Clean Run Magazine - February 2009 - 16

of many: then the goal must become to serve our students optimally by staying abreast of the newest and latest techniques, information, and skills. Many professional groups require continuing education for continued certi cation and practice in the eld to verify that members are up to date on their knowledge and skills. Perhaps in the future we will have a certifying, endorsing organization for agility. But now we do have Julie Daniels’ Agility Instructors Certi cation Course and the Clean Run Instructors Conference. When I attended Julie’s four-day certi cation camp, I found it a great source of information for both aspiring and practicing agility instructors. The Clean Run Instructors Conference is a phenomenal way to learn new methods and techniques directly from those who develop them. Both also provide a unique opportunity to mingle and discuss problems, ideas, and concepts with fellow agility instructors from around the world. The skills that enable us to be successful trainers and competitors with our own dogs are not the all-inclusive skills we need to be successful instructors. What are the consequences of using these operant learning modes? When and how should you be using positive reinforcement and negative punishment? Should positive punishment and negative reinforcement be used in agility? (For additional information, see Julie Daniels’ article “The Power of Negative Reinforcement,” which was published in May 1997 in Clean Run and later in the Clicker Journal.) And just who is Premack? To help humans and dogs in class achieve their goals, you need to know the answers to these questions. Canine and Human Nature Successful educators in the eld of agility need to be a cionados of both human and canine nature, and their management—no easy undertaking! We need to be able to “read” a dog: when is he scared, on the verge of biting, stressed, confused, happy, willing, and learning? A great resource for this is On Talking Terms with Dogs: Calming Signals by Turid Rugaas. As Rugaas says, canine language generally consists of a large variety of signals using body, face, ears, tail, sounds, movement, and expression. As good instructors, not only do we need to recognize these signs ourselves, but we also need to be able to point out these signals to the dog’s handlers if they cannot recognize their dog’s signals. Instructors lacking a good grasp of canine signals are putting themselves and their students in jeopardy. Even though we speak the same language, dealing with human nature is often no easier than dealing with dog nature; managing a class of human beings through a learning process with their dogs is not easy. Remember, we shouldn’t being giving a bunch of individual lessons, but rather a class-encompassing session. Paying too much attention to any individual is taking time away from the rest of the class. Some training may need to occur in a private, one-on-one setting for a student to gain full understanding or accomplish a skill, so that it does not detract from the general class experience. Competently managing class distractions and disruptions avoids lowering the value of the class for all students. Fun And you can’t forget the fun factor. An instructor’s classes still need to provide a fun, exciting, stimulating learning environment. We can get so involved in the technical details of what we’re trying to teach that we forget about the human and canine need for enjoyment in what they are doing. Don’t let the fun fade! Laws of Learning While the scienti c language used in training discussions can seem overwhelming, successful agility educators know the terminology. We are aware that the laws of learning are always in play for humans and dogs in class, and we understand how to implement the science appropriately to maximize success for each team in class. Students may think that punishment = bad and positive = good, but instructors understand that in reference to behaviors these terms have speci c meanings that are critical: • Positive Reinforcement (R+) • Negative Reinforcement (R-) • Positive Punishment (P+) • Negative Punishment (P-) Priceless Training people to train their dogs takes time, dedication, and skill, but can be very rewarding and gratifying too. To see a dog and handler team succeed and to see the look of accomplishment on both the handler’s face and the dog’s is priceless. Contributing positively to the handler and dog relationship—that’s why I love being an agility instructor! D ation Sources Agility Inform Debbie Harrison, co-owner of Canine Sports Recreation Center in Dexter, Michigan, teaches agility classes and gives private lessons. She has loved, trained, and competed with her Dalmatians, Autumn and Dallas, the two mosttitled Dalmatians in the history of the breed; Houston, a Jack Russell Terrier and the most titled Jack Russell in the history of the breed (currently with 102 titles); and two Border Collies, Wink and Twizzle. Debbie enjoys multiple canine performance events, though most weekends you will see her with her pack having fun at an agility trial. 16 Clean Run | February 09
Clean Run Magazine - February 2009

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Clean Run Magazine - February 2009
