What makes a good instuctor??

[duckles]

This is really inspired by Solomon's thread and her really horrible instructor - who ate into her confidence and Racaille has a similar experience.
I have to say that my own experience of Instructors is not so bad - my worst complaint being that their lessons are boring or that I learn nothing. (Apart from one instructor who had his 'favourites' I went through a time of being a favourite, which was great- but then I fell out of favour and lessons were a nightmare!)

So the question is - what makes a good instructor?? In your opinion.

[spotti]

Someone who makes you feel comfortable enough to concentrate (i HATE people who just yell at you and don't give any indication as to how to correct yourself).

Someone who makes you feel like you can achieve anything...even if its jsut by spending then entire lesson on something that you find difficult, no matter how simple it may appear to be (e.g. with me, its corners! I'm horrendous! But my sister let me ride George, a very well schooled pony she borrows, and just got me working on my cornering, and after 30 mins of focussing on looking straight ahead until the split second when I want to change direction, we eventually got it! And the next lesson she gave me was...jumping!!! And not just one little jump either - oh no, it was 2 that got progressively bigger as we went along, but we had to remember our cornering techniques to manage either the tight turn from A to B, or to circle after A and then remember to look straight ahead so we flew over the jump dead centre. Eeek, it was exciting ;D).

I also think someone who knows how your horse rides is helpful too, so they can give you personalised instructions on how to get your personal horse working better.

Erm...I think that's it for me. As long as I can leave the lesson feeling positive, even if what we were working on wasn't quite achieved, and I have an idea on what to work on then that's always worthwhile ;D

[Blonde Donkey]

For me it has to be someone who is quiet and knows how to get me and savvy to work together as a team. They have to be knowledgeable but not with theirs heads lodged up their backsides. My RI took the time before our lesson (free) to get to know me and savvy on the ground (savvy can be bad with people approaching her while I am mounted and she spent time with her so that it wouldn't be a problem). She also set us acheiveable targets for the next lesson like be able to do half a decent turn on the forehand and then we would do a full one the next lesson and so on. Most important is an instructor thats calm as I can be nervous and Savs can be a cheeky cow when she wants to be:). I also liked the way she spoke to me on a level with her like I was an equal and she wasn't patronizing at all. That lady got me to my first show and my first placing (4th in a cob class against some stiff competition) and she had me jumping 3ft which is a feat for me cos i'm scared of heights .
I just like someone who is nice and kind and wants the best for me and my pony .

[fimacg]

For me, I like someone who will push me out of my comfort zone a bit, but let me go back there if it gets a bit too much. I also like to have lots of exercises/homework that I can without them being there too.

[fleabitten]

I liked Helen the way it was so relaxed yet i learned and had fun. With my other RI she used to force me to do stuff when i had the foul smelling poopy scared out of me. Which didnt help me. I need one who will gently encourage me and not force (sort of baby me along really lol! i dont do well with being pushed!) i had much more fun that way and i was much more confident.

[scattymare]

Dunno as its been so long since a lesson, but once Eds a bit fitter we're going to have a lesson with the dressage instructor down the road so I'll let you know then!

[haffyfan]

For me it's someone who respects that every horse and rider combination are individual and the same approcah does not work for all in a blanket fashion.

Personally It also has to be someone who can see outside the box and is isn't, and apologies here as I do not wish to offend anyone, one of the 'old school bhs ladies' By old school I mean extremly conventional and it's the BHS way or no way rather than being ageism! I like someone who appreciates there are other approaches out there and no one of them is right or wrong and they don't all work for everybody.

[mossh]

I would like someone to teach me who pushes me and pushes me really hard and who believes in me but also takes no crap from me as I am bugger for not believing in myself
I'd like an instructor to get on Mattie so they know how much of a difficult ride he can be and they can understand my problems and help me find a solution.
Also I'd like the instructor to come to shows with me and help me out there, but most importantly, someone who can have a laugh with me, pick me up off the ground and also give some confidence to my long suffering OH and help him understand my passion for horses.

