Juniors with high grades

[Throwdown0850]

Once again, age doesn't necessarily mean experience. I know senior citizens who have never been in a real life threatening altercation, and I also have an 11 year old buddy who has had 4 grown men attack him at once.

Here's something else you might want to consider in a case such as the aforementioned. In my school there are many different instructors, so if you were to get involved, you could always turn to one of the higher-ups for extra experience. Each and every instructor has their own innate and individual specialties, which altogether make a great organization.

Just because one has never had to use a certain technique in a real life and death situation, does that mean that they won't know how to use said technique? I'm sure all of us have learned techniques from our senseis that they have never had to use. does that make our senseis inexperienced frauds? Hmm...

**I don't know about your styles, but in ours alot of the katas and drills we do are composed of self defense moves**

If your not dumbing your style down for juniors, and your juniors had to jump through all the same hoops that your adults did to get the same rank, shouldn't they have the same training and abilities?

I didn't have to worry about that cause my instructor and I didnt even let anybody start to train until they were 16...

[Roys15]

that would be a good catch-all for this situation...

[bushido_man96]

I agree BUT, the "mere child" was helping you with your stuff just to pass your test, not self defense... cause in my opinion, today, thats all people worry about is if they get there "stuff" down just to pass the test, I am not talking about you of course, I was speaking in generalities.. I was talking about SELF DEFENSE.. I believe a kid cannot give us the best training for a possible life threatening situation... cause in my opinion, any kid can help you with a kata or a punch or a kick, NOT self defense....

and the "child" may have some experience, but not enough to trust my life on it...

This, I tend to agree with. Teaching a curriculum of forms and sport sparring rules is different from the working with the self-defense aspects of fighting.

[bushido_man96]

I think a person (if they're under 18 ) should go through an "intern" period if award a black belt, they can teach and all that jazz, but when they reach 18 they should test again then be given the 1st dan rank.

Why would you want them to have to test again? If they have already completed the test once, and met the requirements, then why do it again? Just because they have gotten older?

B/C in their intern phase they're a pseudo black belt.

In this case, I say either hold them off altogether, or give them the rank; otherwise, it just seems like beating a dead horse.

[tori]

This is a subject that will never see eye to eye with everyone. I am not the head instructor at my school, but I do have a difference in opinion from him in ranking students. I believe that a junior black belt should be recognized as such, based on their skill level. I am not saying that you cannot learn from a junior black belt. You can. I also am not saying I wouldn't rank a "junior black belt" to adult black belt, because based on the individual student, he or she may deserve it. The person in question here was a 16 year old who trained 4 nights a week for more than 10 years. I bet he is very good at what he does. I train with adult black belts who only come sporadically, have very little technique and no teaching ability. Sure, they came alot while they were kyu's. They trained twice a week, but after reaching shodan, they gave up on the school. I would have that 16 year old who trains consistently teach me anything over the 40 year old black belt who could care less. If you can't find it to learn from anyone and any situation, than you are keeping your mind closed to many possibilities in life.

[DWx]

Once again, age doesn't necessarily mean experience. I know senior citizens who have never been in a real life threatening altercation, and I also have an 11 year old buddy who has had 4 grown men attack him at once.

Here's something else you might want to consider in a case such as the aforementioned. In my school there are many different instructors, so if you were to get involved, you could always turn to one of the higher-ups for extra experience. Each and every instructor has their own innate and individual specialties, which altogether make a great organization.

Just because one has never had to use a certain technique in a real life and death situation, does that mean that they won't know how to use said technique? I'm sure all of us have learned techniques from our senseis that they have never had to use. does that make our senseis inexperienced frauds? Hmm...

**I don't know about your styles, but in ours alot of the katas and drills we do are composed of self defense moves**

If your not dumbing your style down for juniors, and your juniors had to jump through all the same hoops that your adults did to get the same rank, shouldn't they have the same training and abilities?

Maybe its because I'm still under 18 myself but I agree with Roys15. Becoming an adult is not going to suddenly make you more experienced. Some MAists never experience any altercation in their lifetime yet you could have a guy in his 20s who's experienced far more than the rest of the dojo combined. And in any case how much does it actually affect how the techniques are taught? My own instructor has never been in a situation where he had to physically use his skills (or if he has he has never talked about it). I guess if we are going to go along the lines of "real experience" he shouldn't be qualified to teach. IMO as long as those teaching can demonstrate a correct technique and then show you how to apply it to a senario then that is more than adequate. So what if they haven't actually been in that particular senario themselves. If they can show you how to apply something it is then up to you as a student to go away and adapt and train that technique. In fact thinking about it, sometimes I would prefer the teacher who hasn't been in a physical altercation because that tells you about how they either avoid a conflict or descalte them before they go physical which is for me equally important as the physical part of self defense.

IMO mere children can teach the techniques to pass tests and they can teach for self defense. Just because they can't tell you about the bar fight they were in back in '84 it doesn't mean they can't understand and convey how to apply a movement in a situation.

[bushido_man96]

I think that most of the problem that is showing up in this scenario is dealing strictly with age. Many adults don't want to learn from a kid. The fact is, most adults spend their lives teaching their own kids from the very beginning; in a society where we learn to respect our elders, it is difficult for the elders sometimes to learn from the younger ones.

I guess, perhaps there is a difference between "learning" and "being taught?" Hmmmm.....