good students??

[Corwyn]

Quote:
Originally Posted by elemental
It appears from my perspective that finding good students is as hard as finding a good Master.
__________________________________________________ ______________

I didn't want to hijack the other thread where this comment was made, plus I felt that it was a sufficiently interesting question to warrant it's own thread.

there are 2 MA practitioners in my house - I started a MA when I first came to the states, but had to give it up because of lack of money. Then for the next 15+ years I was moving all the time and either. Now I am a 40 year old with 3 past knee surgeries, 15-20# overweight. Will never reach anything close to the level where I will even consider being an "example" of/for my style. But I will, if all willing, continue to practice the style I am in and with the Sifu I with for the rest of my life. Support my school and the MA community where ever I can.

My son whom I started in MA when he was 5, has earned his Black Belt in Kempo,
and while I insisted that he commit to the first year everything beyond that has been up to him. After his Black Belt he wanted to get into CMA because it's harder and more complex (his words). While he is not what I would call hard core - he is pre teen and girls, friends and PS3 have their priorities :) - I can pretty much guarantee that he will be involved with CMA for the rest of his life.

Will he be "super" CMA man :)? I don't know!?
I believe that we pretty much cover the 2 ends of the spectrum of new students.
How does this fit with your idea(s)?

Do you even give thought to "new student" in the first year?
At what point do you as a Sifu make distinction between "just some guy who comes to class and give me money" (no disrespect on either side here intended) to saying "this is MY student".
Is it based on talent only (all other things being equal)?
Or is it more than that?

Cor

[WuDe]

Elemental makes a great point.The teacher/student with martial virtue is hard to find.Remember a true master was a great student who became a great master .We are all on a great journey.

[Infrazael]

Commitment. I was extremely committed to my previous school but my Sifu didn't seem to care all that much about my training . . . . I wanted to learn how to fight like my Sifu because I had so much respect for him. :(

I hope when I go back home this summer I can go back and train and hopefully he will teach me more fighting methods.

[Minimalist]

Do you even give thought to "new student" in the first year?
At what point do you as a Sifu make distinction between "just some guy who comes to class and give me money" (no disrespect on either side here intended) to saying "this is MY student".
Is it based on talent only (all other things being equal)?
Or is it more than that?

I can't speak from the Sifu side of things(not being one), but I can speak from the student side. Especially since i know/trained with elemental :)

As a student, it is easy to see who is working hard and who isn't. Every school has your curve. Some people are exgtremely talented, some aren't. But even if you arn't inherently talented, hard work will overcome that. You may not progress as fast as some, but you will prgress. "1st year" students definitly get attention in my school, And they get attention all the way up the ladder. However you can only give so much in my oppinion, because at that level, you can only make minor changes with each training period. While more experienced students can go over a large chunk of form or technique and make several changes/improvements, more inexperienced players need to go step by step. That is how I see the difference between teaching 1st years, and more senior student.

as for you and your son, like Infrazael said, if yuo stay commited, thats what matters. You work hard, you will benefit.

[Jeong]

I think there are two major factors.

The first is spirit. It's easy to see if a student has martial spirit. It manifests itself in many ways, including definitely the amount of work the student puts into their training (both inside and outside class). Also their attendance and amount of respect the student has for the material (whether they understand & like it or not).

The second big factor is the way the student looks at it. Some students treat you like a martial arts teacher and others treat you like a Sifu. Someone who views you as just having developed a skill (MA as opposed to knitting perhaps) is likely to recieve the level of attention expected for someone who is practicing a skill they view as a hobby. A student who really respects you and sees you as having not only a very vaulable set of knowledge but respects you as the person who is sharing that skill with them (which manifests itself not only in martial skills but also in personal development) has really grasped the point of martial arts and will be treated accordingly.

[David Jamieson]

It's not church and it's not a big circle jerk either.

a good teacher will tell you when you suck and encourage you when you do well.

there is corruption of the mind to be found in heirarchical structures that use subservience as a tool on the path. That corruption of mind leads to corruption of body and nothing is gained.

If you know nothing, someone with even marginal skill will kick your ass.

It's not about that.

students come to learn, teachers are there to teach. Period. everything else is floss on the mill.

[Water-quan]

Quote:
Originally Posted by elemental
It appears from my perspective that finding good students is as hard as finding a good Master.
__________________________________________________ ______________

I didn't want to hijack the other thread where this comment was made, plus I felt that it was a sufficiently interesting question to warrant it's own thread.

there are 2 MA practitioners in my house - I started a MA when I first came to the states, but had to give it up because of lack of money. Then for the next 15+ years I was moving all the time and either. Now I am a 40 year old with 3 past knee surgeries, 15-20# overweight. Will never reach anything close to the level where I will even consider being an "example" of/for my style. But I will, if all willing, continue to practice the style I am in and with the Sifu I with for the rest of my life. Support my school and the MA community where ever I can.

My son whom I started in MA when he was 5, has earned his Black Belt in Kempo,
and while I insisted that he commit to the first year everything beyond that has been up to him. After his Black Belt he wanted to get into CMA because it's harder and more complex (his words). While he is not what I would call hard core - he is pre teen and girls, friends and PS3 have their priorities :) - I can pretty much guarantee that he will be involved with CMA for the rest of his life.

Will he be "super" CMA man :)? I don't know!?
I believe that we pretty much cover the 2 ends of the spectrum of new students.
How does this fit with your idea(s)?

Do you even give thought to "new student" in the first year?
At what point do you as a Sifu make distinction between "just some guy who comes to class and give me money" (no disrespect on either side here intended) to saying "this is MY student".
Is it based on talent only (all other things being equal)?
Or is it more than that?

Cor

I wouldn't see anyone as my student... I can't put my understanding in to them... all of the understanding they come to they work for, they unfold. I suppose if you show someone somethign you teach them some surface form abotu it, and that makes you technically the teacher of someone else... but that's a functional descriptin. "Teacher" is a relationship status - I wouldn't want that.