AikiWeb Aikido Forums - View Single Post - Poll: Do you think private "one on one" lessons in aikido benefit the student more than regular group lessons?

Amir Krause · 11-12-2006, 04:27 AM

I answered Yes, but my real answer is "depends and not as the only means of study".

I had an opportunity to practice in Japan in several very small groups for a month, with Shihan level teachers practicing with me or supervising the practice. In one group, there were 3 of us: The teacher 6th Dan, My brother and me (both 2nd Dan at the time) and we practiced as equals. In another case, the teacher was 8th dan and he mostly supervised the practice in a group of 5-6 people (himself and us included).

I found I progressed much faster than usual, with a great teacher (6th dan at the time and now 7th) but with a group of 10-20 practitioners in most practices. The personal attention did a lot, as did some additional circumstances (I was in Japan mostly to train and tour, no added pressures ...).

Generally speaking, I think a "one on one" or perhaps "one on two" setting (It is difficult to show a few things if there is no-one else to execute the technique on) is great and can advance students substantially as an addition to usual group practice. One should of course change partners on occasion, but this issue can be satisfied in another practice.

Amir

11-12-2006, 04:27 AM	#2
Amir Krause Dojo: Shirokan Dojo / Tel Aviv Israel Join Date: Jan 2005 Posts: 692 Offline	Re: Poll: Do you think private "one on one" lessons in aikido benefit the student more than regular group lessons? I answered Yes, but my real answer is "depends and not as the only means of study". I had an opportunity to practice in Japan in several very small groups for a month, with Shihan level teachers practicing with me or supervising the practice. In one group, there were 3 of us: The teacher 6th Dan, My brother and me (both 2nd Dan at the time) and we practiced as equals. In another case, the teacher was 8th dan and he mostly supervised the practice in a group of 5-6 people (himself and us included). I found I progressed much faster than usual, with a great teacher (6th dan at the time and now 7th) but with a group of 10-20 practitioners in most practices. The personal attention did a lot, as did some additional circumstances (I was in Japan mostly to train and tour, no added pressures ...). Generally speaking, I think a "one on one" or perhaps "one on two" setting (It is difficult to show a few things if there is no-one else to execute the technique on) is great and can advance students substantially as an addition to usual group practice. One should of course change partners on occasion, but this issue can be satisfied in another practice. Amir