January 3rd, 2016

Sempai Dennis Flynn, Ni-dan
Shihan Cocoa YMCA Dojo
Under the direction of Hanshi Robert Scaglione

Teaching Others

We have all heard that by teaching others, we get better ourselves. I did a little research on this and found a couple of interesting articles and I'd like to share some of that information with you.

For thousands of years, people have known that the best way to understand a concept is to explain it to someone else. “While we teach, we learn,” said the Roman philosopher Seneca.
These days, scientists are bringing this ancient wisdom up to date, documenting exactly why teaching is such a fruitful way to learn.

Students enlisted to tutor others, these researchers have found, work harder to understand the material, recall it more accurately and apply it more effectively. In what scientists have dubbed “the protégé effect,” student teachers score higher on tests than pupils who are learning only for their own sake.
But how can children, still learning themselves, teach others? One answer: They can tutor younger kids.
The studies concluded that first-born children are more intelligent than their later-born brothers and sisters and suggested that their higher IQs result from the time they spend showing their younger siblings the ropes.

So, one of the best ways we can improve our karate skills and techniques, is to teach them to others. Mentor some of the newer students, arrive a little early or stay a little late and offer to help someone learn a new kata, or improve on something they are struggling with.
One of the requirements in order to advance in rank is to be able to teach others. Teaching others helps us get better as well.

Sempai Dennis Flynn
Ni-dan
Shihan Cocoa YMCA Dojo