McDojo stories to share!!!

[Hardball]

Do you have a recent McDojo or McDojang story to share? If so, please post it in this thread, I'll start.

I just finished talking to a female Korean coworker. Her kids (around 11 and 13) take sword at some local martial arts school. She was telling me how they missed 3 Belt Test but still had to pay. Get this, the armour for the kids was $850.00 for each kid. That's eight hundred and fifty dollars. I said, did you buy it off the internet? She said no, she bought it right from the school.

Can you say McDojo!!!! LOL

[Britt]

You mean their foam-dipped point fighting equipment was $850??!!? Good God, was it kevlar???

[Hardball]

You mean their foam-dipped point fighting equipment was $850??!!? Good God, was it kevlar???

I've seen Kevlar for a fraction of that at the Gun Shows!!

[EmptyneSs]

Do you have a recent McDojo or McDojang story to share? If so, please post it in this thread, I'll start.

I just finished talking to a female Korean coworker. Her kids (around 11 and 13) take sword at some local martial arts school. She was telling me how they missed 3 Belt Test but still had to pay. Get this, the armour for the kids was $850.00 for each kid. That's eight hundred and fifty dollars. I said, did you buy it off the internet? She said no, she bought it right from the school.

Can you say McDojo!!!! LOL

thats fcked up.

i had a friend who used to train at one of the Ernie Reyes West Coast Karate chains, and he had to pay so much for tests and promotions that when he was finally going to be a blackbelt, he simply couldnt afford it and quit martial arts for good.

[Toudiyama[NL]]

Guys, the kids were taking Sword, so the armour will be smular to Kendo gear, which is rather expensive and can range from 400 upto 2500 for the armour alone, top that with a hakama and geikogi (100-150)

As for paying for belttest which yu do not patricipate in yeah thats McDojo par excelance

[Britt]

Guys, the kids were taking Sword, so the armour will be smular to Kendo gear, which is rather expensive and can range from 400 upto 2500 for the armour alone, top that with a hakama and geikogi (100-150)

Ah, I see...that makes more sense. I was thinking TKD with some Korean sword kata or some such. Still, $850 is pretty high for kid's armor, right?

[Hardball]

For $850 each, I should get Musashi's original armour. Yikes

[stabbychick]

.............................

[sojobow]

For $850 each, I should get Musashi's original armour. Yikes

I really can't find a "Universal" definition for "McDogo." Would someone please tell me exactly constitutes a "Mcdojo" or point me to the martial arts accepted definition. i reall don't know so I can participate in a meaningfull discussion. tanks. (ps. I believed that when someone said a dojo was a "McDojo", they meant to say that the owner has a chain of schools like a Mcdonald's franchise or something.)

[Hardball]

I really can't find a "Universal" definition for "McDogo." Would someone please tell me exactly constitutes a "Mcdojo" or point me to the martial arts accepted definition. i reall don't know so I can participate in a meaningfull discussion. tanks. (ps. I believed that when someone said a dojo was a "McDojo", they meant to say that the owner has a chain of schools like a Mcdonald's franchise or something.)

It is a negative connotation for a commercial school with excessive fees and subpar instruction. For a full discussion go to www.bullshido.net

[Garland]

It is a negative connotation for a commercial school with excessive fees and subpar instruction. For a full discussion go to www.bullshido.net

HE HE HE HE...I'm banned from the bullshit-o forums...

[Toudiyama[NL]]

Also year contracts but also grading often and easy just to keep the students

As to the subpar instruction.....well most martial artist seem to think that you somehow magicaly get these teaching abilities once you reach a certain level, be it blue belt (BJJ) shodn sandan or godan, but compare this with schoolteachers, a lot if not most has nothing to do with What they will be teaching but with How they should be teaching.
Psychology, methodology and didactics are some of those things most martial arts "instructors" have any knowledge of, they just teach as their teacher did without thinking if there would be a better way for the student to learn

But there is a way to have subpar instruction( according to above description) and charge high prices but still not being called McDojo, teach something that is considered effective Like BJJ ( blue belts teaching but still charging rather high prices)
In fact the term McDojo nowadays seems reserved for non contact/semi contact arts

[sojobow]

HE HE HE HE...I'm banned from the bullshit-o forums...

when i register, some pm's get blown up. "sojobow is here, ban him first chance you get". guess i'll go register at bullshdo and see how long i'll last. what the heck did you do?

[sojobow]

But there is a way to have subpar instruction( according to above description) and charge high prices but still not being called McDojo, teach something that is considered effective Like BJJ ( blue belts teaching but still changing rather high prices)
In fact the term McDojo nowadays seems reserved for non contact/semi contact arts

there may be some schools that believe that the student will not actually learn their system of martial arts until the student actually teaches. I, personally, think teaching is a sublime method of being taught. I know of a couple of BJJ blue belts that are 3rd/4th degree blackbelts in another system. A few systems now Rank the student by how well he teaches those lower in Rank than themselves. Dangerous ground when we denagrade martial arts schools. Especially when 95% of the world's population cannot defend themselves.

Now, paying $850 bucks for the Kendo outfit is ridiculous for a newbie that doesn't know a Katana from a stick. I can see giving a newbie a loaner outfit for a short time. Student might find out that he really likes BJJ but has a Grand invested in the Kendo outfit. Someone is missing Common Sense.

[sephiroth05]

thats fcked up.

i had a friend who used to train at one of the Ernie Reyes West Coast Karate chains, and he had to pay so much for tests and promotions that when he was finally going to be a blackbelt, he simply couldnt afford it and quit martial arts for good.

That's the problem with large schools or chains. Mine is a small local school with an average of 20 to 30 students. My instructor is a 6th degree black belt and has been teaching for nearly 30 years. He doesn't charge for promotions, and he often makes the drive to Okc. for supplies and equipment, which the students order usually at a lower price then if they bought it elsewhere, because he gets a discount from the company. At no time does he insist that the students buy from him. Upon making black belt, which isn't easy as any artist knows,( in all his years of teaching, and thousands of students, only about 30 or 40 have reached black belt level,) he presents them with their belt(again at no charge). We have several students who cannot afford to pay. His response is don't worry about it. You see, and many people may find this strange, he isn't in it for the money. He believes in sharing the knowledge he has gained over the years. The one stipulation he has is that any student who is still in school, must maintain good grades. Firmly believing that education is more important. Any student whose grades drop will have one semester to bring them up, if not they will be out of the Dojo until they do.