Websters defines instruction as "The act to educated impart knowledge or information to; to enlighten; to direct or command; to furnish with orders; to order or enjoin" and lastly "to teach". Websters further defines to teach as "To impart instruction to; to guide the studies of; to instruct; to train or give the skill in the use, management or handling of; to let be known; to tell; to show how; also to practice giving instruction. Webster further defines a teacher as one who teaches or instructs; a preceptor; a tutor; a preacher; a minister of the gospel.

At first you may not have realized that there was any difference at all between a teacher and an instructor. Maybe you think that the two words are synonyms for one another. But if you look carefully there is a great difference between the two. One of the big differences between the two is how the knowledge is passed on. Take for example a drill instructor in the military. During basic training these people instruct, they give orders and expect them not to be questioned but obeyed without thinking. If you have ever looked at someone who has just gotten out of basic training, they all seem to have a slight nervousness about them. They seem to be waiting to jump at an order and ask "How high?". They are primed in the philosophy of the military of doing what a superior says without question and doing it immediately. They are trained in how to fire a gun, how to charge with a bayonet, etc. They are told not to think but to simply do. After basic training they go to technical school where they are exposed not to instructors but to teachers. The difference is in that they must be able to adapt to different situations and be able to overcome difficulties on their own. Think of it this way. Do you want pilots in your air force to be instructed to do certain maneuvers at certain times or do you want them to be taught air combat as a dynamic and constantly changing scenario?

I know, I know that there must be some instruction in a teaching process. That is not what I am talking about. A teacher guides and shows how and why. A teacher teaches concepts, ideas and makes you think. An instructor tells you what to do and that is all.

To me one of the big differences is that a teacher cares and an instructor doesn't. Perhaps this is too much a generalization but you can look at it from a martial arts standpoint. Think of the schools that have 300 students that make thousands and thousands of dollars. How many times have you heard a head instructor of a school or chain of schools ask "how many new students this month?" or "We need to get more kids involved". I believe that if these people really cared about their students they wouldn't worry about numbers. If you are teaching and being a good teacher, people will seek you out. Perhaps they won't in huge numbers but does it matter? Why are you teaching martial arts? Is it to make money?... A lot of schools do but a lot don't. Are you on a crusade to make the community a safer place? Or are you doing it because you have an ability to teach and you want to see your students succeed beyond what you have accomplished. Do you teach to better your own understanding of what you are teaching? Do you get a "rush" when you see a "light bulb" turn on in your students head?

An instructor will often be very good at showing how mechanically a technique goes. They can show you how to throw a perfect reverse punch or maybe a roundkick that breaks the sound barrier. A teacher can show that too but can also show when you might want to do these techniques in different sequences to make them effective in a combat situation. An instructor will often show what he/she has learned and if questioned on some topic they don't fully understand the response is sometimes "That's the way that it has always been done. Its tradition."

A teacher shows the way and lets the student problem solve to find his/her own way. A teacher both shows and explains the why and not just the how. In order to accomplish this, the teacher must be able to learn from his/her students. The teacher must be open to new ideas and new ways of approaching the same problem. The instructor can afford to have an ego. After all, no one dares to question the drill instructor because "that's the way it is." A teacher encourages questions and is not afraid to explore all the possibilities and isn't afraid to admit that he/she might be wrong. Ultimately a teacher must not just show the physical, but also show the mentality behind what he/she is showing and must also not "sugar coat" the consequences of the students' actions. A real teacher, like most of us, is a seeker of the truth.

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