Greetings..
Mantis or any Martial Art that claims, as its purpose, to be "Martial" is obligated to offer instruction in the use of the system as a "fighting art".. any instructor level student should be able to hold his or her own in competitive sparring.. and, any school with national recognition should be regularly represented at full-contact tournaments.. Accordingly, there should be observable techniques demonstrating which style a fighter represents, otherwise why stay in any particular style.. i see little if any distinguishing stylistic traits in most of the tournaments i go to..
That brings up the passing of the style's perceived worth from one generation to the next.. to leave it to the student to figure out is an abdication of the responsibility of preserving the style and its value.. in the event that a particular style has lost its "stuff", it should be billed as a traditional art form, not a "Martial Art".. a "Martial Art" should be willing to accept challenges and prevail on the merits of the style.. when i see a Muay Thai fighter i know what style i am watching.. the same should be true of each particular style.. and it is the responsibility of the leadership of a style to teach and enforce their "Martial Lineage"..
Be well..
TaiChiBob.. "the teacher that is not also a student is neither"