Curriculum and the Individual

Curriculum is often a double-edged thing. It is a way to have a logical organization of material, but too often it's just a regurgitation of tradition, and a way of justifying having blinders on. I may have a general progression that I use, but it's always adjusted to the individual. It's clear that each person has different learning capabilities and predilections that need to be addressed. To fine-tune training to a particular student's abilities, physical and cognitive, is a challenge (usually enjoyable). The important goal for me is to feel that the student owns the material rather than having memorized a curriculum, and indeed, none of my students have been "curriculum junkies," or concerned with rank (which I don't generally bother with). I'm glad the concern has been, as the saying in JKD goes, "It's not what you know, but what you can do."