I have a section on my website for Members and in it is The Kenpo Instructor's Handbook. It's a book that I add to from time to time to function as an aid to instructors and instructors to be. I originally was going to publish it as a book, a part of my series on kenpo. But I decided that with a paid membership to that section of the site, the instructor info alone would be worth the one-year membership and the rest is a bonus. And I made that decision based on what members have told me abut what they feel is the value of the material in there.
Presently the handbook has chapters on the background for teachers like "why teach?", a lesson plan format, hazardous attitudes (and their antidotes) that you'll encounter and recognize in your teaching experience, and the newest is about the importance of uniforms.
What I'm hoping for is some feedback from present instructors and future instructors, with suggestions on what to add and maybe an FAQ section. You can e-mail me through the website and you can take a look at the member registration information at http://www.leewedlake.com/index.asp?PageID=29.
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Lee Wedlake has been teaching Kenpo Karate for over 35 years and has written a variety of Kenpo Books about different kenpo katas and kenpo concepts. Mr. Wedlake has worked directly with Ed Parker and is generous with his knowledge and his time. He is available for Kenpo Seminars and camps.
Saturday, August 11, 2007
Friday, August 10, 2007
What's a seminar?
Years ago, Huk Planas asked a class what a seminar was. Nobody seemed to know the answer. (I'm sure someone did, but you know how it goes in a group - nobody wants to look stupid in front of anyone.) He said it meant "to plant a seed". Good enough.
Below is the dictionary definition.
sem·i·nar
sem·i·nar [sémmə nr]
(plural sem·i·nars)
n
1. meeting on specialized subject: a single session or short, often one-day meeting devoted to presentations on and discussion of a particular topic, usually at an advanced or professional level
2. specialized educational class: a course of specialized graduate or undergraduate study under faculty supervision, in which ideas, approaches, and advances are regularly shared among participants
3. meeting of students and academic supervisor: a meeting of university or college students for study or discussion with an academic supervisor, or the group that participates in it
[Late 19th century. Via German , “advanced class,” from Latin seminarium “seed plot, breeding ground,” ultimately from the stem semin- (see seminal).]
Encarta ® World English Dictionary © & (P) 1998-2004 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.
I think his definition fit. And he did go on to add the part about students meeting with a professor. He also added that it was advanced material not normally covered in regular classes. And that's what I like to keep in mind when I do seminars.
I want everyone, regardless of rank (myself included) to go home with more than they came with. It's sometimes very difficult to structure a lesson plan with that as the goal.
All too often, I believe, guest instructors come in with no real lesson plan in mind or with one plan they do over and over. I think that's a bit of a disservice.
I get invited to schools all over and I often tailor-make the lesson plan for their group. Time consuming? Yes. Worth the effort? Definitely.
My Professional Development Seminars go beyond the structure that most seminars use. The planning and creation of unique materials is a key. I am proud of the product and the result. And there's a lot of people out there who seem to agree.
Attending seminars is a part of your time and money budget for your martial art education. Make sure they're worth it.
What do you think of most seminar structures?
Below is the dictionary definition.
sem·i·nar
sem·i·nar [sémmə nr]
(plural sem·i·nars)
n
1. meeting on specialized subject: a single session or short, often one-day meeting devoted to presentations on and discussion of a particular topic, usually at an advanced or professional level
2. specialized educational class: a course of specialized graduate or undergraduate study under faculty supervision, in which ideas, approaches, and advances are regularly shared among participants
3. meeting of students and academic supervisor: a meeting of university or college students for study or discussion with an academic supervisor, or the group that participates in it
[Late 19th century. Via German , “advanced class,” from Latin seminarium “seed plot, breeding ground,” ultimately from the stem semin- (see seminal).]
Encarta ® World English Dictionary © & (P) 1998-2004 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.
I think his definition fit. And he did go on to add the part about students meeting with a professor. He also added that it was advanced material not normally covered in regular classes. And that's what I like to keep in mind when I do seminars.
I want everyone, regardless of rank (myself included) to go home with more than they came with. It's sometimes very difficult to structure a lesson plan with that as the goal.
