View Single Post
Old 04-17-2016, 08:29 AM   #20
rugwithlegs
Dojo: Open Sky Aikikai
Location: Durham, NC
Join Date: Apr 2013
Posts: 430
United_States
Offline
Re: Could a child fail a grading?

I wouldn't demote someone, unless rank was dependent on abilities that were now lost. Definitely no leadership role. Same in the adult world in employment.

Some training is more attention grabbing than others. A randori against some committed attackers who are the same size bigger; kids getting knocked down or dominated when they've been thinking they are the best in the room, that can sometimes be failure enough to incite more effort. Just don't do that to kids who are training less because they feel they aren't progressing and that the training isn't paying off or you'll prove it to them and they will quit. You need to be clear about the why.

Out of the kids classes that often pay a Dojo's rent, my own thing is how many kids actually reach the top tier of the kids ranks and actually have some Aikido? How many go on to train in the adult classes? Out of those who were leaders in the kids classes, how many go on to even get Shodan as an adult? I don't work with kids but I do train at a dojo with over a decade of history of kid's programs. It surprises me how many can spend years in a kid's program and quit after a month of adult classes; and that we don't have a single Shodan adult who was in the kid's program yet. For every few hundred adults who took their first class we usually get one eventual black belt.

Can they fail? If you are teaching a combative art, they will fail, just a matter of when and how they handle it. If they are in any form of school, they have failed already at something. If they are getting bored, push them and let them do more. If they are overwhelmed, let them plateau. But I do feel if someone isn't ready, don't take their money and put them in the middle of the mat to test. Extra testing fees are attractive and lucrative but this is why some parents consider martial arts a sleazy racket - especially when they do not see clear progression despite a change in belt color and money spent.
  Reply With Quote