(That's a LOT of DCs)
INSTRUCTOR
DEVELOPMENT
COURSE
IDCs are about teaching your stuff better.
This IDC is designed to address the specific challenges facing self-defense instructors: That they are teaching a skill where training and application must, for safety reasons be different; teaching adaptable solutions to chaotic problems adapting to a very diverse range of student needs and abilities; teaching skills that must be applied under stress and at high stakes, often with limited time, information, and margins of error. The course will address teaching adults, not children and serve as an introduction to both principles-based training and awareness-based training.
Outline:
Class Objectives:
At the end of this course, attendees will understand and be able to implement a principles-based training model; understand and be able to apply appropriately the four primary teaching methodologies; improve skills at reading and reaching students; derive their personal self-defense core skills; create a revolving curriculum and flexible training template; increase understanding of marketing and; learn how to adapt a course for force professionals.
Student Profile:
All attendees are skilled, probably instructor ranked in their respective arts, likely experienced teachers as well. They are here to teach their stuff better, not to teach our stuff. Which means they are good people who care about their students. That makes them our colleagues and equals.
Course Outline (Subject to change:
Introductions
1: The Unique Problem of SD Instruction
• SD is an open-ended rather than closed system, so there are many ways to win and lose. No “right” answers.
• Skills must be used out of the box, completely without experience
• The student will have to apply those skills in an unpredictable, chaotic and rapidly changing environment
• It will be a high stakes situation with slim margins of error
• The student will have to perform from surprise, under the effects of stress and with only partial information
• No way of knowing when a student will need it. You know an engineering student won’t be building bridges until after school, you don’t know if a SD student will need stuff tonight or never.
• The event has antecedents and will have after-effects (longitudinal)
• The problem exists in the real world
• Potential perfect storm for toxicity
• Teaching students, not material. Each student is different on multiple levels
• The LEO/Military/EMS solution to these challenges is simply not available for civilians
• The instructional models we have are inadequate
There is very little knowledge of teaching for this. What we offer here is our current best insight.
2: What a SD instructor needs (Overview)
To teach one must be a subject matter expert on 1) the problem, 2)solving the problem and, 3) skilled at teaching.
Subject Matter Expertise (Approx 2:30):
• Strong Knowledge base of the problem and context
• Strong skills in the basic building blocks
• Strong understanding of principles
Specific to SD, trainers need to understand:
• The Teaching, Training, Conditioning and Play paradigms
• The role, use and limitations of experience in teaching
• How to assess sources of information
• How to assess effectiveness of drills
• How to assess effectiveness of techniques
Teaching Expertise. A SD instructor needs:
• Understanding of adult learning theory
• Skills at reading and reaching students (also student profiles)
• Trouble-shooting difficult students
• Curriculum development skills
Student empowerment and instructor ethics
3: Subject Matter Expertise (Specific)
• Strong Knowledge base of the problem and context. How to get more information.
• Specific talk on SD law
• Specific talk on Violence Dynamics
• Specific talk on aftermath (Question for group, what are your responsibilities?
• BB and Principles will vary between instructors, we will talk about what they are but I will not try to indoctrinate you with mine.
• Specialty: Policy and procedure of any specialty group that you teach
• Auxiliary Training: First aid and CPR. What else? Depth of game
4: Value and Limitations of Experience
Experience Thresholds
• Brain rewiring at each level
• Strengths and pitfalls of teaching from each level
• Dealing with students working from different levels.
• Sharing experience
5: Principles-Based Instruction
Defining principles, concepts and building blocks
• Principles
• Differentiating the above from goals, parameters, strategies, tactics, aphorisms, trivia and wishes
• What the student wants vs. needs vs. thinks they want
• Demo depth of principle” Principles as understanding versus trivia of precision
• What are your principles?
• Concepts
• Building Blocks
6: Transfer of Information
• Teaching, Training, Conditioning and Play
• Counter assault as example of Conditioning
• One-Step as example of Play
• Locks as an example of Principles-Based teaching
• The Process of Principles-Based Training
• The Flaws of Principles-Based Training
7: Drills
• Evaluating Drills
• Designing drills and games
• Understanding and choosing levelsof resistance
• Evaluating Sources of Knowledge
• Critical thinking (Not something you know, something you get better at)
8: Teaching Adults and Professionals
• Adult learning theory
• Reading and reaching students
• Problem students
9: Instructor ethics
• Empowerment of students and creating a healthy relationship with personal power
10: Curriculum Development
• Structure of class: Goals, execution, debriefing
• Short-term versus long-term students
• Seminar vs. regular classes vs. individuals vs. teams and elites
• Flexible template (1)
• Revolving Curriculum (2)
• Professional Course formatting
• Reading a class in a seminar format
• Creating a home/tribe
11: Metrics
The idea of metrics in martial arts tends to be, for want of a better word, peculiar. We want to know how good we are at hurting people without actually hurting people or getting hurt. We want to test our skills in a ritualized caricature of violence to find out if we are good at violence. This leads us to judge a vitally kinesthetic skill visually.
Lastly, the idea of “rank” in martial arts has no corollary to any system other than academia.
12: Business Track
• Student recruitment and retention.
• Liability insurance and legal
• Business planning
• Accounting
Bonus track: Rapport and respect with professionals
The course will be held in Ashburn, VA (A suburb of DC, about seven miles from Dulles) and hosted by Kore Self Defense. Dec 7-9 2018
Price will be $595 for three heavy days.
Personal students of the instructor cadre will get a hefty discount. Contact the cadre member directly to get the discounted price.
VioDy OG's get a 20% discount. Email me with your code name.
IDC
USD$595