All too often, I believe, guest instructors come in with no real lesson plan in mind or with one plan they do over and over. I think that's a bit of a disservice.
I get invited to schools all over and I often tailor-make the lesson plan for their group. Time consuming? Yes. Worth the effort? Definitely.
My Professional Development Seminars go beyond the structure that most seminars use. The planning and creation of unique materials is a key. I am proud of the product and the result. And there's a lot of people out there who seem to agree.
Attending seminars is a part of your time and money budget for your martial art education. Make sure they're worth it.
What do you think of most seminar structures?
Wednesday, August 8, 2007
Thank you
It's been about a week since Tom Fanelli put the video clips online for me at You Tube. So far, the response has been 100% positive. I've gotten compliments from Europe, Australia, and across the US. So, thanks for your input, and I have more in store for you in the next few weeks.
Saturday, August 4, 2007
Ethics
From the Mind-Body-Spirit Review, online newsletter of IDEA, an association of fitness trainers. I think it has sme good pointers for martial artists as well, since we are in the same field.
Presence: Using Ethics to Resolve Teaching Dilemmas
by Alexandra Williams, MA
As wellness professionals, we are aware of the impact we have on others. Whether we intend it or not, our actions and words influence those with whom we teach and work. Every time we step into the studio, we make decisions; these are based on the nonverbal contract we have with our participants and clients that we will do our best to safely and competently guide them toward their goals in exchange for their trust, time and effort.
One way our value system becomes evident in the classroom is through the choices we make about volume, intensity, exercise/pose selection, cues and suggestions. How do our own preferences come into play? Do we even ask the group’s opinion? What is best for my participants? What is best for me? Who gets to decide? Who knows better what my participants need—they or I? Every time we teach we are called on to answer these and lots of other questions. For many instructors, this decision-making process has become reflexive; we don’t consciously consider each question in class. We couldn’t function effectively if we had to ponder the ethics of teaching every time we worked with a group. But if we want to be ethical teachers, we must at least be aware of our choices—and know how we arrived at them.
Decision-Making Road Map
Looking at some of the simpler decisions we have reached in the past can help guide us as we contemplate some of the more difficult, yet common, teaching dilemmas that occur at least once in our careers. Some of us will use previous decision making as a road map for future dilemmas. Others may decide to go back to a fork and choose a new route altogether. There is no universal answer, no overall “correct” choice for some of the decisions we must make. But for each instructor in a particular situation, there is a right and appropriate choice.
To better understand how we make ethical decisions, let's assess the five general steps involved in the decision-making process:
Step 1. Watch for Assumptions. This initial step requires that you consider those beliefs that affect your expectations of events or other people’s behavior.
Step 2. Gather Information. At this point, the goal is to collect salient data that can help you make an informed decision.
Step 3. Check for Personal Investments. Here’s where you need to question what you have at stake in the dilemma, including potential losses or gains.
Step 4. Follow Industry Safety and Research Indicators. This step is less internal and may outweigh previous steps if the relevant data are compelling.
Step 5. Come to a Decision That Reflects Your Personal Values. This final step is the culmination of considering the internal and external factors; it allows you to make an informed choice that is congruent with who you are as an instructor and a citizen of a specific culture.
Now let’s apply these five steps to a common dilemma you might face. How do I resolve the conflict between what participants want and what I think they really need? Oftentimes, participants want either more or less than what’s being offered. This dilemma potentially pits you against the very people you are in class to help.
Step 1. To be aware of your assumptions, you need to understand what the terms “more” and “less,” “easy” and “hard,” etc. mean to those people who want a change. It’s not uncommon for misunderstandings to occur at this initial stage if you assume that everyone defines certain terms in the same way. For example, “easy” and “hard” could apply to complexity, intensity, music volume, duration, transitions, instructor personality, participants’ mood or a variety of other factors.
Step 2. Query your participants about their goals or aspirations. Knowing whether goals are in conflict is not possible without knowing the goals. In short, ask questions!
