classes. It seems that your suspicions, as well as the suspicions of the majority of the posters, are that you are not.