PDA

View Full Version : Favourite student of teacher



szczepan
9th July 2003, 19:05
An interesting discussion in a recent thread made me wonder; How about favourite students of teacher? How you feel this issue? How about technical and social consequences of such behaviour in a dojo/organisation?

I personally saw few times a real disaster, when, student being a favourite of teacher, simply stopped his training. Or in another situation, I saw a lot of jalousie from “normal” students. It completly put out off balance whole dojo.

Hanna B
9th July 2003, 20:06
Whose behaviour is it you want to debate - the student's or the teacher? What does this "favouritism" look like? Can you give us a hint, so we don't end up discussing related butt different settings?

I'd say depending on the teacher's actions, favourite student can be a very dangerous position. It takes social skill to handle it.

Hanna B
13th July 2003, 16:42
...nobody has any comments? Really?

Jack B
14th July 2003, 16:24
In my experience, some people want to be the "teacher's pet" but it is a perilous position. They get lots of personal attention, but they also get a lot more scrutiny. If the motives are selfish (which they often are), and sensei knows what he is about, the favorite doesn't last long.

szczepan
14th July 2003, 19:42
Originally posted by Hanna B
Whose behaviour is it you want to debate - the student's or the teacher? What does this "favouritism" look like? Can you give us a hint, so we don't end up discussing related butt different settings?

I'd say depending on the teacher's actions, favourite student can be a very dangerous position. It takes social skill to handle it.

Both, student and a teacher.
Some studets think that being often uke make them better then other fellows aikidoka. Is ther any special status for that kind of students?

In the other hand, some teachers put a lot of pressure on their favourit students, they have differents expectations from them. Some teachers take only students that have beautiful ukemi, and are easy to throw. So they don't need to do any actual efford to make technique really work. Other students see it and start tanking more and more, just to be uke of teacher more often..

bruceb
14th July 2003, 21:19
I haven't run into this "Favorite Student" complex, at least for not any length of time.

The teachers I have trained with have taken some students a favorite ukes for periods of time, but that is the nature of training students to train other students, isn't it?

Although, some of the best teachers I have trained with make sure they go with everyone in the class, I think that you should make this observation over a period of months and not days or weeks. If, indeed, there is favoritism, both sides of the coin must be examined.

You must examine your own motives for the jealousy that makes you think that this person is a favorite of your teacher, and you must examine why the teacher chooses to use this person to transfer his knowledge in both a physical demonstrations, and obvious display of favoritism? Does it transfer the teaching in an easier manner, or does it say to the class that this is the level of practice you need to rise to?

Teachers are human beings. They have their own problems to deal with, and sometimes just getting the class to keep up is a task in itself. Most times a teacher is not thinking of who is a favorite student, but who is able to display the qualitieys needed for the next technique.

Most of us assume that this is a case of jealousy because you have not given us enough facts, or at least backround information to make a determination one way or the other.

Oh well.

Doesn't matter.

You are there to train, and you must learn little by little until you can call the techniques your own. It really shouldn't matter who is the favorite student of sensei .... Just so long as you get the knowledge you need to progress.

If it is a system of favoritism, it will be apparent by reading books and visiting other dojos, won't it?

Tim Mailloux
14th July 2003, 23:28
Oh my god!

I never though this day would come, I need a drink (or 6. I actually agree with everything Bruce said, all except the part about reading books. But eveyone is entilted to there opinion.

Ron Tisdale
15th July 2003, 03:19
I think Hanna is right, we need more information to make a judgement. And Bruce's post was a good one (not his first, by the way).

I am personally partial to teachers who chose beginners, journeymen, and excellent students for their partners. I think it speaks to the nature of their technique that they are capable of performing safe, effective technique with many levels of students. One of the best demonstrations of basic yoshinkan technique that I've ever seen was by Robert Mustard Sensei with a rank beginner...I believe the uke had had approximately a month of experience in aikido. Mustard Sensei was able to guide him through the appropriate ukemi without changing the form of the basic technique (or slowing it down). It was quite empressive.

Ron Tisdale

Hanna B
15th July 2003, 06:55
Exactly what does "teacher's pet" mean?

Should the teacher give all students equal attention? Or is it OK if he or she gives more attention to talented and/or dedicated students? I think most of us say, yes, it is OK.

I'd say that we have a "student's pet" in the moment when people in the dojo do not accept or understand the teacher's choice. Now, whose fault is that - the teacher's, the student in question, the envious group? Should they understand the teacher's choice, or is it none of their business? What if the teacher picks the bully for favourite uke?

At one occasion when I was called up for uke three times in a row, one of the senior people in the dojo made a comment - more like a short exclamation. The teacher did not use me for uke any more this class. I realised oh-oh - I have a problem here! I'd say in this dojo the teacher had failed to build an environment where he could pick uke at his choice. It is quite obvious who will pay the price.

When teaching myself, I have travelled from using everybody as uke, to being a little more picky. I still call everybody up for uke including complete beginners, but not each class and I use some students more than others. Now, is my judgement whom to call up completely unclouded by which ones are people I personally like? Hardly. Is this a problem?

The gender balance is roughly 50/50, and I do get to know the women better because of the chat in the changing room. Am I going to favourise the girls, simply because I know them better? If so, is it the men who usually are favourised?

I think I have the right to give more to dedicated students, than to those who whine a lot about their rights but always are too late to help putting the tatami in place before class. I have not exercised it so much, though. What do I build in the dojo if I try to treat everybody more or less the same, compared with if I make it clear I give to those I feel give something back? If I choose from technical ability only, or also from general attitude and willingness to work for the club?

Ron Tisdale
16th July 2003, 14:27
In what little "teaching" I do (I put that in quotes because of my questionable level), I often chose first the uke that can handle the ukemi when I do the technique at my highest level for that class. At different times throughout the class, I choose the uke that will best help me illustrate a given principle or facet of the technique. Sometimes I intentially choose the uke that I know before hand will be most difficult for me to perform the technique correctly with. This is actually one of my methods of training while teaching. It sometimes leads to a certain amount of embarrassment initially (and occationally, some physical pain to me), but almost always leads to a great deal of growth, emotionally and technically. I let people know before hand that I in no way claim to always be able to make what my teachers do work for myself.

I've often noticed in the yoshinkan, the teacher simply moves down the line of students lined up in order of rank (first uke, next uke, and so on) which gives many people a chance to perform ukemi and to feel the instructors technique. I kind of like this method too.

Ron Tisdale

Aikidaniel
16th July 2003, 15:53
I've just moved to a new dojo and I’m training with a class FULL of newbies like myself. Because I’ve had a little Aikido training before (my old dojo), I tend to be called on as uke quite often. I don’t think it’s because I’m sensei’s pet, but because I have some vague idea on how to take ukemi. Now this can be a good and a bad thing. Good thing because it gives me a better understanding of how the technique should work and what degree of pain it can inflict when done right. The bad thing is I tend to make frequent visits to the ground – pity they don’t have voyager miles for every time you take a trip to Mr. Mat. ;)