Teaching vs. Instructing

Telling someone how to do things comes in two flavors.

There are those who are good at giving instructions, detailed information in order to get you to do the material correctly. They'll cover all the bases and make sure that you have a solid foundation to move forward from. These are the instructors.

There are those who watch what your needs are, your strengths and weaknesses, and tailor their comments accordingly. They try to fill in the blanks and touch on the areas that you can practice for continued growth. These are the teachers.

Instructors can often get lost in going through the motions; telling people how to do things in the same way no matter what the group or individual might need, simply because that monologue is so familiar. It can be uncomfortable to disengage from those familiar paths and take a risk in focusing on a group or individual on more than just a surface level.

Teachers may at times be unable to see how to give you the best advice in the best way possible. What works for them or for others may not be what works for you, and that suggestion winds up being a distraction. Sometimes a teacher may not be strong in an area you need, and a problem gets overlooked. Also, a teacher can give you bad advice with good intentions, forcing you to re-learn something down the line.

Which is better? Ultimately I'd rather have a "teacher" than an "instructor", but the roles really should overlap somewhat. Still, I've known people who were clearly in one of the two camps.

I think of myself as a teacher, but I admit to still having a long way to go, both with taiko and karate. It means I'm going to fail at times when trying to help people, both in communication and action, but it also means I'll learn and get better at both teaching and the arts themselves.

I'm not here to blast those who choose to instruct, I'm just defining the two roles and stating a preference. Sometimes just recognizing how things are done or are different helps us make better decisions.