Grading FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions)
Questions that are frequently asked at Gradings
Not all of these questions are relevant for everybody, the more advanced the grade the more advanced the questions you may possibly be asked.
Why did you take up Taekwon-Do?
What are your favourite aspects of Taekwon-Do and why?
What does Taekwon-Do mean?
What are the tenets of Taekwon-Do and what do they mean?
What is the international student oath?
What's your instructors name and grade?
What's your examiners name and grade?
Who is the founder of Taekwon-Do?
When was Taekwon-Do founded?
Who is the president of the INTA?
Who is the vice-president of the INTA?
Who is the president of the ITF?
What national association are you a member of?
What international associations are you a member of?
What does INTA stand for and when was it established?
What does AETF stand for and when was it established?
What does ITF stand for and when was it established?
How many patterns are there and why?
Why do patterns have a meaning?
What is the meaning of your pattern and how many movements does it have?
What is the meaning of your belt colour?
What is a particular technique called in Korean?
What is the purpose of a particular technique?
What part of the body is used in performing a particular technique?
At what height and line of the body is a particular technique performed?
What is an inside technique?
What is an outside technique?
What is an inward technique?
What is an outward technique?
Where is the opponent when performing a particular technique?
What is the difference between a back elbow and a side elbow?
What is the difference between a front elbow and an upward elbow?
What is a front block?
Why do we use circular motion?
When performing double arc hand, why is there no sine-wave used?
What is the width and length of a particular stance?
What is the weight distribution for a particular stance?
What is one advantage of L-stance?
What is one advantage of rear foot stance?
How much longer is low stance than walking stance?
What is the sine-wave and why do we use it?
What is continuous motion?
What is connecting motion?
What is fast motion?
What does your grade mean to you?
Do you think you are good enough to hold a black belt (or other grade)? Why?
What would you most like to improve on?
If you are promoted to black belt (or other grade), what then?
What do back belts have a black trim on their dobuk?
What is the significance of having 9 colour belts and 9 Dans?
|
Why did you take up Taekwon-Do?
|
| Think about this question yourself because nobody but you can answer it. Did you want to learn self-defence or do some form of martial art? Had you heard of Taekwon-Do before and thought it sounded interesting, or did you just want to meet people and make new friends? |
|
|
What are your favourite aspects of Taekwon-Do and why?
|
| Again, only you can answer this. Remember, whatever your answer, try to have a reason for your choice. Maybe it's patterns because you like the way they represent something or someone in Korean history, or maybe it's sparring because you like the physical or sports aspect. It could be self-defence or the way of life, the 'Do'. Most people will be able to answer this question straight away, but it's the reason why that you should think about. |
|
| What does Taekwon-Do mean? |
Translated directly, 'Tae' means jumping or flying, to kick or smash with the foot; 'Kwon' means fist, to punch or destroy with the hand or fist; 'Do' means an art or way. Taken together, Taekwon-Do is the way of the hand and foot, an art involving mental training and techniques of unarmed combat for self-defence as well as health, and the skilled application of punches, kicks, blocks and dodges with bare hands and feet to the rapid destruction of the moving opponent or opponents. It is the scientific use of the body in the method of self-defence; a body that has gained the ultimate use of its facilities through intensive physical and mental training. To summarise, Taekwon-Do is the way of hand, the way of foot, the way of mind and the way of life.
|
|
| What are the tenents of Taekwon-Do and what do they mean? |
| The tenents of Taekwon-Do are courtesy, integrity, perseverance, self-control and indomitable spirit. For an explanation of each one please see the tenets page by selecting Taekwon-Do from the menu above. Alternatively, you can click here. |
|
| What is the international student oath? |
The international student oath is as follows:
As a member of Taekwon-Do:
I shall observe the tenents of Taekwon-Do,
I shall respect the instructor and seniors,
I shall never misuse Taekwon-Do,
I shall be a champion of freedom and justice,
I shall build a more peaceful world.
The last two lines of the oath describe the effect that following the first three statements will have on a student of Taekwon-Do. It is not expected that a practitioner of Taekwon-Do will change the world single-handed, however, if everyone practicing Taekwon-Do can behave in a manner outlined by the five tenents then the Taekwon-Do community will be a role model for the whole of society.
|
|
| What's your instructors name and grade? |
| Always address your instructor as Mr., Ms. or Master and never call him/her by their first name. The Chief Instructor in Maynooth Taekwon-Do school is Mr. Gareth Curran, 4th Degree and the Assistant Instructor is Ms. Ciara Hannan, 2nd Degree. |
|
| What's your examiners name and grade? |
| The examiner for Maynooth Taekwon-Do School is Mr. Gareth Curran, 4th Degree. Remember, always refer to your examiner as Mr., Ms. or Master and never call him/her by their first name. |
|
| Who is the founder of Taekwon-Do? |
| The founder of Taekwon-Do is General Choi Hong Hi, 9th Degree Grandmaster. |
|
| When was Taekwon-Do founded? |
| Taekwon-Do was founded by General Choi Hong Hi on the 11th April 1955. |
|
| Who is the president of the INTA? |
| The president of the INTA is Master Brendan O'Toole, 8th Degree. |
|
| Who is the vice-president of the INTA? |
| The vice-president of the INTA is Master Val Douglas, 8th Degree. |
|
| Who is the president of the ITF? |
| The president of the ITF is Grand Master Pablo Trajtenberg, 9th Degree. |
|
| What national association are you a member of? |
| All members of Maynooth Taekwon-Do School are members of the Irish National Taekwon-Do Association. |
|
| What international associations are you a member of? |
| Maynooth Taekwon-Do School is affiliated to the International Taekwon-Do Federation and the All Europe Taekwon-Do Federation. |
|
| What does INTA stand for and when was it established? |
| INTA stands for Irish National Taekwon-Do Association which was established in 1991 by Master Brendan O'Toole and Mr. Gerry Martin. |
|
| What does AETF stand for and when was it established? |
| AETF stands for All Europe Taekwon-Do Federation which was established on the 14th June 1979. |
|
| What does ITF stand for and when was it established? |
| ITF stands for International Taekwon Federation which was established on the 22nd March 1966. |
|
| How many patterns are there and why? |
| There are 24 patterns to represent the 24 hours in a day. These 24 hours represent the entire life of General Choi Hong Hi, since his life is extremely short compared to eternity. |
|
| Why do patterns have a meaning? |
| Taekwon-Do patterns represent great historic people or events in Korean history. When the student performs these patterns, they try to emulate this greatness in every movement and technique. |
|
| What is the meaning of your pattern and how many movements does it have? |
| You should know how many movements a pattern has and what its meaning is. Remember, you need to know all patterns up to your grade, not just the last one that you studied. |
|
| What is the meaning of your belt colour? |
| All belt colours have a meaning. You must know the meaning of the belt colour that you are grading for and also all those preceding this. |
|
| What is a particular technique called in Korean? |
| Any technique performed should be known in Korean, particularly for higher grades, where the grading will be carried out in Korean. |
|
| What is the purpose of a particular technique? |
| Knowing the application of a technique is essential to performing it correctly. |
|
| What part of the body is used in performing a particular technique? |
| Knowing what part of the body is used in performing a technique is essential to performing it correctly. |
|
| At what height and line of the body is a particular technique performed? |
| Knowing the height and line of a technique is essential to performing it correctly. |
|
| What is an inside technique? |
| An inside technique is a technique that is performed on the inside of the opponents body. For example, the middle block performed in number 1 of three-step sparring. |
|
| What is an outside technique? |
| An outside technique is a technique that is performed on the outside of the opponents body. For example, the middle block performed in number 2 of three-step sparring. |
|
| What is an inward technique? |
| A inward technique moves towards the center-line of the body. |
|
| What is an outward technique? |
| A outward technique moves away from the center-line of the body. |
|
| Where is the opponent when performing a particular technique? |
| Remember, when performing techniques and patterns we always have an imaginary opponent. For this to be achieved efficiently, it is essential that the location of the opponent is known. |
|
| What is the difference between a back elbow and a side elbow? |
| Back elbow and side elbow are two different techniques. They have different targets, are performed in different ways and are against targets in different positions. Also, the back elbow is performed using a finger-belly. |
|
| What is the difference between a front elbow and an upper elbow? |
| The front elbow can be used on a number of targets. The upper elbow really only has one target, the point of the chin. Also, they are performed in different ways. |
|
| What is a front block? |
| A front block is a block that is performed at the center-line of the body. |
|
