Double Promoting
- Thread starter nipper219
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Have you done martial arts before? Which art is this for/how many belts are between white and green belt?
Is there actual material that is learned per rank, or is it more of general learning and belt is just a sign of ability?
Is there actual material that is learned per rank, or is it more of general learning and belt is just a sign of ability?
- Thread Starter
- #3
No, never done martial arts before this. Its Taekwondo. It goes White, Yellow, then Green. So it skips one belt. The belt is just a sign of ability, the information learned is for any rank.
skribs
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This only applies if you're planning on quitting once you reach a certain rank. If you want to quit when you get black belt, then this means you would quit sooner. If you want to keep going after black belt, this doesn't affect your journey much. Except you get credentials faster, which could help your career.
A belt in martial arts is a measurement of a lot of different things. Knowledge, skill, experience, dedication, and a few others. If your GM wants to double promote you, it's probably because he sees you as having the appropriate balance of all of these traits that a green belt, and doesn't see the point in keeping you at yellow belt for 2 months just to make sure you go through the motions.
Personally, if I felt one of my students was far ahead of their belt level, I would want their belt to catch up with them. Because if I have a white/yellow belt with green belt technique, I'm going to spend very little time on them and most of my time on the ones with white/yellow belt technique. But if I have a green belt with green belt technique, I'm going to spend more time getting that up to blue belt level.
My guess is its one or a combination of the following:
- You have a natural talent and he's trying to push you to a place where you will be challenged
- You practice more than your fellow students and/or attend more classes and so you should be rewarded for the time spent
- Your GM sees a future career for you and wants to help you fast-track it, for example to get to black belt so you can be an instructor
Xue Sheng
All weight is underside
My daughter was in Aikido for many years, started in the kids class and then went on to the Adult class. She worked her way to the test for 4th kyu. She had always tested and gained 1 rank at a time. But after the 4th kyu test the sensei was thrilled with her performance and promoted her to 3rd kyu. The only time she got a double promotion....then the pandemic hit and she has yet to return to Aikido.
I have to research this, I know it was a double promotion, but I may be mistaken as to what kyu it was, 4, 3 or 2
I have to research this, I know it was a double promotion, but I may be mistaken as to what kyu it was, 4, 3 or 2
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Double-promoting causes pandemics. Got it.
Xue Sheng
All weight is underside
Ultimately, I'm not a fan for people who have not experienced martial arts before-it's disingenuous to others who don't know the person. They may think that they're training with someone who has 6 months experience, while actually training/sparring with someone with only 1 month experience.
That's interesting. From looking at TKD curriculums/visiting TKD schools/talking with TKD friends I was under the impression that information is learned at each rank. Ie: at white you learn your blocks, basic kicks and one step sparring, at yellow, you learn more one steps and probably the first pyeong/taeguk, and so on.
Seems weird for TKD to not have info based on belt rank, but I've been to (non-tkd) schools that both regulate and don't regulate based on rank and both seem to work fine.
Having said that, ultimately what belt you wear doesn't matter so as long as you're not being either limited in what you can learn, or brushed past certain techniques, it doesn't matter all that much what color your instructor puts around your waist.
So if you all of a sudden don't learn X one-steps, or have to learn them at the same time you'd learn y one-steps, or same thing with forms, that's an issue, otherwise just keep on trucking.
skribs
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This was my thought as well. However, different schools do things differently.
My old TKD school was very much structured how you expect it. White belts learn basic punches, kicks, and blocks, Form #1, and White Belt Punch Defense #1-5. Yellow belts learn Forms #2-3 and Yellow Belt Punch Defense #1-5. Purple learn form #4, intermediate kicks #1-5, and Purple Belt Punch Defense #1-5. And so on.
Others will do a more open system. I'm guessing (because I haven't been in them) that they will teach all of the techniques to the class, and students do what they can and try what they can't. This is probably more common in smaller schools. My school had 200+ students, so we could tailor each belt level to an individual curriculum.
Why not? Grading ranks are entirely arbitrary and you may have shown some fundamental, possibly small ability that shows a good future in the art. The lower ranks, although vital in enthusing practitioners, are pretty inconsequential in a long martial arts career.
It’s up to him I assume
- Thread Starter
- #12
It’s not really up to him because I can decline his promotion suggestion. And was struggling about whether or not to take the promotion or decline it.
Be worthy of it and take it.
well then how is he the teacher if you don’t trust his judgment, but it’s your choice
skribs
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I see no reason to decline a promotion. In a TMA it shows disrespect to your instructor. In a sport art you would be sandbagging.
KenpoMaster805
2nd Black Belt
Its awesome you wanna take it slowly on your rank you don't need to hurry to get your rank up but its up to your instructor but you can say i dont wanna be double promoted i just wanna take it slowly and earn my next belt . i guess in my karate system you test every 3 months from white to purple then blue to brown every 6 months when i was testing for my 2nd brown took me 4 years just to get my 2nd brown its not easy but i made it just tell your instructor if you can test 3 months
- Thread Starter
- #17
I decided to take it and thanks for the advice
As I said above, I'm not a fan of the concept in general-but I would still recommend taking it. You can always train at your own pace, the color around your waist doesn't matter. But, it'd be a bit disrespectful to him to refuse, and you should trust that your instructor knows what he is doing-if you don't, why are you there?
Also, it saves you whatever the testing fees are from yellow to green.
Not your choice. Trust your instructor. It's not common, but not unheard of. Take it for what it is and keep working.
- Thread Starter
- #20
It technically is my choice, I don't have to promote at all if I don't want to. My grandmaster can recommend what he wants for me; but I don't have to take it. I did take it, but again it technically is my choice.
