Why are so many martial arts schools SO unprofessional?

Question

In my experience they all make at least one of the following mistakes:

Instructors ridicule students.
They dont' act like you're a paying customer.
They use foul language.
They use intimidation.
They beat on students.
They disregard student's safety.
They neglect instruction in favor of horseplay.
They play loud music.
They don't make kids programs FUN.
They're never wrong.
They don't welcome questions.

What is the deal with this?
How do you find one that actually respects you, your money and your desire for instruction?

Answer 1

Why are so many other businesses the same way? It isn't the martial arts, it is a systemic issue with people in general. When people haven't learned to be professional then they don't act professional. Many people think they are more than they really are.

Of course, some of the things you mentioned in your question were actually condoned and even encouraged as teaching methods in the past to put the student in the crucible and see if he melts or becomes tempered.

Answer 2

It sound to me like these instructors have completely missed the point of what being an instructor is supposed to be. Admittedly most schools don't prepare their students to teach any more than they prepres them for the business end of running a school. Most schools don't have the kind of problems in your list, although the ones that do make it hard for the rest of us. Usually, instructors are answerable to the governmng body of the wtyle that they teach, but sometimes someone will open a school that shouldn't be teaching and we have the kind of incidents you mentioned. The responsibility of being a teacher is to pass on the knowledge and techniques they have gained, ot make certain that the student understands both the technical aspects of the art AND the historical aspects of it. If a student doesn't ask questions, they can't learn. While a teacher has to maintain a sense of discipline and control in their classes, intimidation and ridiculr are NOT proper tools to do this.

The really isn't a way to weed these peole out of your search for a school until you have studied with them....but don't let a few miscreants stop you in your search.

Answer 3

Yes I was once a member of one of those so-called chains of schools, Luckily for me I saw the light and left... I now train at a very small gym owned and run by a professional Muay Thai fighter (won 73 fights) , He teaches every lesson except the ladies ones which his girlfriend teaches, and she is hardcore too,.. and they treat everyone at this gym with the upmost respect, they always call you by your name, and greet everyone individually as you enter the gym, (they make you feel welcome) and also take time out to go over your techniques with you if you are unsure.. I know these little gems of places are hard to come by, to actually find some people that are willing to take time out to teach people for the love of the sport rather than it be just another money making scheme is great, this place is alot more cheaper than my last school to attend yet I recieve so much more.. I think the best advice really if you are to ever train in martial arts you really need to do your research and not be thrown off by the size or appearance of shools, It's usually the very small modest looking school that will give the most to its students... beware of the "Flashy, Large schools that seem to have too many students that they don't know what to do with...

Answer 4

A big part of the problem is that MA is not regulated in the country. Any one can, & many people do, claim high ranks that they haven'y earned. They are frequently good street fighters, but they never learned respect, self control or any other values. What makes this even worse is that Their students may well become the same type of "instructor. When 1 of these thugs gets in serious trouble such as molesting a student, it makes MA look bad.

Answer 5

Because anyone with a black belt can open their own school.

They are not widely regulated and seldom sued over these incidents. Part of the problem is that people will choose them over a legitimate school because they might save $10 a month.

Keep in mind that these clases are intended to create a sence of wellness and physical well being. There will be people pushing you to achieve higher goals. You might get hurt practicing. But it should never be a medium for the intructors to beat, ridicule and exert their power on people.

Answer 6

That's a good question.
I remember when I was a young boy, I was turned off to martial arts because of the instructors disregard for my safety.

However, with the rise of MMA and the UFC and other promotions, more passionate fighters are opening schools that show dignity and respect for the students.

Answer 7

They're all insane, and in for the money. I've only found one school that was okay.. In that one he just couldn't control any of the kids, they were constantly talking and messing around, and he never joined in and showed us how to do things. In my opinion, the best thing to do is watch them do a class, and ask some of the participants what they think of the class.

Answer 8

First, I'll list which of these I'm guilty of, since I am an instructor: I don't treat my students like paying customers, and I have trouble making kids' programs fun (but I'm working on that.)

