skribs
Grandmaster
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Well guys, it's been many threads, but I think I've found my answer. It's a combination of a lot of ideas, but also something different of its own. The question was: how do I, as a 3rd degree black belt in KKW Taekwondo, open a school where my student's ceiling isn't a 2nd degree unaffiliated black belt that they got in 3ish years. And I think I've found it.
There are two major changes I would make to my older plans:
I would need to change a few other details, but this is the general idea. Also note these are minimum times and not a guarantee.
I am also considering more drastic changes. My currently planned class structure is based around the school I attended. Core classes during the week that cover a sampler of what Taekwondo has to offer (essentially split between forms, sparring, and self-defense), and then classes/clubs on the weekend to cover core requirements (make-up class or testing prep), sparring club, self-defense club, and demonstration team.
What I'm thinking now is more of an a la carte system. In this system, I would have a sparring/kicking class, a self-defense class, and a demonstration club. The sparring/kicking class I'd simply have beginner, intermediate, and advanced (the biggest difference is that Advanced can do headshots). Belts would be assigned when we sign up for tournaments (based on responses in the General thread). The self-defense class probably wouldn't even have rank. And then I could use the rank structure I mention above for demo team.
The advantage of this a la carte system is that folks could focus on what they want to focus on. It also would allow folks to come in from outside with very little tribal knowledge or requirement to memorize my curriculum, so I could plug-and-play coaches (similar to how I've seen things work in my BJJ class).
I'm not 100% sold on going a la carte. But it does seem like it might be the way to go.
There are two major changes I would make to my older plans:
- Remove any degrees after black belt (and call myself "black belt" instead of "3rd degree black belt").
- Stretch out the timing so that a black belt is a 5-8 year minimum instead of a 2-year minimum.
- Moving from "3rd degree black belt" to "black belt" isn't a self-promotion.
- I have more experience than the black belt requires in this system.
- If I also offer a BJJ class (either when I get good at BJJ, or if I bring in another coach) they are less likely to scoff at a belt system that gives kids a black belt in a few years of training.
- If at some point my black belts decide that we should have ranks beyond black belts, this would be a quorum of people with an 8-year degree instead of with a 3-year degree.
Time | Old Belt Color | New Belt Color |
0-6 months | White and Yellow | White |
6-12 months | Purple and Orange | Yellow |
1-2 years | Green, Blue, Brown, and Red | Purple and Orange |
2-3 years | 1st Degree | Green |
3-5 years | 2nd Degree | Blue and half of Brown |
5-8 years | 3rd Degree | Finish brown and red |
I would need to change a few other details, but this is the general idea. Also note these are minimum times and not a guarantee.
I am also considering more drastic changes. My currently planned class structure is based around the school I attended. Core classes during the week that cover a sampler of what Taekwondo has to offer (essentially split between forms, sparring, and self-defense), and then classes/clubs on the weekend to cover core requirements (make-up class or testing prep), sparring club, self-defense club, and demonstration team.
What I'm thinking now is more of an a la carte system. In this system, I would have a sparring/kicking class, a self-defense class, and a demonstration club. The sparring/kicking class I'd simply have beginner, intermediate, and advanced (the biggest difference is that Advanced can do headshots). Belts would be assigned when we sign up for tournaments (based on responses in the General thread). The self-defense class probably wouldn't even have rank. And then I could use the rank structure I mention above for demo team.
The advantage of this a la carte system is that folks could focus on what they want to focus on. It also would allow folks to come in from outside with very little tribal knowledge or requirement to memorize my curriculum, so I could plug-and-play coaches (similar to how I've seen things work in my BJJ class).
I'm not 100% sold on going a la carte. But it does seem like it might be the way to go.