Step 3. Once you’ve got a clearer understanding of what participants are really asking of you, you have to focus inward to determine how much you are personally invested in the outcome. This is the time to ask yourself questions like these: Do I have an outlook that requires a right and a wrong? If I give them what they say they want, will I still enjoy teaching? How much time and effort will I have to expend to make any changes? Am I comfortable with change and conflict? Do I need to win or save face? Are participants collaborators or recipients? Is there a management philosophy to take into account? If I know it, do I agree with it? What’s my level of training and knowledge relative to the request? What knowledge do I have that contributes to my belief that I know what they need? This self-questioning should clarify the variables and help avert conflicts.
Step 4. Now that you’ve queried the participants and examined yourself, it’s time to balance the information you’ve gathered with your knowledge of relevant research. You need to be able to decide whether the moves participants request are safe and effective. If a change being requested could cause injury, you may be justified in overriding your participants’ wishes. In fact, resolving such an issue may present an opportunity to share information and clear up common myths.
Step 5. When you are deciding on a final course of action, personal values can be used as an overlay. In the end, you must come to a conclusion you can live with, one that fits your concept of who you are and what you believe in. There’s no exact place to point to on an ethics chart that says, “Here is the correct answer.” Rather, you need to increase your awareness of the steps that lead you to a choice and act from that awareness. Then, at least, you can say, “Here is the perfect balance for me at this moment in this case.”
As a wellness professional, stay informed by adding the Inner IDEA website to your favorites; add Inner IDEA to your favorites for easy reference. http://www.inneridea.com/library/newsletter/july-2007.
Presence: Using Ethics to Resolve Teaching Dilemmas
by Alexandra Williams, MA
As wellness professionals, we are aware of the impact we have on others. Whether we intend it or not, our actions and words influence those with whom we teach and work. Every time we step into the studio, we make decisions; these are based on the nonverbal contract we have with our participants and clients that we will do our best to safely and competently guide them toward their goals in exchange for their trust, time and effort.
One way our value system becomes evident in the classroom is through the choices we make about volume, intensity, exercise/pose selection, cues and suggestions. How do our own preferences come into play? Do we even ask the group’s opinion? What is best for my participants? What is best for me? Who gets to decide? Who knows better what my participants need—they or I? Every time we teach we are called on to answer these and lots of other questions. For many instructors, this decision-making process has become reflexive; we don’t consciously consider each question in class. We couldn’t function effectively if we had to ponder the ethics of teaching every time we worked with a group. But if we want to be ethical teachers, we must at least be aware of our choices—and know how we arrived at them.
Decision-Making Road Map
Looking at some of the simpler decisions we have reached in the past can help guide us as we contemplate some of the more difficult, yet common, teaching dilemmas that occur at least once in our careers. Some of us will use previous decision making as a road map for future dilemmas. Others may decide to go back to a fork and choose a new route altogether. There is no universal answer, no overall “correct” choice for some of the decisions we must make. But for each instructor in a particular situation, there is a right and appropriate choice.
To better understand how we make ethical decisions, let's assess the five general steps involved in the decision-making process:
Step 1. Watch for Assumptions. This initial step requires that you consider those beliefs that affect your expectations of events or other people’s behavior.
Step 2. Gather Information. At this point, the goal is to collect salient data that can help you make an informed decision.
Step 3. Check for Personal Investments. Here’s where you need to question what you have at stake in the dilemma, including potential losses or gains.
Step 4. Follow Industry Safety and Research Indicators. This step is less internal and may outweigh previous steps if the relevant data are compelling.
Step 5. Come to a Decision That Reflects Your Personal Values. This final step is the culmination of considering the internal and external factors; it allows you to make an informed choice that is congruent with who you are as an instructor and a citizen of a specific culture.
Now let’s apply these five steps to a common dilemma you might face. How do I resolve the conflict between what participants want and what I think they really need? Oftentimes, participants want either more or less than what’s being offered. This dilemma potentially pits you against the very people you are in class to help.
