I don%26#039;t understand how some of these martial arts places award black belts to kids 11 or 12 years old. Unless the child is some kind of amazing prodigy I don%26#039;t see how it does anything but cheapen the black belt. I noticed that parents also like to brag about their child having a high ranking belt. Don%26#039;t you think if they want to brag it should be about winning compeitions?|||I agree ... many martial arts schools in America have completely cheapened the idea of a black belt.
I%26#039;ve been training for 18 years. I also write leadership books using martial arts principles. A funny (and true) story ...
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I was doing a book signing once, and two parents came up with their kids (ages about 8 and 10 years old) in tow.
%26quot;Oh!%26quot; said the father, after having me sign several book, %26quot;You%26#039;re a black belt?%26quot;
%26quot;Yes,%26quot; I replied.
%26quot;How wonderful!%26quot; said mom proudly, pushing her children forward. %26quot;Both of my children are 2nd degree black belts!%26quot;
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I was so flabbergasted, I think I simply stood their with my mouth hanging open. Not only does giving a child a black belt cheapen the entire martial arts process, I think it also makes it dangerous for the child.
Neither of the children I met that night could have weighed more than 70 pounds. As a father, I wouldn%26#039;t want either of my children thinking that because they got a black belt they were so highly skilled that they could win a street fight. That%26#039;s asking for problems.
Great question! That%26#039;s been bugging me for years.|||At my school they give out junior black belts, so after you go through all of the kids belts, then you get your junior black belt with a colored stripe in the middle, and the colored stripe, is the color of the adult belt you are, because in my style of karate, you can%26#039;t have a black belt until you are 16.
Why any school would give out an actual black belt to anyone under that age doesn%26#039;t make much sense to me, I%26#039;m sure they are not up to the same level that the adults are.|||the black belt has little to do with the %26quot;master%26quot; level which westerners often think of when they hear the term %26quot;black belt%26quot;
In contrast to the %26quot;black belt as master%26quot; stereotype, a black belt commonly indicates the wearer is competent in a style%26#039;s basic technique and principles. The student has a good understanding of concepts and ability to use them but has not yet perfected their skills.
A black belt is not the end of training but rather as a beginning to advanced learning: the individual now knows how to walk and may thus begin the %26quot;journey%26quot;
the further subdivisions of black belt ranks are called dan grades where higher numbers means higher rank
just remember once the the child has a black belt they still have a lot of years of training ahead of them before they become a 2nd or 3rd dan black belt|||the reason we give kids black belts is cause we like kung fu fighting midgets that we put on youtube for cheap laughs|||The answer is money, and the schools that do such things are called McDojos.|||It%26#039;s nothing but a $$$ game. I%26#039;ve heard from several sources that such a practice has %26quot;devalued%26quot; the black belt in America such that many Japanese practitioners of karate and similar arts do not consider an American belt to be %26quot;legit.%26quot; I can%26#039;t say for sure, though.
I like BJJ%26#039;s rule that a child under 16 may not earn even a blue belt and that you must be 19 to earn a black belt. While that%26#039;s pretty early, at least it provides a rule to follow.|||All schools or associations have their own rules and belt structure. As a children%26#039;s instructor I do not agree with children receiving the same Black Belt rank as adults. The top belt my children can receive is a Junior Black Belt (which is a white belt with a black stripe encompassing it). To become a certified black belt they must earn their junior black belt then train full time until they reach the age of 18 years and test as all adults test. If they pass, then and only then do they receive their black belt with certification. Yes it%26#039;s a long road for some but they learn and refine their craft over the years. We just had one of our youth earn his black belt after almost ten years of training. He%26#039;s good, really good and it shows.
But there are some pointing fighting systems that offer black belts for youth programs. Their focus and goal is different and the children who receive such rank are competing in sport fighting systems against other kids of equal age and experience. In this regard offering a higher belt may make sense but it truly comes down to each individual art and school.
I feel every person investigating martial art should find out is the art meant for sport or self defense or both? Find a style or system that interests you.
Have fun and train hard. Martial Arts builds better personalities and bodies. Enjoy the experience and enjoy your new found life style!|||Places allow kids to test for black belts because their parents are willing to PAY for the tests.
It%26#039;s all about the money,
Any respectable place will have a youth belt rank structure in place, that will NOT include black belt. They will allow kids to test until they are old enough to test for an adult rank.|||Check out these videos:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yMrSkEqlE...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2O1nTCxEu...
This is just a small sample of a 10 year old and 11 year old black belt.
How can you argue that these children are not legitimate black belts? These children are not rare prodigy%26#039;s, there are hundreds of 9-14 year old black belts that are phenominal at martial arts.
They may not have the maturity of an adult blackbelt, but they are usually ahead of their peers in school.
Of course, there are some children blackbelts who do not remember all their forms, or who don%26#039;t demonstrate the technical skill that one would expect from such a high rank. But can%26#039;t the same be said of some adult black belts?
Being a black belt doesnt mean that your a great athlete, or that you can beat people up. The black belt isnt the end of the journey, it%26#039;s only the beginning. I%26#039;m 36 years old, I have no problem with children black belts.
James|||because there dumbasses my friend is a black belt in karate he got it when he was 10 and then he quit now hes 14 and barley remebers any thing|||Most schools who give out black belts to such young kids are in it to make money. More belts = more belt test fees = more income. You%26#039;re right...it really does cheapen the black belt and takes away from those who train for years and years and legitimately earn a black belt! It%26#039;s also dangerous, in my opinion...it gives these kids a false sense of security. They also don%26#039;t get the satisfaction of feeling like they really earned something through hard, hard work.|||For the bragging thing, its much more of an achievement to obtain the next belt level then it is to win a competition. A competition is one day and anything could happen. They could be sick, have an off day, have a great day, or have a lot of luck. A belt is something they work towards for months, even years. A metal shows the accomplishments of a day, a belt shows the accomplishments of months, blood, sweat, tears, and perseverance.
If a kid is 11 or 12 years old they could have started when they were 5 or 6, that means they would have been doing martial arts for 6, 7 years. That%26#039;s a long time, also were not talking about little kids, these are preteens, Jr. high.
I know a lot of kids that age that are amazing and are better then some older teens. You make it seem like a crime. But at my dojo, they have black belt, costume black belt then adult black belt (that%26#039;s for people who started as kids) because you are (in some sense) right. There is a huge difference between adult and kid black belts.|||the dojo i went to only allowed people to TRY for their black belt when they became seniors in highschool. Only then were they allowed to test for it. It wasn%26#039;t an automatic given kind of a thing.|||Its not martial arts its the dojo that teaches it i dont mind 11-14 yer olds getting a black belt because that is reasonable my problem is seein 7 year olds with black belts i wouldnt mind if someone STARTED at 7 but starting like at 4 and being as uncoordinated as they are they shouldnt be alowed to start
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