monkey see, monkey do

[gmattson]

Our friend, Steven Radulovich, penned this 'keeper'. He gave me permission to post it here. GEM

Hmm...I pride myself on being a xerox machine/automaton. It is the best way that I can honour my sensei and ensure the preservation of his lineage. At first read I took great offence that karateka would be so critical of a time proven pedagogy, one that they have at one time or another derived their own roots from but perhaps are so distant from it now that the practices are literally foreign. There are several reasons that traditional "monkey see - monkey do" works and reasons why it doesn't I will attempt to address both. This is what I have been taught, I am not pulling it out of my uh..hat.


Basically it goes:


1. monkey see, monkey do, monkey don't ask questions

2. monkey see, monkey do, monkey wonder, monkey still don't ask questions

3. monkey figured it out on his own and doesn't need to ask questions, monkey see, monkey do


I have been told that each of these stages roughly equates to ten years of training.


Traditional karate goes far beyond simply taking a syllabus and mimicking the moves of your respective Japanese/Okinawan sensei, then regurgitating it to your students. If this is all your sensei is doing after 10 years of training then I WOULD question it. The only difference between a student and a teacher would be that the teacher simply remembers more stuff. When I lived in Okinawa I was taught as a student, now that I teach, when I go back to visit I am taught as a teacher. There is a marked difference. It is conceivable that people who brought this type of teaching into their dojo were never actually taught to teach. They simply mimic the way their teacher teaches. In many occidental dojo there is no granularity between who is being taught to teach and who is simply a student. (I know of several dojo where whomever dons a black belt is called sensei). It's also interesting to note that in "modern and progressive" schools the student often decides he/she wants to be a teacher whereas in Okinawa at least you are picked. It is done out of giri, not for the sake of promotion.


In my opinion if you want to truly understand karate you must at least try understand how the people who teach the art think. This particular traditional way to teach is rooted in Confucian thought that permeates orthodox ryukaiha pedagogy. I read an interesting analogy - the teacher shows the student a corner and its up to the student to figure out the idea of a square. When the teacher sees the student has figured the square out he "guides" the student to the next level.


Some sensei are downright cryptic when they teach - one class may have to be mentally digested for weeks. When my sensei sees the light go on in my head he is happy. He will not turn it on for me though, I have to work for it. An example of this occurred to me in 1st year calculus, after filling three boards with sigmas, deltas and such the prof turned to the class with a wry smile and said "any questions". Nobody had a grasp of what the hell he just did - if you did have a grasp there would be no need to ask questioand we knew that. All the information is there for you to figure it out once we studied the problem on our own then ask questions after class.(how many people have been in a lecture where one person always interrupts class with benign questions?) In a sense this method of teaching filters or stratifies the class, both in this calculus class and in the dojo. My teacher says karate is a science, it is complex, it is rigid. I would no more question a calculus theorem than I would my teacher - becuase I know it works, its up to me to figure out how through persistence and sweat.


I also believe there is a built in cultural bias in favour of "oriental thinkers" for this style of teaching. There are studies that show that Oriental thinking is focused in a different part of the brain due to the writing system being visual rather than auditory. (Pictures versus sounds, kanji versus the alphabet). I am no psychologist nor linguist so please don't ride me on this one. If anyone can offer further insight into what I am getting at here, I have some interesting concepts in the use of language and karate I would like to discuss perhaps in private mail 'cause it is a little dry. So perhaps as well this type of teaching is more amenable to people have been conditioned all their lives to think a differently than occidentals. In other words the abstraction that must occur in order to figure out the idea of a square given a corner is perhaps easier for dominant left or right brain thinkers as whatever the case may be.


Another point is that asking a question may in fact redirect the focus of the class. In a kibishi (rigid/strict) environment asking a[stupid] question is anathema and may get you partnered up with the kata-ude of the sensei. (this means you're in for a pounding). In less rigid classes with the same teacher, questions may be encouraged...i.e. a teachers class.


Conversely, there are more karate sensei out there IMO that would rather you not ask questions because it would expose them, a sort of an "emperor has no clothes" type of thing. This IS contemptuous and I feel sorry for people that get caught up with people like this. So again I can see why people would question this particular traditional ideology. Marginal instructors can easily and do hide behind this veneer of orthodoxy - in the days of challenge fights and dojo storming, people like this just would not last. Very Darwinian neh.


My sensei says that he likes western students because they ask questions and make him think more about what he is teaching - a refreshing change. When he first came to Canada he was taken aback by all the questions but he quickly adjusted. He stated flatly that if he did not know the answer he would research it and tell us later. Rare.


There is a saying as well that you learn with your chopsticks i.e. practice is practice the really juicy information you get after class over food and drink (usually more of the latter). Again the health club mentality where after bow out everybody goes back to their life, one is likely not to get exposure to these informal yet integral lectures (komondo). It's amazing the types of questions you can ask and your sensei will entertain after a few bottles of awamori. It is not rare to be in the dojo till the wee hours of the morning - the problem sometimes is remembering the answers:-)


Lastly, being an automaton lends itself nicely to developing muscle memory as opposed to over-intellectualizing. It may be necessary for a teacher to get more depth but does a student learning to defend themself or trying to get into shape need to scour the intellectual depths of a technique in order to make it work?

Michi was Kannen ni Yorazu Jissen Seyo - The Way is attained through Practice not Contemplation
Onaga Yoshimitsu - Shinjinbukan Dojo Kun

Regards


Steven Radulovich, automaton/xerox machine http://www.karate.kenkyujo.com/ryusyokai

[Gene DeMambro]

Good Morning,

I don't entirely disagree with the "Monkey See, etc" progression outlined above. However, the scientist in me disagrees with one assesment:

Questioning you teacher:

No, I don't mean that every so often, go up to your sensei and try to belt him/her and see if this karate stuff really works. But, don't take things completely on blind faith, either.

The beauty of Western science is the provability of whatever scientific/mathematical theory that is even remotely accepted among either peers, or the general public. Witness Cold Fusion about 10 years ago or so. Two physicists announced to the world that they invented a Cold Fusion reactor, giving virtually unlimited power for about $20. Well, repeated experiments by independant scientists discovered the experiment flawed, and the discovery a flop. Medicine is constantly changing because of the repeted studies and experimentation going on.

Without any questioning, any mathematics teacher can write whatever mumbo-jumbo he/she wants onm the chalkboard and prove the number one equals the number two. About 14 years ago, a high school student discovered an error in Newton's "Principia". No one bothered to look until that time.

When I first started karate, I didn't ask how long until a black belt, or any other foolishness. I asked three questions, (1) What do I call you? (if the answer was "Master XXX", I was out the door.) (2) How long until I can begin the advanced class? (I was playing in a lacrosse league, and didn't want any time conflicts). and (3) Can I ask questions in class?

When you walk into a dojo; yes, go in with an open mind and try to be mindful of what teacher is trying to teach and don't let your own ignorance get in the way. Things need to make sense; you're not going to a magic show.

Gene