Is money more important than the ability?
It has been a strange week for news in the Martial Arts world, with the controversy surrounding the award of an MBE to an apparently fictitious 10th Dan raising many more questions than answers over the whole grading system in many of the mainstream arts.
We believe that there is something inherently wrong with many of the gradings now taking place, and that far more importance is being placed up how much revenue an organisation can squeeze from a student, rather than just how good they are, and whether their abilities merit passing them.
Does the equipment you wear really matter?
This is something we have often come across, people being refused the right to grade because they don't have the right equipment.
Now, you'd think that might sound a good idea, safety standards blah blah. However, the real reality is the money.
Example: Go buy a sparring set such and, for argument purposes, that sets you back around £70 to £90 from an online shop. You turn up to class, shiny new sparring gear all ready to show off, and your Instructor takes you to one side and politely explains that you will not be allowed to grade wearing that sparring gear.
Your Instructor then shows you the sparring gear you have to wear, and you look puzzled. Why? Well, the really puzzling bit is you cannot actually see the difference between what you just bought and what your Instructor is showing you....until you notice the price is nearly double what you just paid! Oh, and the name of the brand printed on the goods....everything else is identical.
Sound far fetched? This is fact, based on actual experiences we have been made aware of, through students having to return goods only to then buy the almost exact same goods for double the price, with no physical difference whatsoever between the actual product itself.
Far too many belts are awarded for the wrong reasons, the chief among them being GREED.
We believe far too many organisations have a stranglehold over students in terms of the amount of money they squeeze from them, and that the result is a grading system that is financially driven rather than through actual physical ability alone.
This is just one example, there are probably many more that you can tell us about!
This is just one example, there are probably many more that you can tell us about!
As Bruce Lee once famously said....Belts are for holding your trousers up.
It got broken from when 2nd Dan Japanese Martial Artists got on the plane in Japan and got off the plane at their destination as 5th Dans.
ReplyDeleteAlso the way Go Kan Ryu and the Belt Factories and McDojos have been allowed to operate. Also the ability to "purchase" high Dan grades in various systems if you reciprocate by giving them a high Dan grade in yours. There's too many people at the top wanting all the pot etc. Hence why there's 10+ Shotokan organisations and 16+ Kyokushin organisations etc.
Senior grades are honorary anyway so many 5th Dan should be the last official grade and Shihan, Renshi, Hanshi, Kaicho and Kancho after that.
But that's a perfect world.
The only answer here is for student to vote with their feet and leave to find a dojo that operates a fair grading or charging practice.
ReplyDeleteAs a kickboxer my 1st Dan grade cost £50, previous coloured belts were £20. License fee is £20 per year. a 2 hour class is £5, payable on the door. no direct debit here.
My 1st Dan was only so expensive because my club instructor needed to pay for a 6th Dan to travel to our club for the Dan grading and needed to pay for his hotel room.
I graded in the club uniform (£10)
Contrast this with a friend of mine who practices TKD . classes are £5.5 per hour, grading's are £100 per belt.
Uniform is £70 which is mandatory after your second class, additional sparring kit is £110 for gloves, insteps and headguard which is mandatory for grading. Annual license is £30
The quality of his instruction is fine but no better then what I receive for a fraction of the price. If students feel they're paying too much they should leave and find a better/cheaper club.