When B first started Taekwondo, we weren’t sure he would even join the class.

He is social now and enjoys being with his friends, but when he was younger, he didn’t like being in large groups.

Fortunately, he adjusted surprisingly quickly. He liked the instructors and the other children. There were usually about eight to ten kids with two instructors, so the group wasn’t too overwhelming for him. For a while, it worked well.

My Favourite Instructor Was the Strictest One

There were several instructors at the studio, but a couple of the main instructors taught more often than the others.

One instructor was my favourite. Not because he was the nicest. Not because he smiled the most.

He was my favourite because he was the strictest. ☠️

He didn’t let B goof around. He watched the children closely and corrected them when they weren’t paying attention.

Whenever he got strict with B, I sat there thinking:

That’s right!

Get him! Get him harder! 🥹

Of course, when that instructor taught, B focused too. That was what I wanted from Taekwondo. I wanted B to learn discipline, listen to instructions and take the activity seriously.

Then the Classes Started Changing

As the year continued, B became bored more often during class and started playing around.

At the same time, the studio appeared to be bringing in more students. The classes became larger, and several new instructors started teaching.

Then came the day B attended a class taught by one of the new instructors.

As usual, he started goofing around. The children were supposed to strike their fists while shouting: “TAE!” “KWON!” “DO!”

B was not using his fists.

My clever son decided to use his index finger to pumch someone rather than his fists.

I sat there watching him like: What the heck is he doing?

But the real *what the heck* came next.

The instructor looked at him with a pretty smile and said: “Good job!”

Good job? 😱

Gooooood joooooooob?

Good job doing what? Doing Disco? ☝️☝️

He wasn’t even pretending to do Taekwondo correctly. And she told him he was doing a good job. I was done right there.

Why That “Good Job” Bothered Me

I know she was new. She probably wanted the children to like her, and maybe she wasn’t comfortable correcting them yet. With more experience, I believe she could become an excellent instructor.

But at that moment, it felt as though I was paying the studio so she could practise teaching on my son. That didn’t feel fair. The studio should have given her more training or had her teach alongside an experienced instructor until she was ready to lead the class.

We were paying the same expensive tuition, but the quality of the lesson depended too much on which instructor happened to be teaching that day.

Shortly after that class, I called the studio and cancelled. I assumed B wouldn’t care very much. He participated in the classes, but he had never seemed particularly excited about going.

Then, a few months later,

he surprised me.

Next: Was Taekwondo Worth It for My Child?