Research Findings: My reflection

In human endeavors  multitudes of philosophies abound. This is especially true when it comes to martial arts and even more specifically teaching martial arts to children and youth. I often questioned those that were proud of how few people could earn their black belt because of the harsh trials and tribulations. I may even have a tinge of this myself. That said, I concur that all students should not earn black belts. I disagree with the notion that the black belt requirements should be scaled or ratcheted down to accommodate individuals. In all of this there is an inherent conflict that is unresolved. If a martial arts teacher only promotes a fraction of his students then is it that he is a failure? Why cannot the teacher improve their teachings in order to promote a higher degree of success among students? Even with improved teaching what percentage of students could be promoted to black belt level; maybe 40%? Would you enroll your child in a school that had a 60% failure rate? Is that a good parenting decision? Is that a positive experience for a child? So why would I build an organization around such an activity that  generally delivers such deplorable results? What is the purpose and should the measure of the organization be, the number of black belts promoted, or the quality of the black belts, or some other measure?

These questions and more I set out  to investigate three years ago with the guidance from my colleagues Dr. Kent,  and the assistance Sara Kahn. Over the past three years we have been investigating the student experience at Zhang Sah. We inquired about how their minds and bodies changed while attending the program. We compared Zhang Sah students to other children attending sports programs in Philadelphia such as cycling, rowing, and others. We also measured our students up against national norms for fitness levels. What we discovered about the students who attend Zhang Sah is nothing short of inspirational.

The data reports that from a fitness perspective students who attend Zhang Sah improve core strength, develop flexibility, and lean muscle mass. Fit students are mostly healthy, they do better in school, and are developing athletic capacities that are transferable to other sports. Students report that they are committed, involved, and satisfied with their experience at Zhang Sah.  Students earned high marks when assessed for strengths that support positive youth development outcomes. They reported a strong sense of character, connection to family and school and peers, they demonstrated caring and empathy. Zhang Sah students recorded highest marks for school grades among those attending after school sports programs in Philadelphia. They reported a strong sense of self confidence and more importantly  they demonstrated coveted traits of resiliency.

A program that garners wellness and positive outcomes is an effective program from my vantage point. I find it assuring to know that no matter what level of martial arts training a student achieves at Zhang Sah that they are all benefiting in meaningful ways. I must not forget to mention that  the results indicated that boys and girls across all ethnicities and socioeconomic status achieved similar results. To be achieving great outcomes in an equitable fashion is and of itself a spectacular finding. Furthermore, our program just might be the best thing that child can do outside of school bar none. So I wouldn't expect the black belt test to get any easier anytime soon.

Optimism

In general, optimists tend to overestimate the good and underestimate the bad. This is known as optimism bias. At Zhang Sah we pride ourselves on cultivating optimism. Some may say that's a bad thing to teach people to overestimate their reality. Some say that a happy life is derived by keeping low expectations and enjoying those rare occurrences when reality is better than what you expected. I couldn't disagree more with that philosophy. Although, I agree that it is difficult to teach people how to appreciate failure and losing. But just because it's easier to live with low expectations doesn't mean that's more fulfilling.

My teaching philosophy is to continually raise expectations which leads one towards success. In some instances this success is unattainable but the heights that it takes you in the process is really what is truly fulfilling. At Zhang Sah there is no destination for success. It is not earning your black belt. It is not winning a competition. It is not about earning a scholarship for college. It is not about graduating. It's not about earning a certain amount of money. It's about being equipped to enjoy the journey of life. It's about expecting yourself to progress along this path. Besides, within the anticipation of success lies happiness.

Many question how can we cultivate people to become optimistic. And how can we do this in the face of so many negative realities. How is optimism maintained over time? The answer is simple-Confidence!

Through rigorous training students develop confidence. This is enabled by positive role models who demonstrate care and enthusiasm for their progress. Confidence percolates from the competencies and trustworthiness in the students capacity to perform and practice with others. The optimistic outlook flows from here.

" Train hard-be happy!" 

Happy Birthday Zhang Sah!

