Teaching Taekwondo


When I first began training in Taekwondo I could not really imagine reaching a level where I would be trusted to teach others the different elements of this Korean martial art. But I soon learnt that anyone who does Tae Kwon Do can teach anyone else something about it. If they are a lower grade then you, then you can teach them even more.

As you progress through the grades and reach black belt status it is not unusual for the class instructor to give his or her black belt students more responsibility in regards to looking after the rest of the class and the colour grades. This is when you can really test a student's ability with his or her martial art skills. If you want to teach and demonstrate to other students you must know and be able to perform the technique yourself. This is why many of the best students of Taekwondo are also those who teach it to other people. Teaching takes you to a new level.

I never dreamt of teaching other people Tae Kwon Do, but I did enjoy my martial art, so when I was asked by my instructor to teach others at my club I thought I would give it a go. And to my surprise I really did enjoy the responsibility of teaching Taekwondo to other students who were as eager and enjoyed it as much as I did.

I took my responsibility seriously. I prepared the night before my sessions and knew exactly what I would be teaching my group of students. One of my favourite parts was teaching the group patterns and to have them ask questions as they tried to understand the different elements and how it all came together.

I found teaching Taekwondo so much more fulfilling then I had expected. But despite this I decided that I would not be opening up my own club, which surprised some people. I enjoyed teaching and passing on my knowledge. However, opening up your own club comes with a lot of extra responsibility. There is much to do behind the scenes. I am sure that I would have learnt how to do the administration side. The main issue for me though was the time involved. To run a club you need to commit to attend and teach at all the weekly sessions. Due to the nature of my job I could not guarantee that I would be available for these. So instead I thrived at being an assistant instructor, aiding and giving back to the Taekwondo students this way.

Nicola's website, Taekwondo Kicks, provides a comprehensive guide to all things Taekwondo. Nikki has developed the website based on her own personal experiences from studying and practising Taekwondo and wanted to share her knowledge with the world.

With information on a variety of different areas including patterns, terminology, stances and the history of Taekwondo, why not visit Taekwondo Kicks to see how it can help you and your knowledge of Taekwondo.

By Nicola_Hunt