Concepts: Class Size

If you have ever watched an old martial arts film you might have seen the scene of a huge mass of soldiers training in the courtyard of some castle.  The head instructor yells out numbers or commands and each soldier simultaneously does a movement.  Meanwhile lower ranking instructors or coaches walk around reviewing the students and their movements.  Sternly correcting mistakes in their form.  From this mass amount of people certain soldiers who displayed a higher affinity towards the training would be chosen to join a smaller circle in which they would learn more techniques and a more in depth knowledge about the techniques they have already learned.  The point here was training the masses, not the individual.  The individual set himself apart naturally most of the time with out realizing it.  This is what I call the Big Army concept.  When you want a large amount of people to have at least an experience with something, create a system for teaching it that corresponds to commands and can be shown by one person to many and then be mimicked.   

 During the combative training I received during my military career there seemed to be too much focus on the mass and not the individual.  All too often a class would end and the majority of soldiers would walk away having not learned anything at all because they received too much information, too little, not enough personal attention or a combination of all.  No matter how simple you make some things there are always going to be those who need things explained in a different way.  That is where good teaching a personal attention comes in. 

 I've taught huge classes and small ones.  I always preferred the smaller ones because I can give people the attention they need, while they are trying to receive the information that I am transmitting.  A good instructor knows the number of students he/she can comfortably train, to ensure that each student progresses.  Although B.P.C. can be taught to any Service Member/Civilian at any level, it fits better into the structure of the Small Army/Military concept. This small group concept assures that Commanders are getting well-trained individuals who have all been given personal attention and guidance.  It also assures that no practitioner is lacking in his or her knowledge of the system and how it work. 

 Just to clarify I will teach any group in any branch of government. However, my class sizes are not huge — they are just big enough for me to make sure that everyone gets the training necessary to survive if they ever need to use B.P.C.