Becoming an Instructor

Instructing can be one of the most rewarding part of your Taekwon-Do career. It is a way to share your love of the art, put back something into the organisation, and of course fulfill the wishes of the Founder - to help spread Taekwon-Do throughout the world.

We have Instructor Development Officers (IDO) to assist you. Along with your Regional Director, the IDO in your area will guide you as you start out, and also into the future to assist you with your own training if you need it.

We even give you a New School Kit to get you started. We put this much effort into making it easy for you because we want International Taekwon-Do to grow.

A change of Mindset

We hope to change the ‘mindset’ and ‘perception’ of the way we traditionally think about what an Instructor is. We encourage our black belts to explore these ideas and other options in becoming an Instructor.

We hope our black belts will participate in the growth of our organisation, to share their experience, skills and help continue the legacy of our founder’s art as an International Taekwon-Do Instructor.

Instructing doesn't have to be a marriage to Taekwon-Do. We can offer flexible options, looking outside the traditional model of an Instructor and Club, making it more realistic and achievable.

Some examples that could be explored and developed are:

• A club (or school) can be set up on a weekend, just for kids for example. The children’s market in New Zealand is HUGE, and it is for sure the key to growing our numbers. The same could be applied equally to adult and teenage market
• After school classes at schools, early evening and once a week classes
• Teach Taekwon-Do at the local gym or local community center or teach work colleagues
• Instruct at an existing club venue on a different day of the week or an existing club could expand under the same club name into different locations e.g. Paul M Taekwon-Do, Nibun ITF, Jungshin - similar to the concept of franchising
• A 4th Dan could take on the role of managing a group of Black Belts in his/her area/region and oversee the running of a club or a Taekwon-Do Training Centre. It’s not necessary that he/she be at every training session. They can also be mentors to these Black Belts
• A club could be set up as a business and generate a part time income

These are just some ideas that can be developed. We believe that this flexible approach would not incur a huge personal time commitment and would greatly benefit International Taekwon-Do - making it a ‘win-win’ situation.

If you would like to know more, or discuss the options further, please contact the IDO in your area.

How do I become an Instructor?

To be an Instructor you must first complete an Instructors Induction Course. You then gain approval from your Region, and finally the Technical Director. Once you open your school you would be awarded an Instructors Certificate.

You would normally talk to your own Instructor or Regional Director about the idea, and they would put you in touch with your local Regional Director or Instructor Development officer (IDO). These people can assist you with everything you need to get set up and underway. You would need to apply to your Region for approval before the school was started, and then get final approval from the Technical Director.