Why don't I treat my students like paying customers? Two reasons, first, my Kung Fu school is not my bread and butter, it pays for itself, but not a whole lot more. I am there because I like having a set time and space to practice, and I like to teach. I have a day job that pays my bills. If I had a sewing machine store and a good, long standing, high paying customer came in and suggested I rearange the store, I'd say, "I'll take that under consideration, sir." Then I'd probably do it. But if someone comes into my school, even if they've been a student at the school for five years, never missed a payment, and are a good source of other students, and they suggest I change the order of kicks, I'd say, "There's a reason we do them the order we do them. It stays." In class, I'm in charge, it's my world, I'm king of the ant hill. But I also have to keep it that way. I have students who are there to learn traditional Kung Fu, not "the kick of the week." If I start switching the curriculum arround whenever a student wants to learn something else, then no one will learn anything effectively. If they want to learn someTHING other than what I'm teaching, they're welcome to go learn someWHERE other than where I'm teaching. I don't make people sign long term contracts, and if someone only wanted two classes from me, they can even just pay me $14 for two classes and be done with it.

As to foul language, that is just a product of our culture. Everyone is using it, no reason you should expect Martial Artists to be anything other than members of society. I don't, but that's how and where I was raised.

Use intimidation, beat on students, disregard students' safety, neglect instruction in favor of horseplay, and ridicule students I haven't seen, so I'd say stay away from there. There are enough schools that don't that you don't have to put up with that. Although some schools have a psudo-military style, which could be seen as that.

Who plays loud music durring class? We had class in a dance hall for a while when I was in jr. high, and there was music there, but we weren't playing the music. That's the closest I've ever seen to that.

Making kids programs fun is harder than it looks, especially when you're trying to keep things organized and structured. A lot of times, keeping a Martial Arts class fun and allowing a little bit of horse play go hand in hand, and I don't allow horse play, so it's hard. I have some things I'm working on, and all the kids who keep comming really enjoy it for the hard workout it is, the same as kids who enjoy making music don't always get to play the songs they like at music class.

As to the never wrong and not welcoming questions, some don't because they think it will lead to them loosing control of the class. I have specific ways for students and their parents to bring questions or concerns to me. They can do so through my email or in person before or after class. Questions about a move can be asked at certain times. If a question is asked out of the correct time frame, I tell the student when the correct time to ask that question is and then I try to answer it.

As to how to find good instruction, none of these things by themselves would make bad instruction. A teacher who has been teaching for 50 years may have a set curriculum, and 95% of all the questions he is asked by new students get answered in the first year of teaching anyway. He may use music as a teaching aid, and may target his class at adults.

To that end, I would say that the first step towards finding good instruction is to redefine good instruction. Good instruction is where you can learn. This means not every instructor is a good fit for every student. A nominally "bad" instructor might be the best instructor for one particular person.

Know what you want to learn. This can be broad or specific: "I want to learn a traditional style" or "I want to learn forms" or "I want to learn to fight in a street fight" or "I want to learn how to compete in a tournoment." If you want to learn a traditional style, or you want to learn forms, then my school is a great place for you. If you want to learn how ot street fight or how to compete in a tournoment, we'll talk, I'd like to start some programs that direction, but my primary student base isn't interested in it and so it won't be in the main curriculum at this point.

Then once you know what you want, find out if any of your friends have taken Martial Arts. Tell them what you're looking for, and see if they recommend anyone. You'd be suprised how many Martial Artists will honestly say, "Oh, my teacher isn't that great with that stuff. He can do it, but he can't teach it. Try this guy." In some times your options in a given geographical area will be slim. If you've only got three teachers in your county, visit all three, watch a couple of classes, and then talk to them and the students. A lot of instructors will tell you they can teach you anything. If you come in asking for flight instruction, they'll claim they give that. But their students might paint a different picture. If there's ten people in a class and you ask five of them how they think they'd do in a street fight, and they say, "Nah, I'm just here for the exercize" and you want to learn how to street fight, go elsewhere.

Answer 9

Because they can. They are better at martial arts than you. Many of them believe that you have to be tough to excel at it. However, many of them are just fake wannabe fighters. If you're serious about learning martial arts, go to china, or japan. They have martial arts passed down for thousands of years.

Answer 10

Depending on your attitude it should be rather easy to find a good kwoon, with a decent Sifu, or Sensei.

L. Ramirez

http://www.pacificwingchunassociation.com