Not too much to ask for!

[fleabitten]

mosh i dont believe in myself either lol!!

[mossh]

Oh dear FB!!
we're a right pair lol

[fleabitten]

lol!! well you must be doing something right if you are getting on well with mattie

my RI always used to tell me i had no confidence in myself. people would tell me good stuff and i would be like 'yeah' and not really believe it. i just couldnt really. i felt pleased but i didnt believe it. still dont. lol!

[mossh]

I'm the same as you. People tell me this and I'm like "woo yeah. You're mad!" and they carry on my merry way. I might not be conventional but it works lol

[racaille]

I do agree with Haffy. Although I ride 'conventionally' I like an instructor who is interested in new ideas (for example, my bitless and treeless things .... ;D) and one who rides my horses to see exactly how they go. And one who says: that same approach does not work for all horses. If they can also offer you the chance to push yourself (rather than forcing you) it works for me - someone who says: I've set up the jumps, you can do it, there's only one at a million miles high, but if you don't want to that's fine. Put like that, I always try!

But I also used to like my old YO who was a terror. She would shout and yell but at the end of the lesson you had certainly learnt something and you never made the same mistake again. Not for the fainthearted though.

[brigadier]

Something that is really really hard is adapting your style to suit different sensibilities. when I first started teaching I was quite strict believing that people truly wanted to learn, but actually that isnt always the case, they may believe they do but they are going through the motions and whilst its ok to say, "I had a lesson today, it was really hard work" if they actually had a 'hard lesson' they would be traumatised!
I actually made some students cry, which is ok if they are being paid to learn but not so good if they are paying! I only like to teach people who WANT to learn now- thats crucial!

[solomon]

Progress is the proof of good teaching however it's done, if I don't improve there is little point paying out. It is true that some people only want a safe hour in the saddle, but they shouldn't expect any improvement if no effort goes in. Hence why I am changing instructors.

[kitcat]

I like my instructor to push me but without shouting. I like her to give me a little time to try and work out why something didn't work and what I should do to correct it. I also like things explained to me - why she is telling me to do x and what effect that has on the horse - so that I can understand how to achieve the desired outcome. I like to work hard in a lesson and come out feeling I have achieved something, even if it is only as small as getting into each corner on a horse that likes to cut them.

[fleabitten]

Yeah me too kitcat. I would like things explained to me more as in my previous lessons i was just told to canter or trot or go over the jump mainly.

At this new riding school i watched a lesson and the instructor said. 'if you cant keep one horses length apart that shows me that you cant control your horse and therefore i cant let you move on' therefore making you work harder in order to get praise and move on! instead of getting yelled at for doing it wrong.

[maximum]

Any teacher needs to be able to gear the training towards the pupil.

Everyone learns in a different way some are very visual learners so require to be shown what is needed/expected of them, some are auditory and get on better when being told what to do - they dont want to work it out themselves- and others are kinesthetic (guilty m'lord) and learn best by actually doing it - and of course others are a mixture of all three learning styles so a good trainer will adapt the lesson to ensure all learning styles are catered for.

It also depends on the level a person wants to be at - the cognotive domain (blooms taxonomy) says that there are 6 levels of learning- knowledge - comprehension- application - analysis - syntheisis and evaluation so you will have very serious riders who want to go all the way and be able to analysis how their horse goes - try different ways to see what works and then evaluate that to chose what path they need to take but others just are happy to get to application and its knowing when not to push the person on.

a good instrutor should be like a good bra - supports you makes you look your best!!!!

[solomon]

Love that will tell her on my next lesson!!

[florence]

To me a good instructor is one who can assess the horse as well as the rider and gives you the enthusiasm to continue. We all have a cr@p lesson from time to time but a good instructor will try to make sure you end on a good note and will praise when you get things right. I do know a few that will shout criticism and never praise. I like to do things myself but also like explanations. If I can't understand why something is done, it just doesn't stick. If I feel a little nervous of something my instructor gets me do ther things and then without me realising it, works me towards what she wanted and suddenly I'm doing it!