miguksaram
Master of Arts
They still have them. I get an evite on Facebook for them all the time.
Another ATA 5 year old black belt
- Thread starter RonMarlow
- Start date
Looks like the kid did well in competition. And he's up doing exercise for twenty or more hours per week instead of playing X-Box. He looks happy too! Congrats to him on his BB.
I thought you were against child black belts.
Look I just want to say this about childern in general, with all the video games teaching chi balls technique and all and how to fly from tree branches and rooftops we do not need schools anymore. Toy R Us has brought back the Black Belt in a box kit for only $29.95 plus tax. That is the way to get a BB nowadays.
I was, and still am not overly favorable to the idea, at least in practice; in theory, I have no problem with it.
The reason that I say that 'I was' is because for years, I felt that it was doing the kids a disservice due to the perception of what a black belt is. But having been around enough kids with black belts (my old GM issued them to kids along with their pum certificates and I have numerous friends who have children with black belts from different schools), I found that little kids with black belts don't think that they can beat up adult attackers and are not being brainwashed into thinking that they're Chuck Norris or Dolph Lundgren. And the parents are aware that their kids are not invincible fighting machines, so nobody is being duped.
In short, I found that the facts did not match my perception. Or perhaps my perception was correct ten to twenty years ago but no longer is. Either way I had to adjust my opinion based upon first hand observation.
I am against it in a KKW school because I feel that the instructor is issuing the incorrect belt for the grade. But it I don't run a KKW school and I'm not paying those school owner's bills for them. If they're running a positive program and the kids and parents are happy, and they aren't using kiddie BBs as a way to gouge parents out of hundreds of dollars, then I have no criticism.
Cyriacus
Senior Master
OOH! Can I get one with a Gold Stripe on it for an extra $5.99?
miguksaram
Master of Arts
I posted this in another thread by accident....Please read prior to getting worked up about some kid's black belt promotion:
http://www.theonion.com/articles/karate-lessons-give-child-selfconfidence-to-quit-k,2297/
http://www.theonion.com/articles/karate-lessons-give-child-selfconfidence-to-quit-k,2297/
Well said and well done. And, I'm not really talking about the topic at hand. I'm talking about your choice to remain open and to reconsider an opinion because of changing, new, or different information that you had not encountered before. That is a wise approach regardless of the topic.
Cynthia
Twin Fist
Grandmaster
this. Has anyone else noticed that almost all of these stories come from ATA schools?
andyjeffries
Senior Master
...is incorrect in my opinion.
The black belt means exactly what it has always meant; that the student meet minimum requirements of knowledge and proficiency as judged by the examiner at the school where it was issued and that the student may compete with other black belts within that student's gender, age, and weight categories at organizational and at open events.
Yes, I have noticed.
Its the ATA. I don't practice Songahm taekwondo and am not affiliated with the ATA, so how they structure their belt colors with regards to age and material is up to them. At least they have a seemingly consistent definition of what constitutes a "black belt." ATA or no, since the rest of us can't seem to get it together to have a common standard within the same art or similar group of arts, we have no place to complain. Let them do what they do while the rest of us do what we do. Everybody wins.
dancingalone
Grandmaster
Their setup is actually very much like the KKW's. They have a set list of minimum technical requirements to be awarded 1BD. There is nothing to prevent individual school operators from adding more content if they want however.
There is no minimum age for black belt in the ATA and no poom belt either. A BB is a BB in ATA. Master level and higher candidates must test at the Nationals/Worlds, which is a nice quality control measure. (I have heard of people failing at that level.)
There are differing opinions about 5 year old BBs even within the organization. A minority number would add a minimum age requirement if they got their way, but that is unlikely to ever happen IMO. I don't think the org rules would prohibit a school operator from imposing his own rule though.
There ARE minimum age requirements for some of their collar colors which denote various levels of instructorship certification.
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Is the idea of what a black belt is more universal between ATA practitioners?
In the US, there is, as we see on this board, a great deal of variance with regards to what a first dan should be capable of, regardless of the organizational norms in the nation of origin, between KKW/WTF practitioners.
Sorry, but I can order one with a line of gold stitching on each end plus rank stripes for less using my Dynamics wholesale account.
Cyriacus
Senior Master
Sorry to break it to You, but I bought a Black Belt for $3 Today.Sorry, but I can order one with a line of gold stitching on each end plus rank stripes for less using my Dynamics wholesale account.
It has a nice buckle as well.
dancingalone
Grandmaster
I'm afraid not. You'll find plenty of ATA black belts who are technically proficient and better... Unfortunately, you'll also see some BBs that need a lot of remedial work as well. It depends on the school owner, much like in any other TKD group. The actual organizational written standard is high. Brown belts should have a great grasp of the basics.
Black belts that tested at HQ/Nationals/Worlds tend to be superior given the greater scrutiny. In recent years the ATA leadership has attempted to increase the quality overall of their members by adding fitness requirements, etc.
I wasn't thinking so much of variance between students but of the perception of what an average black belt student is, taking into account the age of the student (child vs. teen vs. adult vs. senior citizen).
