The Evolution of Teaching Yoga

Dr. Paul Jerard, E-RYT 500 (Director of Yoga Teacher Training at Aura Wellness Center) Talks about the evolution of a teacher over a lifetime and how learning is an ongoing process. Teaching Yoga is a process of learning from your students, and the experience that come with teaching classes. Continuing education, such as workshops, reading up on new techniques, attending another teacher's class, are all part of this growing process.

As a certified Yoga teacher, your progress as a professional instructor will continue to expand and improve over time. At first, you may think that your development as a teacher is complete when you successfully earn your Yoga teacher certification. However, in many ways, your journey and development has just begun when you start to teach Yoga classes on a professional basis. Irrespective of your level of Yoga teaching certification, whether is at the 200 hour or the professional 500 hour level, you will continue to learn and develop as a teacher for the rest of your career.

In a similar fashion, you may remember that when you were an avid student, who was well-versed with many of the postures and breathing exercises of Hatha Yoga, that you felt like you had learned most, if not all, of the wisdom and profound intricacies of this ancient system. At some point during your transition from being a student to a Yoga teacher trainee, you probably began to realize the depth of wisdom that this system offers to many different levels of practitioners.

You probably also began to realize how much more there was to learn about Yoga, as you continued to pursue your teacher training certification. In the same way, as you begin to grow and develop in your understanding of how to best offer these ancient practices to your students, you will most likely realize how much more there is to know, particularly in how to tailor your classes to students with special needs and how to increase the safety profile and enjoyment level in your classes.

According to Dr. Paul Jerard, RYT-500, “Learning is living.” With each day, we all have an opportunity to learn new things and to offer our service to those around us. As a certified Yoga teacher, you are in a particularly advantageous position to help your students to learn reliable, time-tested ways to improve their mental and physical health and well being through a balanced practice of asanas, pranayama exercises and meditation techniques.

In order to continue to deepen your understanding of how to best teach Yoga to your students, regularly engaging in continuing education workshops and programs is important. Continuing education may be in the format of formal workshops and trainings that are approved by the certifying organizations of Yoga, or a continuing educational activity may be a simple as taking the time to read an informative article in Yoga Journal or other professional periodical.

By engaging in an ongoing process of learning and development as both a practitioner and a teacher, your own Yoga practice will have more vibrancy, which will translate into more energy and interest on the part of your students during class. You will also learn cutting edge ways of tailoring your classes to meet the needs of individual students or specific groups of students through continuing education programs, as well as how to make your classes more engaging and fun, without sacrificing student safety.

In addition, by actively listening and learning from your students when they ask questions, you will learn which Yoga postures, styles and complementary exercises will best support your students in creating and sustaining their own optimal well being. Although some Yoga teachers feel that they cannot learn from their students, truly speaking your students’ mistakes will help to refine your own teaching methodology on the mat. For more information about the art and science of teaching Yoga, please visit: www.aurawellnesscenter.com