| Why do we use circular motion? |
| We use circular motion to generate power. For some techniques, the normal linear motion is not sufficient to generate the required power so we use circular motion instead. |
|
| When performing double arc hand, why is there no sine-wave used? |
| Double arc hand with the palm is a pushing technique and the power required is generated from the hip and not by means of a sine-wave. |
|
| What is the width and length of a particular stance? |
| It is important to know the width and length of each stance with the most common distances being one shoulder width, and one and a half times shoulder width. It is also important to know where these measurements are taken from, for example the outside of one foot to the outside of the other, or the big toe to the big toe. |
|
| What is the weight distribution for a particular stance? |
| Again, as with the width and length of stances, the weight distribution is very important and should be known for each stance. |
|
| What is one advantage of L-stance? |
| The L-stance allows the front leg to be lifted quite easily with only a slight shift of weight to the back leg. This is useful in performing a front kick with the front leg in a very quick manner. |
|
| What is one advantage of rear foot stance? |
| When performing a rear foot stance, it is easy to step away by shifting all the weight to the front leg. Since this leg is already on the ball of the foot the body can be pushed back. |
|
| How much longer is low stance than walking stance? |
| The difference in length between a low stance and a walking stance is one foot length. |
|
| What is the sine-wave and why do we use it? |
| A sine-wave in a mathematical function that when plotted on a graph displays a wave-like pattern. When performing techniques in Taekwon-Do we move in this up and down wave motion to generate force and momentum, making our attack and defence movements more effective. Remember, force = mass x acceleration and momentum = mass x velocity. |
|
| What is continuous motion? |
| Continuous motion is when two movements are performed on the same count with two distinct sine-waves and one controlled breadth which is slightly emphasised on each of the techniques. An example of continuous motion is in Dan-Gun when the outer forearm low block and rising block are performed in movements 13 and 14. |
|
| What is connecting motion? |
| Connecting motion is when two movements are performed on the same count with only one sine-wave and one breadth. An example of connecting motion is in Yul-Gok when the hooking block and obverse punch are performed in movements 16 and 17, and also in movements 19 and 20. |
|
| What is fast motion? |
| Fast motion is when two movements are performed on the same count with only a half sine-wave in between and two breadths. An example of continuous motion is in Do-San when the two punches in movements 15 and 16, and 19 and 20, are performed after the middle front snap kick. |
|
| What does your grade mean to you? |
| This is a question only you can answer. Think about it, it's worth knowing for yourself, not just for the grading. |
|
| Do you think you are good enough to hold a black belt (or other grade)? Why? |
| As with other questions, this is one for you to answer. Have you trained hard, do you know the material - both physical and theoretical? Do you have the correct mindset and attitude? Again, it's something you should think about. It's not easy to achieve the level of black belt, if it was everyone would have one. |
|
| What would you most like to improve on? |
| Think of the area that you would most like to improve on, maybe a certain pattern or flexibility, maybe a particular technique or a particular leg. Obviously you don't do everything perfectly, so make sure you have a good answer and a reason for it. |
|
| If you are promoted to black belt (or other grade), what then? |
| Again, you must answer this yourself. Was your goal always to just get to black belt and then leave? Or now that you have a black belt do you want to go on and really learn Taekwon-Do? Think about it. |
|
| What do back belts wear a black trim on their dobuk? |
| In the Orient, royalty wore clothing that was decorated to distinguish them from the common people. In the same way the trim on the dobuk of a black belt student indicates the seniority in grade. |
|
| What is the significance of having 9 colour belts and 9 Dans? |
In the Orient, the number 3 is the most esteemed number, with the lines of the Chinese character for three representing the heaven, mortals and the Earth. If we multiply three by three we obtain the number nine, the highest single digit, therefore representing the highest ranking belt. Also, if the number nine is multiplied by any other single digit, the digits making up the resulting number add up to nine, again pointing to this number as one of great significance.
In summary, there are four key points to remember:
- The number 3 is the most esteemed number in the Orient.
- The Chinese character for the number 3 is composed of 3 horizontal lines, representing the heaven, mortals and the Earth.
- Multiplying 3 by 3 gives 9, the highest single digit number, representing the highest ranking belt.
- If 9 is multiplied by any other single digit number, the digits in the resulting number add up to 9, again showing the significance of the number.
|
back to top
Copyright, G. S. Curran.
