What amount of experience makes it onto your bio/resume?

[Hyoho]

I'm not sure why Hyoho thinks we have a commission we don't

You used to have. I still have my MAC coach award around somewhere. I taught night school as an introductory course for sword arts as a fourth dan. When I left I recommended someone else. But as he had no coach award it closed down.

Sorry I am out of touch with the UK. In Japan it's a profession requiring professional qualifications for the well known arts.

 

[tkdroamer]

The fact of the matter is just because you do MA doesn't mean you can teach it. There also the safety aspect we should consider. As Tez3 mentions, the UK did it a long time ago with the Martial Arts Commision.

Sounds to me like you are setting your own rules.

Possibly The Martial Arts Agency? ***It is a Pay to Play site***. A number of links do not work.
I see Nothing that states this is a mandate to open a school.

The Martial Arts Commission was dissolved in 2005.

 

[tkdroamer]

In the UK it's common for all sports clubs now to also list first aid qualifications, perhaps reassuring to potential martial arts students. 😁 (we batter you but can put you back together)
The other thing that is practically compulsory if you take students under 18, is a DBS, a police check.
Many martial arts instructors here do have coaching and refereeing qualifications. The organisations they belong to, not necessarily style ones, hold courses including child safety, health and safety, first aid etc. We also do these type of courses in Guiding, many leaders and I imagine martial arts instructors can find them useful for their CVs for work as well as reassuring potential students. Coaching qualifications can also impress potential bosses even though it has nothing to do with the work, however it shows other qualities.

This is very much in line with how things are done in the States. The DBS and police check is called a 'background check' here and is part of getting liability insurance. First aid & CPR training is required for now but there is definitely a movement of assessing liability so this will likely go away.
There are endless courses a person can take to shore up their resume and credentials. It would be up to the instructor what they chose to hang on their wall. So many things like this are money grabs that do not reflect well if a person is even marginally informed.
I don't feel like the term 'coaching' as a martial arts instructor universally overlaps into other types of business. It certainly should not IMHO.

 

[MadMartigan]

I taught night school as an introductory course for sword arts as a fourth dan. When I left I recommended someone else. But as he had no coach award it closed down.

I think this is the crux of the miscommunication. Hyoho seems to be talking about teaching for a school district. I can see there being more mandatory hoops to jump through in those circumstances.

I could simply watch some Jackie Chan movies, put up a shingle and offer classes at "Gus'GasStationMartialArts.fart" and if people sign up, then I have a school. There are no laws in most countries that say I can't.

To run officially sanctioned classes as part of a government operated school program, however, I'd not be surprised if they required the martial arts instructor to have similar qualifications as the teachers of their other physical education programs.

 

[Tez3]

I think this is the crux of the miscommunication. Hyoho seems to be talking about teaching for a school district. I can see there being more mandatory hoops to jump through in those circumstances.

I could simply watch some Jackie Chan movies, put up a shingle and offer classes at "Gus'GasStationMartialArts.fart" and if people sign up, then I have a school. There are no laws in most countries that say I can't.

To run officially sanctioned classes as part of a government operated school program, however, I'd not be surprised if they required the martial arts instructor to have similar qualifications as the teachers of their other physical education programs.

In the UK it would be practically impossible for martial arts to be taught as a school subject, it can be taught as an after hours club activity in a school though but rarely is.
We don't have martial arts clubs and schools running after school clubs as I've seen in the US, that is classed as education and would have to be Ofsted inspected and approved as all childcare is.

 

[Tez3]

You used to have. I still have my MAC coach award around somewhere. I taught night school as an introductory course for sword arts as a fourth dan. When I left I recommended someone else. But as he had no coach award it closed down.

Sorry I am out of touch with the UK. In Japan it's a profession requiring professional qualifications for the well known arts.

That's an association that runs martial arts schools not a commission. We've never had a commission or governing body.

