We all have a ‘preferred’ way of learning. Some like things to be visual. Some needs to think through it before taking action. Some respond well to verbalized instructions and keywords. We are all different.
In coaching / teaching courses, they explain what you need to do to teach effectively like providing a fail-safe supportive environment, creating a desire to learn, cater to different styles of learning – hearing, visual, or by feel (tactile / kinesthetic) and much more. However, all of us have experienced teachers that are less than what is optimal and sometimes that love / hate relationship can be life changing.
As a martial artist, we know that we cannot always change the environment – we train to increase our adaptability to different environments and opponents to survive. To be able to learn any which way will give you one essential survival skill that last a lifetime.
To enhance our ability to learn, we need to be adaptable:
- Have a thick skin and not be embarrassed about asking ‘stupid’ questions. You create your own comfort zone and tolerance despite of what is given to you, ultimately, who cares about what other thinks about you because at the end of the day, it is about what you understand and can do and not about an impression of you. When you have that solid confidence and right attitude, your mind relaxes and you learn much easier – you created your own safety blanket.
- Be okay not to be the first to understand something because it is not about who is first there but it is about getting there. Just like once you get a job, nobody ever ask you again about when you graduate.
- We have to want to learn, observe and experience new ideas and things as well as being able to see old things in new ways. Too often, for the sake of convenience, we take things at surface value and fail to see it from my than one angle. Just like some of you still see this homework as something you need to complete rather than a source of stimulation beyond what is said and obvious.
- We don’t it too often in the adult class, but the ability to listen well, comprehend verbal instructions, take visual queues or not are programmed right into the drills and games of the children’s class. I feel that kids have to learn not just different movement styles and enhance their movement vocabruary, I think that by making it fun to adapt to different learning styles, I feel that I have given them an edge in learning and therefore life.
Exercise
Analyze your own learning style and define what you can change to improve.