HELP! is my martial arts school a joke?

[pipedragon]

I've bin attending my MA school for a little over a year and its just struck me that maybe the whole things just a joke.

There are classes every week night but i, like most of those who atend can only make it 1 night a week.

The thing is we take a grading every three months which means i've only completed about 15 hours training. There is no formal exam (although there is a hefty grading fee) and your pretty much guaranteed to progress to the next belt. All for just 15 hours (or less as some people don't turn up all the time) of training

This strikes me as a bit weird, i mean should't students of different abilities progress at different rates? also, at other MA schools it appears people train more often but progress through the belts more slowly.

Since this is my 1st MA school im not really sure what i should expect so any help will be appreciated.

:asian:

 

[chufeng]

Been there...done that...I moved on.
I wasn't concerned about attaining rank...I wanted knowledge and I wasn't getting it...

Cut your losses, find a new school.

:asian:
chufeng

 

[theletch1]

My first MA school was part of a group of six or seven in the area that had pretty much the same thing going on. We did have a grading test but all the outlying schools had to go to the main branch to test. As you can imagine there was always a lot of people testing at any given time. As a result, it didn't really matter whether you knew your material or not. The instructors were more concerned with whether or not you could pass the physical or not. I always busted my hump beforehand to make sure I knew my techs and would get lined up across from someone in a tech line for testing that would freeze up or just plain not move at all when a particular tech was called. At the end of the grading that individual would get his belt just the same as I would. Much like Chufeng, I was after knowledge, not the belt rank. I too left for greener pastures and am gaining so much more at my new school. The key is researching the school before joining. Now that you have been in a school for a while you should be better prepared with the right questions to ask and know what to look for. Good luck, my friend.

 

[tshadowchaser]

YEP. my first school also graded every 2-3 months and charged more for each belt level. He promoted us till we where ready to test for black then had his instructor come into test us. Only trouble was he had not taught us correctly and some of the information he told us was wrong thusly we failed that test and had to test again at a latter date. Amazingly the test fee still went up (why wasn't it the same price)

I moved on. found a system that tested when you where ready and didn't test you if you were not. Oh, I cleaned the school, hichicked 75 miles a night to get there , and paid for my tests there with sweat, hard work and yes, sometimes blood.

If you school is just a paper factory and a way for the instructor to fill his pockets with money, you have two choices: 1 leave 2 stay Its your choice

 

[yilisifu]

Yes, it sounds VERY fishy. Best to move on.

 

[ace]

How is the training Are U having Fun?
Do U feel U have Made Progresss?
Do U Spar to test Your Skills?

With only 15 hours What Rank Do U Were??

Whats The Styel,Are they into compotition.

How come only Have 1 Night to train???

 

[MartialArtist]

From the looks of it, I'd say the school is a joke.

 

[arnisador]

What you say raises significant concerns, but isn't enough for me to clearly conclude that there's a problem. What is the style? How do you feel about what you're learning--is it what you wanted and expected? How old are you? For younger students some schools give belts frequently as incentives.

I too started at a school of questionable value and after about 6 months moved on to a school in somebody's basement where I got some good stuff and infrequent promotions. In fact, I got the first yellow belt he ever gave because I was 15 and he was concerned (needlessly) about encouraging me--otherwise they just used white, green, brown, and black.

 

[J-kid]

Though i cant say for sure to me its sounds like you are in a bullshido school. AKA a mcdojo, check this website out it has many articals on mcdojos. Its better you go here and look at the articals that way you can deside for yourself if you are or arnt in a mcdojo.

www.bullshido.com

 

[MartialArtist]

you mean articles

 

[tarabos]

yes...move on to another school.

 

[andurilking2]

i agree it would be better for you to move on to another dojo or maybe even another art, good luck- and train hard:asian:

 

[soccer50]

what martial art is it?not that it makes a difference because it took me a year just to barely move up. ive been training for 2.5 years now. im not a pro yet! other MAist move up slowly also, theres no garuntee that youll move up either

 

[Blackdragon]

Sounds like a "black belt factory". I'd advise finding another place.

 

[tonbo]

I would say......it depends.

First off, I disagree strongly with the "hefty fee" part. I am against "hefty fees" to begin with, 'nuff said.

Next, however, comes the advancement part. If you are starting out at a school as a white belt/beginner rank, you may find that you are able to test for your first couple of belts fairly quickly. However, that usually changes when you reach intermediate level--you start to learn more than the basics, and you will find that the material requires more thought and in-depth movement, rather than just "stand here, punch here".

Remember, when you are just starting out, you are learning the *basics*. You may breeze through white, yellow, and orange belts (using a kenpo system as an example), because you are learning *simple* things: stances, punches, and kicks....all the foundation pieces. Now comes the tough part. After you have "learned" all those, you reach the intermediate stage, where you realize that things are not so simple as they first appeared, and that there is much, much more to the art than just pointing your body in a certain direction and punching.

I would look at it this way: the initial few belts can often be more or less "gimmies". A lot of schools use them to get students interested and keep them interested ("Hey, I'm making progress!!") long enough for the MA to get into their blood. Once they are hooked, then the long, long road begins.

My advice is to talk to some of the upper belts. Find out how long they have been there, what their experiences are, how they feel about the training, and so on. If it doesn't sound like you are going to get your needs met, or if there are a lot of upper belts who have made it where they are extraordinarily quickly, I'd move on.

Peace--

 

[The 14th Style]

There are some good answers here.
I'm not too familiar with the belt system having never been in one.
(not that they are bad)
So some of the things I would also look at are
Do you like the school?
Are you having fun?/ do you enjoy going to class?
Do you feel like you are learning?
Are your teachers approachable?
Can you ask questions?
How are the other students?/Do they enjoy class?
Just my way of looking at things.
I hope you find what works for you.

Respectfully
The 14th Style

 

[TallAdam85]

there are alot of school by me that are a joke but there are also alot of good schools just look and I am sure you will find one.

:asian: