Re: Future Teacher - Advice to prepare?
David;
My advice is to start something the moment you get back from Japan. I wouldn't get too ambitious, say once a week, but if the mats are in place and you are willing - go for it. It is very important though to keep training with your teachers and keep them in the loop. I am sure that if you asked the right way a more advanced student could actually do the teaching or at least come every now and then. At the very least have the students tested by your instructor.
The key is to be really careful to teach what you know rather than what you think you know. This is not so difficult as it sounds since all you really have to do is limit yourself to the techniques that you are learning for your next and past gradings. There is plenty of things to do. One of my responsibilities here is to take someone of equivalent rank and make sure he is trained up to pass the exam with me. Circumstances allow me to travel to the main dojo more often. It really is the same situation you find yourself in.
Finally the only red flag in your post is the I think that the thing that appeals to me the most is the deeper philosophy of aikido which would align with many of our broader curriculum goals in terms of teaching students Japanese history, conflict resolution, non- violence, etc.. It is my experience that beginning students often think they understand what Aikido is all about long before they do. I would make sure to concentrate on the physical. The philosophy often manifests itself through the physical training.
|