Certified instructors among us

[Victor]

Check the appropriate choice above if you're a certified coach in the USFCA.

[Victor]

(And by the way, the proper progression is Moniteur, Prevot and then Maestro. I acidentally swapped the order a bit.)

[fencergal33]

Ok....I'm not really a maestro, but I checked that in honor of my husband, who is one, and most likely won't vote on this poll.

[pjsise1]

Prevot here.

[Mergs]

Certified by USFA - Foil and Epee

[Morion]

You should have included a "Not Certified" choice so the rest of us could see the results!

[Victor]

Certified by USFA - Foil and Epee

You mean to include a "C" in that acronym, right?
( http://www.usfca.org/usfca/index.asp?section=4 )

[Mergs]

You mean to include a "C" in that acronym, right?
( http://www.usfca.org/usfca/index.asp?section=4 )

Nope, I wrote it the way I intended it to be USFA.

[Victor]

Nope, I wrote it the way I intended it to be USFA.

Well, then, thanks for contributing to the usfCa thread.

[pjsise1]

The USFA Coaches College program certifies coaches with a number system, 1 (lowest) to 5. I have been there several times and am planning on attending a level 4 class next summer. The training and experience are good, but the only real value of their certification is that once you are a level 2, you can proceed to level 3, etc. The exams they give are much shorter and easier than the exams given by the USFCA. My level 3 written exams took about 40 minutes and the practical portions were about 10 minutes. Compare that to my Prevot exam. The written took me 2 hours and the practical took me 1 hour and 50 minutes. Granted, the Prevot is all three weapons, but the exams are rigorous, and the USFCA certification is recognized by the AAI (International Academy of Arms) and is thus recognized worldwide.

[hscoach]

I believe the certification is different in Eastern European countries and China. Many of our coaches have degrees in fencing. They went to Universities for 4 years and studied the art of fencing, coaching, kinesiology, and physical fitness. I have found these people to be VERY STRONG in their field.

[pjsise1]

I believe the certification is different in Eastern European countries and China. Many of our coaches have degrees in fencing. They went to Universities for 4 years and studied the art of fencing, coaching, kinesiology, and physical fitness. I have found these people to be VERY STRONG in their field.

Yes, no doubt, good training leads to good skills. Here in the US we simply don't have the same emphasis on degrees in sport in university. Usually, the best most of our schools have to offer are degrees in Physical Education or Kinesiology. Classes at the Coaches College and USFCA clinics do present that type of material, sports physiology, psychology, etc. and of course knowledge of that material is required to pass the exams for certification.

I believe that many of these coaches would also be getting their certification from an AAI member national professional governing bodies. That is the only way one can actually get the Moniteur, Prevot, and Master titles. The USFCA (www.usfca.org) is the governing body in the United States, the ADFD for Germany http://www.fechtkunst.org/ the BAF for Britain http://www.baf-fencing.org/ and the AAF for France http://www.escrime-artistique.com/aaf/ are examples.

[kalivor]

You should have included a "Not Certified" choice so the rest of us could see the results!

And a "Certified, but not in the U.S." option (or, given other comments, perhaps "not by the USFCA").

[BrianH]

Moniteur d'escrime, by USFCA, in all three weapons.

[Victor]

... And a "Certified, but not in the U.S." option (or, given other comments, perhaps "not by the USFCA").

As fair and balanced as that sounds, I ... well, to be blunt, I don't really care about those other coaching certifications. Or at least in this particular thread.

I'm not trying to be rude, because, yeah, all that other stuff is good. Kudos to all of you. But I only wanted some USFCA member numbers from this board. A pretty focused question.

((Like asking about saber parries specifically, and someone replies, "You should have offered an epee option as well." Maybe next time.))

[R. Exnicios]

I don't know the specifics of how or what the comparisons are but I know in the early days of coaches college (Mergs & I and a bunch of others) took the USFCA test and were certified by both groups. Things may have changed. I remember large numbers of coaches failing the tests.

good thread Cheers

R

[Mergs]

I don't know the specifics of how or what the comparisons are but I know in the early days of coaches college (Mergs & I and a bunch of others) took the USFCA test and were certified by both groups. Things may have changed. I remember large numbers of coaches failing the tests.

good thread Cheers

R

I asked about reciprocity between the USFCA and USFA, to which the answer was, there is none. Still don't have a good reason as to why not. Seems to me that if the national governing body of our sport is teaching how to be coaches, then why can't USFCA accept that?

[sabreur]

I asked about reciprocity between the USFCA and USFA, to which the answer was, there is none. Still don't have a good reason as to why not. Seems to me that if the national governing body of our sport is teaching how to be coaches, then why can't USFCA accept that?

Not to be cynical, but "because it would diminish the perceived importance and power of the USFCA?"

MR

[Mergs]

Not to be cynical, but "because it would diminish the perceived importance and power of the USFCA?"

MR

Uh huh. Right.

[Victor]

It's a good question.

You'd think that the USFA's focus would be the oversight of fencing events and the related details (funding, fencer ratings, equipment standards, etc.). The education/coaching of those fencers via coaches should fall under a different organization, or a clearly defined arm of the main organization. Ref training would seem to fall more under the USFA's purview as part of the competition event quality aspect.

Others will doubtless disagree for their own reasons. Regardless, the structure should be clarified one way or the other.