Step 1. To be aware of your assumptions, you need to understand what the terms “more” and “less,” “easy” and “hard,” etc. mean to those people who want a change. It’s not uncommon for misunderstandings to occur at this initial stage if you assume that everyone defines certain terms in the same way. For example, “easy” and “hard” could apply to complexity, intensity, music volume, duration, transitions, instructor personality, participants’ mood or a variety of other factors.
Step 2. Query your participants about their goals or aspirations. Knowing whether goals are in conflict is not possible without knowing the goals. In short, ask questions!
Step 3. Once you’ve got a clearer understanding of what participants are really asking of you, you have to focus inward to determine how much you are personally invested in the outcome. This is the time to ask yourself questions like these: Do I have an outlook that requires a right and a wrong? If I give them what they say they want, will I still enjoy teaching? How much time and effort will I have to expend to make any changes? Am I comfortable with change and conflict? Do I need to win or save face? Are participants collaborators or recipients? Is there a management philosophy to take into account? If I know it, do I agree with it? What’s my level of training and knowledge relative to the request? What knowledge do I have that contributes to my belief that I know what they need? This self-questioning should clarify the variables and help avert conflicts.
Step 4. Now that you’ve queried the participants and examined yourself, it’s time to balance the information you’ve gathered with your knowledge of relevant research. You need to be able to decide whether the moves participants request are safe and effective. If a change being requested could cause injury, you may be justified in overriding your participants’ wishes. In fact, resolving such an issue may present an opportunity to share information and clear up common myths.
Step 5. When you are deciding on a final course of action, personal values can be used as an overlay. In the end, you must come to a conclusion you can live with, one that fits your concept of who you are and what you believe in. There’s no exact place to point to on an ethics chart that says, “Here is the correct answer.” Rather, you need to increase your awareness of the steps that lead you to a choice and act from that awareness. Then, at least, you can say, “Here is the perfect balance for me at this moment in this case.”
As a wellness professional, stay informed by adding the Inner IDEA website to your favorites; add Inner IDEA to your favorites for easy reference. http://www.inneridea.com/library/newsletter/july-2007.
An interesting study on breathing
This was taken from the IDEA online newsletter. No author was cited.
Intention: Can Hostility Be Linked to Unhealthy Lungs?
Young adults with a short temper or mean disposition also tend to have compromised lung function, says a recent study published in the journal Health Psychology, by the American Psychological Association (APA). This occurred even when asthma and smoking were ruled out as possible causes of lung dysfunction.
In a study of 4,629 black and white 18-30 year olds from four metropolitan areas (sampled from the Coronary Artery Risk Development in (Young) Adults Study cohort (CARDIA), psychologists examined whether the tendency to be hostile went along with having decreased lung function in otherwise healthy young adults. The results indicated that the more hostile one’s personality—characterized by aggression or anger, for example—the lower levels one’s of lung function even after controlling for age, height, socioeconomic status, smoking status and presence of asthma.
People with higher levels of general frustration predicted statistically significant reductions in pulmonary function for black women, white women, and black men. The only marginally strong finding occurred among the white men sampled. The authors speculate that people in lower status roles, black women, white women, and black men, who display hostility (and may be pushing against social expectations), elicit stronger social consequences than white men, resulting in higher levels of internalized stress that can make them sick. Further research is required to rule out if environmental toxins such as air pollution may contribute to both higher hostility and lower lung function. Hostility was measured using the Cook-Medley Questionnaire which is derived from the items on the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory. Pulmonary function was measured while participants were standing and wearing a nose clip, blowing into a machine to measure their lung capacity, which can indicate upper airway obstruction.
“Recent research demonstrates that greater hostility predicts lung function decline in older men. This is the first study of young adults to offer a detailed examination of the inverse link between hostility and pulmonary function,” states lead author and psychologist Benita Jackson PhD MPH, Smith College. “It’s remarkable to see reductions in lung function during a time of life we think of as healthy for most people. Right now, we can’t say if having a hostile personality causes lung function decline, though we now know that these things happen together. More research is needed to establish whether hostility is associated with change in pulmonary function during young adulthood.” This research has implications for future research exploring the possible influence of social status on personality functioning and pulmonary health.
http://www.inneridea.com/library/newsletter/july-2007.