 

[skribs]

I'm not sure why Hyoho thinks we have a commission we don't. We aren't bound by anyone not even MMA has any sort of governing body. We have various associations, some style specific, some welcome all styles. They provide insurance, licence books, coaching courses, child protection advice, help with publicity, some will run gradings, some not. You pay a fee to join, there's many around. None endorsed by the government. The only very official one is the Olympic Judo one, it comes under Sport England/Scotland/Wales etc.
This is a very typical one. The Multi-Award Winning, Politics Free British Martial Arts & Boxing Association (BMABA) - The UK Leading Martial Arts Association - British Martial Arts & Boxing Association (BMABA) there's many others

My apologies.

And you know how unapologetic I am, so you know this one is genuine.

 

[MadMartigan]

To the original intent of the thread, I've been noticing a trend away from outward rank displays in advertising (at least in the western area of North America).
While it used to be common to see grand master so-and-so in yellow pages ads, now every school has it's own website and Facebook page.

I've looked at several websites recently that have no mention of the instructor's rank, lineage, or even (sometimes) who the instructors are. This last one I've seen especially in schools who market specifically for children's classes, and probably use multiple assistants that could change from day to day.

It appears to me that the schools that run further toward the profit end of the 'for profit' spectrum have found no use for promoting their martial ranks, and instead focus on the after-school and character building programs.

 

[tkdroamer]

To the original intent of the thread, I've been noticing a trend away from outward rank displays in advertising (at least in the western area of North America).
While it used to be common to see grand master so-and-so in yellow pages ads, now every school has it's own website and Facebook page.

I've looked at several websites recently that have no mention of the instructor's rank, lineage, or even (sometimes) who the instructors are. This last one I've seen especially in schools who market specifically for children's classes, and probably use multiple assistants that could change from day to day.

It appears to me that the schools that run further toward the profit end of the 'for profit' spectrum have found no use for promoting their martial ranks, and instead focus on the after-school and character building programs.

Way too many of these are advertisements for 'pre-fab' schools where the owner/"instructor" has little to no experience. They are cropping up at an alarming trend.

 

[tkdroamer]

I think this is the crux of the miscommunication. Hyoho seems to be talking about teaching for a school district. I can see there being more mandatory hoops to jump through in those circumstances.

I could simply watch some Jackie Chan movies, put up a shingle and offer classes at "Gus'GasStationMartialArts.fart" and if people sign up, then I have a school. There are no laws in most countries that say I can't.

To run officially sanctioned classes as part of a government operated school program, however, I'd not be surprised if they required the martial arts instructor to have similar qualifications as the teachers of their other physical education programs.

I know there is an option at our middle schools and high schools to have martial arts as the P.E. elective. I assume the people teaching are either part of the school system or have to go through certain training and have credentials.

 

[hoshin1600]

@skribs ,
I think your looking at this incorrectly. A resume and a web sight bio has different purposes. Some years ago and just for fun I wrote my MA resume. Included was every seminar and ever name drop I could conjure. But its not something I would put on line. A web sight is marketing. marketing! It has almost nothing to do with your credentials. It's sole purpose is to generate inquiry calls. This means that your bio should be written to your select demographic customer. ( if you demographic is kids than your bio is written for moms) If it doesn't generate calls than it is not needed and a waste of space.
People who show up at your door will sign up and stay based on YOU. Not your resume.

 

[skribs]

A web sight is marketing. marketing! It has almost nothing to do with your credentials. It's sole purpose is to generate inquiry calls.

A website is also a competitive tool.

If I'm the only martial art school in town, a website is a marketing tool. If I'm competing with other schools in the area, especially those that are of the same or similar art, then I would need my website to show that.

When my sister moved to this area 3 years ago, there were no Kukkiwon schools in the area. If I were to move here back then and franchise under my then-Master, then I would have just needed to get people here. But now, if I am a 4th-degree black belt in Kukkiwon and there are two other schools with 6th and 7th degree black belts, I'm going to be the 3rd choice for a Kukkiwon school. That's where having something else on the bio would help.

 

[tkdroamer]

A website is also a competitive tool.

If I'm the only martial art school in town, a website is a marketing tool. If I'm competing with other schools in the area, especially those that are of the same or similar art, then I would need my website to show that.

