Positive reinforcement is not only an important part of learning, it’s vital to how we develop as individuals. In society it seems that we tend to emphasize the negative, it’s just that we take notice of it more. In order to counter this strange tendency we have to remember to reemphasize the positive time and time again.
This is especially true in martial arts. We as instructors have to remember that everything we do is an example to our students, whether we plan it that way or not. A flippant comment to another instructor can have lasting effects and you may never be aware of it. You have to train yourself to be your best all the time.
After all isn’t what this is all about?
When teaching a student the basic plan is pretty straight forward. The student is given the information in some manner or form and then is validated by the teacher. But what if the student doesn’t get it right the first time? It has to be corrected and this can be done in any number of ways, many of them dangerous and harmful. Avoiding destroying the students desire to learn is the most important aspect in teaching. If you simply tell a student they’re wrong you aren’t doing anyone any favors, even if you seem fit to give them the correct information. This process has to reinforce what the student has already learned and leave them with the desire to learn more. Once the desire to learn has been beaten down, it can be an overwhelming task to restore.
Praise. Correct. Praise.
It’s been my experience that everyone in their life has that one teacher that changes them, gives the student the ability to change themselves. I’ve had many wonderful teachers in my life, but the one person who stands out in my life is the late Sa Bum Nim Thomas Zoppi. Not my first martial arts instructor but the one who left the lasting impression in me. It’s interesting that I was in my thirties when this person changed my life.
One of the core values he taught me was that as an instructor we need to praise, then correct and praise again. It’s not correct, then praise. It starts with praise, laying the foundation of a positive learning experience. Then the student is more receptive to improvement which can also include correction. Then to reinforce the experience, praise again is used.
Honest, sincere valuable praise. Not a hollow compliment that the student knows isn’t true either because they know they weren’t doing it right or they have heard that particular compliment so many times before it has lost any of it’s meaning.
Using Praise. Correct. Praise. also reinforces the students desire to learn more. This is the win.
Sometimes at the end of class I’ll ask each student what they learned in class that day. I’ve never had a student give me an answer that wasn’t honest and sincere, especially when I ask it this way:
“What did you learn today, or what did you get better at?”
Sometimes we can forget that getting better at something is a learning process in its own right. Not only does this time let the student reflect upon their progress that day, but it allows another opportunity to reaffirm a positive class for the student from the instructor and themselves.
At the end of the day it’s the smile of a student as they leave that is the best praise I can receive.
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