Intention: Can Hostility Be Linked to Unhealthy Lungs?
Young adults with a short temper or mean disposition also tend to have compromised lung function, says a recent study published in the journal Health Psychology, by the American Psychological Association (APA). This occurred even when asthma and smoking were ruled out as possible causes of lung dysfunction.
In a study of 4,629 black and white 18-30 year olds from four metropolitan areas (sampled from the Coronary Artery Risk Development in (Young) Adults Study cohort (CARDIA), psychologists examined whether the tendency to be hostile went along with having decreased lung function in otherwise healthy young adults. The results indicated that the more hostile one’s personality—characterized by aggression or anger, for example—the lower levels one’s of lung function even after controlling for age, height, socioeconomic status, smoking status and presence of asthma.
People with higher levels of general frustration predicted statistically significant reductions in pulmonary function for black women, white women, and black men. The only marginally strong finding occurred among the white men sampled. The authors speculate that people in lower status roles, black women, white women, and black men, who display hostility (and may be pushing against social expectations), elicit stronger social consequences than white men, resulting in higher levels of internalized stress that can make them sick. Further research is required to rule out if environmental toxins such as air pollution may contribute to both higher hostility and lower lung function. Hostility was measured using the Cook-Medley Questionnaire which is derived from the items on the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory. Pulmonary function was measured while participants were standing and wearing a nose clip, blowing into a machine to measure their lung capacity, which can indicate upper airway obstruction.
“Recent research demonstrates that greater hostility predicts lung function decline in older men. This is the first study of young adults to offer a detailed examination of the inverse link between hostility and pulmonary function,” states lead author and psychologist Benita Jackson PhD MPH, Smith College. “It’s remarkable to see reductions in lung function during a time of life we think of as healthy for most people. Right now, we can’t say if having a hostile personality causes lung function decline, though we now know that these things happen together. More research is needed to establish whether hostility is associated with change in pulmonary function during young adulthood.” This research has implications for future research exploring the possible influence of social status on personality functioning and pulmonary health.
http://www.inneridea.com/library/newsletter/july-2007.
The doctor is in
I read somewhere a long time ago that if you want to keep your mind sharp as you get older you should learn to 1)play an instrument, 2)learn a language, or 3)take up martial arts. Maybe you should learn martial arts in a foreign language, and many people do, if you know what I mean.
I take the opportunity to challenge my mind as much as possible. I see way too many older folks here in Florida who have lost it and I don't want to be like that. Maybe there's not much to do about it by just challenging the mind - I'm sure diet and exercise have something to do with it. They say exercise now is known to regnerate brain cells.
Dr. Rowe sent this article along with a comment; "I think martial arts the way you teach it is a way of developing cognitive reserve". Nice of him. But what is "cognitive reserve"? Read on, Grasshopper.
Cognitive reserve
Elizabeth Buchen, neuroscientist, science writer and advisor to Lumos Labs, explains the concept of 'cognitive reserve', and why people with more education are generally better at coping with brain damage.
The first Alzheimer™s diseased brain I ever touched looked horrific. The cortex was shriveled, the ventricles were large, cavernous voids, and when I stained the sample I saw a galaxy of proteinaceous tangles and masses. The brain had clearly been degenerating steadily for over a decade, and it was difficult to imagine how the patient could have functioned. I was shocked to discover that, according to his charts, the patient’s dementia had only been detectable for a few years. In contrast, certain brains I analyzed appeared dramatically more intact, yet came from patients who had suffered from severe dementia for over a decade.
These patients exemplify the dramatically different ways people can respond to neurodegenerative changes. Even when confronted with the same disease and comparable severity, people vary considerably in the extent of cognitive decline. Specifically, people with higher levels of education and occupational attainment are more successful at coping with the same amount of brain damage.
