Young yoga teacher Jaysea DeVoe

Does Age Matter? Teaching Yoga at 13 Years Old

Published on February 20, 2015

Would you judge a yoga instructor’s teaching ability solely on their age or other aspects of their physical appearance? A few yoga celebrities have decided that it’s okay to do this if the teacher in question is a teen.

Jaysea DeVoe has gotten a lot of press in the last year as the youngest person to complete a 200-hour teacher training and register with Yoga Alliance at just 12 years old. Now 13, she is teaching a weekly family class for all ages in her hometown. In a recent interview, she seems grounded and wise, practices asana and meditation daily, volunteers, makes jewelry—and attends middle school. Her slightly unconventional parents have encouraged all of their children pursue their passions to their fullest extent, and it shows. She is the world’s youngest standup paddle boarding instructor.

Another recent article about her throws a bit more shade her way, questioning her ability to safely teach adults, not because of how long she has been practicing (five years), the quality or thoroughness of her training, or after experiencing her class, but because of her age.  Are the concerns they raise about her ability to truly understand older bodies legitimate? Eh, maybe. But maybe not.

There are bad instructors at all levels of experience and of all ages, just as there are classes that don’t match our personal preferences or comfort zone. It would be preposterous to say that you had to be the same age, gender or body type to safely and effectively teach or learn yoga from another person. Yet, this is what one of the detractors is really saying by suggesting that Jaysea may be “desensitized” to older students bodies from only having lived in a young body. While training and experience are both important, empathy is what makes a teacher sensitive to the spoken and unspoken needs of their students. Unfortunately, this can’t be taught, and we can’t know someone’s capacity for it by their appearance. In order to know whether someone is sensitive to their students—you’d actually have to take a class with them.

Another concern raised was that Jaysea may lack “an in-depth understanding to tell if her students actually can move a joint safely or not.” Again, the age of the instructor is not the most pivotal piece of this equation. A new teacher is a new teacher, and most of us wouldn’t expect the class of a newer instructor to be the same as that of a teacher who has thousands of hours of training, teaching and practicing under their belt. Shruti Pandy started teaching at an ashram in northern India at four years old, and has many students pleased to vouch for the effectiveness of her instruction, including her own 67 year old instructor.

As adults, it is our job to encourage and nurture young people. As yogis, we should be wise enough to look deeper than first impressions. As both, we should be good role models and realize that it is poor form to judge anyone’s teaching ability without ever having set foot in their class.

What do you think? Is it possible for a 12 year old to be a safe and effective yoga instructor?

Share with

Friends

Our Latest

Yoga Articles
  • Purusharthas

    Purusharthas: The Four Goals of Life

  • Trimurti

    Trimurti: The Hindu Trinity of Brahma Vishnu Shiva

  • Brahman

    Brahman: Definition, Meaning, and Philosophy

  • Yoga Nidra

    Yoga Nidra: Meaning, Benefits, Videos and Tips

  • Living Like a Yogi

    17 Rules for Living Like a Yogi

  • heart opening yoga poses

    The Best 16 Heart Opening Yoga Poses

  • Negative Energy in a Person

    18 Clear Signs of Negative Energy in a Person

  • Three Doshas

    The Three Ayurvedic Doshas: Vata, Pitta, and Kapha

Remove Ads with a

Premium Membership

Viewing ads supports YogaBasics, which allows us to continue bringing you quality yoga content. Sign up for a premium membership to remove all ads and enjoy uninterrupted access to the best yoga resources on the web.

Explore More

Yoga TipsAdviceArticlesPracticesBasicsTechniques

  • yoga teacher giving asana assist

    Don’t Doubt the Magic of Hands-On Adjustments

  • mindful eating

    6 Easy Ways to Start a Mindful Eating Practice

  • yoga meditation ego

    4 Ways Yoga Can Defeat Your Ego

  • Yoga astrology element

    Yoga and Astrology: Find the Best Practices for Your Sign

  • Yoga Class for Beginners

    Which Yoga Class Is Best for Beginners?

  • Hip Openers

    Hip Openers: Tips, Benefits, Anatomy & Poses

  • writing a yoga journal

    How to Start a Yoga Journal

  • The Top 6 Best Yogi Tested Yoga Mats

    The Top 6 Best Yogi Tested Yoga Mats

  • Warrior Poses

    The 5 Warrior Poses of Yoga

2 responses to “Does Age Matter? Teaching Yoga at 13 Years Old”

  1. J.+Brown Avatar
    J.+Brown

    Sure. It’s possible for a 12 year old to teach a yoga class that is safe. And yes, there are plenty of bad yoga teachers who are more advanced in years and age alone should not be a requisite. However, this post overlooks something more important. Your question also asks whether or not a 12 year old can teach an “effective.” yoga class. To me, that means that the teacher is able to impart some insight, understanding, or wisdom about yoga. Not just teach a class that doesn’t injure you.

    The problem with a 12 year old teacher is not their age or safety but that they do not have enough life lived to effectively impart yoga to those beyond their years. I think that they would be well within their scope to teach other teens. But effective yoga teaching comes from observed life experience. To cite a teacher from India who started when she was 4 and is now in her sixties is not taking into account the cultural differences. 50-60 years ago there were no group yoga classes as we know them now. So that 4 year old was not teaching in the same context as the 12 year old in question here.

    Don’t get me wrong, certainly people can teach to folks beyond their years. I started teaching when I was in my twenties and now I am in my forties. As long as a teacher does not try and teach beyond their own experience and knowledge then they can still offer something useful and worthwhile. But there is a point where the life situations are too far apart and it doesn’t make sense. Twenty-somethings trying to speak wisdom about life difficulties to people twenty years older doesn’t always pan out well.

    It seems like this piece is talking about teaching asana more than yoga. And there is a difference. I think its fine for a 12 year old to teach asana. But to effectively teach yoga is another matter entirely.

    1. Sarah Avatar
      Sarah

      I think the 4-year-old’s teacher was in her sixties.

      I feel that without actually taking her class, the teaching skills of any teacher can be judged only hypothetically. Some children go through remarkable experiences that age them beyond their years, while some adults are strikingly naive and inexperienced in their fifties. “Maturity” and “age” have a loose correlation, but the latter does not always lead to the former.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Amber Baker Avatar
About the author
Amber completed an eclectic 200-hour yoga teacher training in 2007, and considers herself an eternal student. She has a Master of Arts in Health Education and Promotion, and is inspired by empowering others to take control of their health and well-being. After teaching gentle and slow flow yoga for many years, she is taking a break from teaching and is currently learning another side of yoga through her desk job. In this new challenge, her core tools for maintaining balance include her home practice, family, friends and being in nature. Creative expression, engaging with current yogic thought, trends, philosophy and exploring health and wellness through plants (as food, medicine and nourishment) are her passions.
Yoga Basics