Random thought of the day. I remember taking a class awhile back, and the instructor said that instructors should never demo anything in front of the students, EVER. The guy was pretty adamant about it, which I find hilarious. As instructors, students look to us as some form of SME. You want to be able to have performance on demand. Sometimes it makes more sense to just demo what you're teaching. They say there are 3 main ways people learn:
- Auditory
- Visual
- Kinesthetic
- I always keep the "3 different learning types" in mind -
- Try to explain the technique being taught in the clearest and concise manner possible
- Use visual aids, perform demonstrations showing the technique done in an ideal manner, possibly use other students as good examples to their peers (if someone is doing it well, maybe try also using them to demo the drill if you know they can handle it. Using a third party can sometimes engage your students differently than doing it yourself all the time)
- Occasionally physically show people the techniques. A good example for this is, say someone is having problems figuring out how to get their good support hand grip on a handgun. Sometimes I will tell them to get their good gun hand grip, then hold the gun out there one-handed. I'll put my support hand on, around their gun hand, achieving as close to the ideal support hand grip as possible. Then from there I might help them by adjusting and placing their support hand on the gun as close to ideal as possible.
- If you keep these 3 general learning types in mind and look for ways to implement all 3 in class wherever possible, you stand to be more successful in reaching the largest amount of your students as possible (at least that's what I've found).
- Performance on demand: That's the slogan for Northern Red (if you don't know who they are, look 'em up), and a really important goal to set our sights on. If the block of instruction calls for it, be ready to demo anything you're teaching and have the performance to back it up. You might also have students that are better than you at certain things. Don't be afraid either of "screwing up" in front of class (which is probably the real reason the aforementioned instructor doesn't like to demo). Use your own screwups as a valuable learning tool for students. Nothing is perfect. It's all about learning from mistakes and how you deal with them.