One hypothesis that accounts for this discrepancy is the concept of cognitive reserve. The cognitive reserve hypothesis posits that people who have challenged their minds for significant portions of their lives (i.e. they didn't just start playing Sudoku at the age of 60) can compensate for brain damage or degeneration by recruiting alternate brain networks as backup or reserve. In support of this hypothesis, functional brain imaging shows that "high-functioning" older adults activate significantly more areas of their brains than both "low-functioning" older adults and young adults when performing certain cognitive tasks. This indicates neural compensation; the "high-functioning" old engage in alternative neural strategies in response to neural deficits or declines in cognitive abilities. Importantly, this type of compensation may be facilitated by a more flexible organization of the brain, which results from early cognitive experience.
Of course, people who did not start challenging themselves until later in life should not despair. Other requisites of compensation, such as plasticity (including the birth new neurons and enhanced signaling between neurons), may be improved by cognitive experience throughout life (although the earlier the better). Further, in a complementary aspect of cognitive reserve, people who challenge their brains throughout life may be able to protect their existing brain networks. Intellectually stimulating activities may increase the efficiency and capacity of these networks, enabling them to withstand a greater degree of age-related change while maintaining intact functioning (again, the earlier the better).
I take the opportunity to challenge my mind as much as possible. I see way too many older folks here in Florida who have lost it and I don't want to be like that. Maybe there's not much to do about it by just challenging the mind - I'm sure diet and exercise have something to do with it. They say exercise now is known to regnerate brain cells.
Dr. Rowe sent this article along with a comment; "I think martial arts the way you teach it is a way of developing cognitive reserve". Nice of him. But what is "cognitive reserve"? Read on, Grasshopper.
Cognitive reserve
Elizabeth Buchen, neuroscientist, science writer and advisor to Lumos Labs, explains the concept of 'cognitive reserve', and why people with more education are generally better at coping with brain damage.
The first Alzheimer™s diseased brain I ever touched looked horrific. The cortex was shriveled, the ventricles were large, cavernous voids, and when I stained the sample I saw a galaxy of proteinaceous tangles and masses. The brain had clearly been degenerating steadily for over a decade, and it was difficult to imagine how the patient could have functioned. I was shocked to discover that, according to his charts, the patient’s dementia had only been detectable for a few years. In contrast, certain brains I analyzed appeared dramatically more intact, yet came from patients who had suffered from severe dementia for over a decade.
These patients exemplify the dramatically different ways people can respond to neurodegenerative changes. Even when confronted with the same disease and comparable severity, people vary considerably in the extent of cognitive decline. Specifically, people with higher levels of education and occupational attainment are more successful at coping with the same amount of brain damage.
One hypothesis that accounts for this discrepancy is the concept of cognitive reserve. The cognitive reserve hypothesis posits that people who have challenged their minds for significant portions of their lives (i.e. they didn't just start playing Sudoku at the age of 60) can compensate for brain damage or degeneration by recruiting alternate brain networks as backup or reserve. In support of this hypothesis, functional brain imaging shows that "high-functioning" older adults activate significantly more areas of their brains than both "low-functioning" older adults and young adults when performing certain cognitive tasks. This indicates neural compensation; the "high-functioning" old engage in alternative neural strategies in response to neural deficits or declines in cognitive abilities. Importantly, this type of compensation may be facilitated by a more flexible organization of the brain, which results from early cognitive experience.
Of course, people who did not start challenging themselves until later in life should not despair. Other requisites of compensation, such as plasticity (including the birth new neurons and enhanced signaling between neurons), may be improved by cognitive experience throughout life (although the earlier the better). Further, in a complementary aspect of cognitive reserve, people who challenge their brains throughout life may be able to protect their existing brain networks. Intellectually stimulating activities may increase the efficiency and capacity of these networks, enabling them to withstand a greater degree of age-related change while maintaining intact functioning (again, the earlier the better).
Thursday, August 2, 2007
You Tube
My You Tube channel is up and running, thanks to Tom Fanelli here in Ft. Myers. Tom is also responsible for the website design (the content is mine and so is the botched layout at times.)
I started with some popular techniques and have four more that have already been shot coming soon. Hope you like it.
Here's the link. http://youtube.com/leewedlake
I started with some popular techniques and have four more that have already been shot coming soon. Hope you like it.
Here's the link. http://youtube.com/leewedlake
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