Dear Zhang Sah by biological standards you are a teenager. I question how old you are and whether or not you really do you require a paternity test.  So let me tell you about your parents, your name, and how you were conceived. Maybe the story will illuminate all the nuances that I think need to be disclosed about what you rightfully should know. In 1973 Soon Ho Chang (Grand Master) opened Chang's School of Judo and Karate. However, he at some point, before I met him, began to inscribe on his student's black belts "Zhang Sah Martial Arts College". So the term was used in an informal and unofficial way from an organizational perspective but I am a graduate with master's degree Tae Kwon Do, Karate , and Aikido and a 1st degree black belt in Judo from Zhang Sah Martial Arts College.  As a matter of fact, I recall, that I was the 10th person awarded this credential from 1973 through 2007. He said that Zhang Sah means to be smart and brave or sometimes he would say "Brave Scholar".

So the term Zhang Sah had its genesis in the early 1970's. It was not an organization dedicated to the brave scholar mission at that point but rather a high standard for the scholarly pursuit of martial art theory and practice. So I don't think of you as a middle aged entity. I filed the fictitious name Gold Medal Karate in 1994 so I could operate a small martial arts club in South Philadelphia. I moved the club from the our initial location in the fall of 1998. I later incorporated the Gold Medal Karate in 1999 when I also filed for federal non-profit status under chapter 501C3.  Subsequently in 2004 I filed Zhang Sah as our trademark with the US patent office. So if you mark your birth date as the date I filed the fictitious name you are 18 years old and if you go by the date of incorporation then you would be 13 years old today or trademark date 8 years old.

I began a pilot of our school age out of school time program while at our initial location in the summer of 1996. The idea quickly developed and we were then in the nascent stages of running after school and full day summer programs. Summer camp was our 1st program. I really don't remember the exact dates and I have no documentation that I can refer to for evidence that dates all the way to then.

What I do remember and what is pretty much verifiable is who were the initial participants and how they were recruited. I made you in order to spend more time with Corey, my oldest son, and to improve the results that were achieved by students who attended my school. You see, being a martial arts teacher means teaching classes when children are out of school and when adults are out of work. I missed Corey very much  and he had a newborn sister, named Paige, that I didn't get to see a lot because I worked six days per week and five of theme were mostly from 2pm through 8 or 9pm (M-F).  I could see Paige more so then since she wasn't in school. Corey was getting ready to go to Kindergarten, his mother went back to work, and I saw an opportunity to spend time with Paige early in the day and him later on and thus expand the traditional program of a martial arts school.  Also, there was a small cohort of moms who had children attend summer camp and they thought the after school program would be very convenient for them and beneficial to their children. We did our homework, practiced martial arts, and I taught them how to play cards for fun. We loved to play WAR for Oreo cookies. For some reason I always lost all my cookies to these five year old card sharks. The idea caught on and we grew Zhang Sah from that point forward. Grand Master was very impressed by the martial arts results too. Since children were attending martial arts class in a consistent and regular basis they would out perform other children who attended on a more recreational basis. This hold true even today. Two of the initial group did eventually earn Jr. black belts: Corey Sandone and Richard Collins.

Since the incorporation date and 501C3 date are October 4th. We celebrate your birthday on that day. Since the program fully changed circa 1997 I consider you 15 years old. Since I filed your name officially, like a birth certificate, I named you Zhang Sah.

Happy Birthday Zhang SahI am so proud of you and I hope that you go on to continue to do great things. And of course, I will be by your side each step of the way. I hope that you enjoy the party that we are throwing for you on the 19th.

Love Dad

Today is Yom Kippur

Today is one of my favorite holidays. It is Yom Kippur. No, I am not Jewish. I just think that setting one day aside per year for atonement is a good life practice. I think the United States ought to consider adopting a national holiday for a day of atonement. Nationally we could seek to make peace with so many adversaries. There is always a time to make peace. We should set one day per year aside just for that. I am not advocating that we adopt Yom Kippur as national holiday, but if we did, I would not complain but one iota.

In the course of human interaction we all inconvenience, marginalize, offend, and hurt others intentionally, unintentionally, consequentially, and even collaterally. We all have someone or something to atone for. Furthermore, we all have someone to atone with. Maybe they are an estranged spouse or family member or maybe someone that violated you or someone you violated.

Making atonement cleans out your emotional closet and makes room for positive feelings. It is good for you to forgive and to be forgiven. So my wish for you on this day is that you may forgive and that you are forgiven. That doesn't mean that you need to forget or allow negativity to persist. It just means that you let go of the resentment and the pain and that you use your power to release others from the same. It is quite powerful.

Happy Yom Kippur!
May you forgive and be forgiven.

