10 year old black belt

[Nightingale]

it is a tough balance... you have to make people feel like they're accomplishing something because you don't want them to get discouraged and quit, because they're helping you pay your morgage, but you don't want to put your name and reputation on the line by giving them a belt they didn't earn... its a tough call.

 

[rmcrobertson]

Since I suspect I've already made myself very clear on this matter, I'll forego saying more than this: a) judge on a case-by-case basis, eh? b) not all black belts are, or have to be, the same; c) if being able to beat anybody up were the criteria, there's hardly anybody on this forum who deserves their belt, I suspect, because I suspect there's hardly anybody on this forum who could beat up a professional fighter as big as, say, Dolph Lundgren.

Thanks.

 

[7starmantis]

Originally posted by rmcrobertson

Since I suspect I've already made myself very clear on this matter, I'll forego saying more than this: a) judge on a case-by-case basis, eh? b) not all black belts are, or have to be, the same; c) if being able to beat anybody up were the criteria, there's hardly anybody on this forum who deserves their belt, I suspect, because I suspect there's hardly anybody on this forum who could beat up a professional fighter as big as, say, Dolph Lundgren.

Thanks.

Dolph Lundgren is a fighter? :rofl:

Sorry, couldn't resist

7sm

 

[GouRonin]

I could.

 

[7starmantis]

I have a question for those sho study a system that uses belts and there is an age limit on the black belt rank.
Is it that you cannot test until this said age, or is it that you cannot learn the material until said age? I mean is it possible that a person younger than the age to hold black belt could possibly know the material just not allowed to test for black belt?

7sm

 

[Nightingale]

A lot of schools that have an age limit on black belt (usually 16) have junior ranks...

Most kids don't start til seven or so... you figure it takes about four years for them to get their junior black, so now they're eleven, they join the adult classes at twelve, and another four to even be remotely ready to test for adult black, so they're now sixteen and at the age requirement.

That's how I've seen it work... the system is arranged so that people don't usually get ready to test for black before the age requirement... and if they are truly ready, they are evaluated on a case by case basis.

 

[7starmantis]

So Jr Black belt would not be the same material as in Adult Black Belt then? Is it less aggresive material or just more basic or what? Or is the main difference between a Jr BB and a BB basicaly more mental and maturity realted ?

7sm

 

[Nightingale]

in the schools I've seen, Jr black has 12 techiques per belt, and not as many forms... they try to give the kids techniques that will work for kids, stuff like moves off grabs and things like that.

 

[jfarnsworth]

From my experience the techniques are cut down. Ex. Dance of Death in our school is only taught up to the elbow strike. That just happens to be one that came to mind. Some of the others if there's only 3 to 4 moves then teach them the whole thing. The entire curriculum is cut in half. Instead of having 150 they have something like 70 - 80. They don't have to learn as many forms or sets. The basics yes they do have to learn all of those. Once achieving jr. bb with their white stripe then they start to fill in the tech., forms, sets. After learning the entire curriculum required for adult black they need to be evaluated for recommendation to test for it.

 

[Nightingale]

um...yeah!...that! That's what I was trying to say! you just said it better!

 

[7starmantis]

Sounds pretty reasonable to me. I don't see a problem with it, thanks for the explination both of you.


7sm

 

[tshadowchaser]

In My school and the whole system to which I belong we have an age requirement (16 at this time) Some of the techniques are not taught till after that age . Most of the time it take 8 - 12 years to get to instructor (black belt) in the system so someone would have to start verry young to push the age limits anyway.

 

[CraneWings]

In our style, we don't believe in promoting junior black belts. You have to be 16 to become a black belt. Because our children classes do not learn the same criteria or as much to the extent that the adults do. I am not doubting that a child can be good, but he better be damn good to be a black belt at 10.

 

[Jas]

In my NihonGoshin Aikido school it is impossible for a kid to get a blackbelt, when a kid meets all the requirments in the kids classes he/she goes into adult classes with a yellow belt rank

 

[Daniel]

In my current school they have junior black belts for the younger kids. They have a pared down list of what they need to do but they can achieve that by 12 or so.

After that they have to go back and learn everything they missed for each rank. For example they learn all the adult requirements for orange belt then they test for their junior black belt with an orange stripe.

By the time they have gone through all the ranks it takes a few years, which brings them to our current requirements for adult black belt of 16 years old, then they are allowed to test again and be a full adult black belt.

 

[J-kid]

10 yr old black belt?
ROFL

 

[kenposikh]

Originally posted by GouRonin
Gotta agree. Personally I would make 18 a requirement. Don't care if anyone else likes it either.

Hey Gou,

If you read my post at http://www.martialtalk.com/forum/showthread.php?s=&postid=163913#post163913

Then you will see this guy spent 10 years in the art with a minimum of 4 months between junior gradings learning basics and sets, forms from a higher level like 3rd kyu brown upwards.

We do have a minimum age requirement however unless they started at the age of 1 it is pretty much impossible for them to get to black belt before they are 15 at least.

 

[drunken mistress]

Where I train we are in a mixed group. The kids train in exactly the same way as adults. Our first sensei made them take tabs between belts so they would take 6 months at least for a belt when an adult could do it in half the time. I wasn´t always sure it was fair to the kids if they were really talented. I have met one or two black belt kids and they were very fast in reactions although they did not have full adult strength.
There are lots of kids claiming to be black belts of course. I have to persuade my yellow belt son that most are liars unless they started at the age of one.

 

[Gary Crawford]

I earned mine when I was almost 14,(back in the stone age)but it didn't really mean that much to me especially since there was a 16 yr old purple belt who was very competitive with me sparring(he was Good!).That taught me that rank was only a level of completed curiculum,individual ability means a lot more than rank!

 

[Ceicei]

Originally posted by Nightingale
but is he following the adult curriculum, or is he using a pared down children's version?

if he's not learning all the material, he shouldn't be a regular black belt.

At my school, when a kid earns a black belt, it is just that: a junior black belt. Once they earn the jr bb, they then have to go through all the adult curriculum (yellow thru 1st brown) before they get the adult black belt. That's going to take several additional years. They still get to keep their black belts (with a stripe down the middle of the length of the belt) but have colored tips.

However, if a kid turns 14 (I think, or maybe its 16?) regardless of rank, they are transitioned out of the jr curriculum to the adult curriculum.

- Ceicei