When my sister moved to this area 3 years ago, there were no Kukkiwon schools in the area. If I were to move here back then and franchise under my then-Master, then I would have just needed to get people here. But now, if I am a 4th-degree black belt in Kukkiwon and there are two other schools with 6th and 7th degree black belts, I'm going to be the 3rd choice for a Kukkiwon school. That's where having something else on the bio would help.

I get what you are saying but if all three schools were opened at the same time, I don't think it (rank) would automatically mean as much as the product being delivered and how well it is marketed.
There is a lot to be said for being a younger master instructor vs. and older and possibly outdated instructor. In no way do I mean that to offend anyone. If a person is not careful, they can be outdated at 1st Dan.

 

[Gyakuto]

To the original intent of the thread, I've been noticing a trend away from outward rank displays in advertising (at least in the western area of North America).
While it used to be common to see grand master so-and-so in yellow pages ads, now every school has it's own website and Facebook page.

I've looked at several websites recently that have no mention of the instructor's rank, lineage, or even (sometimes) who the instructors are. This last one I've seen especially in schools who market specifically for children's classes, and probably use multiple assistants that could change from day to day.

It appears to me that the schools that run further toward the profit end of the 'for profit' spectrum have found no use for promoting their martial ranks, and instead focus on the after-school and character building programs.

Perhaps some are hiding a lack of lineage and ‘bonafide‘ grades (whatever that means!). If you have a teacher’s name, the Internet provides a pretty effective means of checking credentials and claims.

If you are a JKA, 6th Dan Karateka who trained under…Nakayama Masatoshi 10th Dan why wouldn’t you advertise the fact? I suspect those data would garner considerable interest and profit from the public!

 

[Tez3]

Looking at websites in the UK of various schools and clubs I've noticed these have become very generic. I think many are using the same publicity posters, images and wording as supplied by specific companies. The wording is American rather than British, the themes especially for children exactly the same even the images of children. I think this is because people are signing up now to franchise type groups, I believe I saw on here that many American martial arts schools sign up to billing companies who run all the admin for instructors.

 

[Gyakuto]

The wording is American rather than British…

Ooo what does American wording look like? Lots of ‘sure’ and ‘I guess’ rather than the British, ‘nah wha’ ah mean’ and ‘innit’?

 

[Tez3]

Ooo what does American wording look like? Lots of ‘sure’ and ‘I guess’ rather than the British, ‘nah wha’ ah mean’ and ‘innit’?

😁😁
American spellings, 'z' instead of 's', talking about classes for kindergarten classes which is a different age thing in UK. Saying it's for children grade 6/7 etc, as well as enthusiastic comments extolling the virtues of patriotism, faith, discipline etc. It's the enthusiasm, it's exhausting for Brits lol. As is the high (too high) energy shouting in American accents 'good job', loud instructors make for loud children. A 'not bad ' is sufficient. 😆

 

[Gyakuto]

😁😁
American spellings, 'z' instead of 's', talking about classes for kindergarten classes which is a different age thing in UK. Saying it's for children grade 6/7 etc, as well as enthusiastic comments extolling the virtues of patriotism, faith, discipline etc. It's the enthusiasm, it's exhausting for Brits lol. As is the high (too high) energy shouting in American accents 'good job', loud instructors make for loud children. A 'not bad ' is sufficient. 😆

Ah yes! 😂🤣 I personally think ‘not bad’ is too much praise for British children..it will only spoil them. ‘Satisfactory‘ should be the highest praise unless the child is aristocracy in which case a almost imperceptible nod of the head and walking off sharply should be lavished upon them.

 

[Tez3]

Possibly The Martial Arts Agency? ***It is a Pay to Play site***. A number of links do not work.
I see Nothing that states this is a mandate to open a school.

The Martial Arts Commission was dissolved in 2005.

The Martial Arts Commission was a private company not a government body as can be seen from your link. It was a very crafty name though, leading people to believe it was official.
Dissolution Date28 February 2006Company Type Private Limited Company

 

[Gyakuto]

The Martial Arts Commission was a private company not a government body as can be seen from your link. It was a very crafty name though, leading people to believe it was official.

Crikey! I thought it was ‘official’ until just now! 😳