Defining Violence

I recently came to a stark realization that violence has many more faces than I normally account for. I believe that violence is pervasive and just may be an inalienable part of the human condition. As a civilization we have mainly addressed physical violence as a criminal act. We discourage people from using brute force against each other citing that it is not civil and we live in a civil society. Emotional violence is probably more common than physical. It probably causes more physical violence than purely physical confrontations do on their own. Our society apparently has no problem with social violence, where one may use their time, money, and power at the expense of others. Also, symbolic violence occurs regularly when people marginalize or devalue each other due to divergent class or culture.

As a martial arts teacher it is customary to instruct your students on how to defend themselves from physical violence. This benefit is commonly achieved by students. Achieved even by students who attend for a short period of time. Many attacks are remedied by techniques (martial arts technology). But for our more sophisticated forms of civilized violence, in its emotional, social, or symbolic forms of attack, one must become adept in the symbolism and strategic approach that many self defense techniques are rooted in. This takes years and years of practice, development, and trials.  Zhang Sah provides a wide base of martial arts technology in order to address the broad array of violence. Zhang Sah uses varied techniques but more importantly divergent and yet complimentary strategies that can remedy almost any situation if you understand the underlying concepts and act deliberately.

Keeping the "AWE" in Awesomeness!

At Zhang Sah students have the opportunity to prove themselves worthy of progressing to the next level in their training. Students who are in our early learning curriculum (Pre- M. A.) are reviewed monthly in class. Students who are ages 8 and older that are not red or black belts are tested in class every other month. This is what is commonly referred to as belt testing. Making progress in a student's practice is very important. Regular assessment gauges the degree of increased capacities and abilities for a student. It informs us on whether or not the level of instruction is of high quality or lacking . By evaluating test results we can see the effectiveness of the curricula being used for our practice.

 As students progress through the ranks the testing tends to become more rigorous. Practice evolves from being solo to cooperational in nature to oppositional at advanced levels. There are physical and mental conditioning activities that support the student's progression. One key mental attribute that is developed through these processes is the ability to challenge the unknown.

Unknowns are wild card variables introduced during martial arts belt testing that manifest an array of student capacities and abilities. The best example of this concept is the board breaking requirement (Kyuppa Ki Sool) at mid-level belt testing and beyond. The goal is to have the student synthesize technique, mental focus, and spirit to overcome not knowing if they can split a board. The boards are cut to accommodate the size of the student attempting the break to keep the exercise rigorous yet safe. The student is not prepared in advance specifically for the break, they do not rehearse the break. The student is expected to have a very firm grasp on the technique being deployed in the attempt to break the board. For example, a student is required to perform a flying spinning back kick break (Yidan Dwit Budo Chagi to be promoted to red belt level (Cho dan Bo - Black Belt Candidate). The student will have been practicing this kick for well over two years prior to being challenged to do it is a break on an exam.

 The reason that students do not rehearse breaking techniques that are reserved for testing is because the act of rehearsing dilutes the significance of the test and the personal satisfaction that comes along with being able to believe in yourself to accomplish an awesome feat that that they didn't know that they were capable of. It keeps the test in the test! It keep the "awe" in the awesome feelings of self-confidence that are experienced. At Zhang Sah we do not teach to the test.

SSS

Life Giving Sword

"...Weapons are instruments of fear; they are not a wise man's tools. He uses them only when he has no choice…"
Lao Tzu Section 31

The above captioned saying holds true for all but one sword; the Katsujin-ken (Japanese). The "Life-Giving Sword". Around the 1600's there lived a great sword master named Yagyu. He was the head trainer to the Shogun. He is a key historical figure in martial arts. His teaching and training methods espoused killing sparingly. Sustaining life and protecting the weak were held in high regard within his teaching philosophy.

For many, even students training in martial arts, this is a difficult concept to grasp. Fear rules conflict when unchecked. It is human nature to react when we embrace conflict. Instinctively we tend to either run or fight. It takes considerable time in arduous training to take control of our instincts when facing conflict. It is not an easy path.

Martial arts training runs the gamut from the physical to the cerebral as a practitioner progresses. As one matures in their training they can develop approaches and strategies that mitigate conflict and thus giving life to new opportunities. This is the essence of the life giving sword.

I believe that in many ways Zhang Sah is a life giving sword!

Suggested reading " The Life Giving Sword", Munenori Yagyu.