The please provide an analysis of the innovative teaching method in aikido club “Hokkyokusei” caught me off guard: I came to Russia to my friend and hadn’t figure on scientific research. My friend is very responsible to his children education and always wants to get the best, so before making decision, he should carefully considered and I couldn’t say no to him.
I have seen many different martial art clubs in my life and all of them were like each other anyway, therefore didn’t expected to see nothing special and I was sure that a few minutes will be enough to realize what’s right in front of me. However, having looked the first training of the head of club Olga Panchenko, I was impressed so much that I had watched the training until the end and then watched eight more trainings.
If I live permanently in Russia, undoubtedly I would have chosen this club for trainings but the visit time has come to an end and upon request of Olga Panchenko, in response to kind permission to observe the usual training process, I wrote about my impressions and observation.
Analysis education technology used in aikido club (sport section) “Hokkyokusei” I decided to conduct by comparison method with typical amateur section of martial arts that I have ever encountered in Russia, Israel and Europe. Later in text they will be called “Section 1” and “Section 2”.
Section 1(The prototype used as the focus group, do not currently exist and presented as a comparison)
Coach is positioning himself as a martial arts expert (strike technique) is not related relatedto aikido without experience of the sport fights. The fight aikido skills are mixed and they are not fully a part of martial art (the performance of neutralization receptions too vulnerable to launching and to an effective attack).
There are no clear explanations of necessitycertain actions (the most commonly used explanation is “this_is_the_way,_how_its_done”, “becauce_I_said_so” or “that_what_is_the_aikido_founder_said”). Safety is below an average level: unsafe belaying, difficult ukemi elements for beginners, frequent microtraumas of sportsmen, etc. evaluating sportsmen qualification is not conducted. The practice shows that sections like this have a negative effect on promoting this kind of martial arts.
Section 2(Famous city section)
The coach positioned himself as a martial arts expert (he didn’t practice any other martial arts), claims that he follows classical variant with both its strengths, weaknesses and traditions. The explanations during the training are given sometimes as in Europe, with the instructions of one or another movement or action, sometimes as in Asia: “Do that I do – you will understand it in time”.
As the section adopted a mass training approach and there are many people in the group (more than 12: in the pedagogical theory it is called “lecture course”), an explanation is given like in Asia. There is little attention paid to the safety because of large number of the group. Sportsmen can also have minor injures in this group. The qualification assessment is held on the seminars involving famous experts on formal grounds: visiting regularity, section loyalty, visiting regularity of this expert etc.
Sections like this are comfortable for the beginners and they are important for popularization aikido as a sport, the sections also allow to low the threshold of entry and to take part in this amazing type of wrestling.
Section 3(Aikido club “Hokkyokusei”)
Sensei (the coach) is a high-skilled specialist in aikido. Sensei don’t consider Aikido only as a martial art, but also participate in research activities to improve it.
The exercises and technique explanations are given with a detailed analysis of necessity of each movement or element of technique during the training (the "European approach"). However, sensei’s high skill level doesnt always allow to give such an explanation to the beginners immediately, because of sensei initially (due to its own level) suppose that the beginners have some skills. Further exercises and technique explanations are given even more detail.
Actions of experienced fighters are analyze immediately, so correction of the complex techniques elements is done very quickly and professionally. The number of simultaneously training fighters allows to use an individual approach to each person (during my visits in the gym there were no more than six people at the same time). Safety standards are paid very close attention. Athletes unsafe actions are immediately harshly criticize and after that the correct option is demonstrate. According to fighters who practice at the club for more than 10 years, they are train without even bruises and according to their subjective feeling their health improves from year to year!
Special attention is paid to the education of moral and strong-willed qualities because those skills have great affect to the fighter’s technical characteristics, in particular on his ability to make an effective decision during the fight, as well as on the opportunity to implement this decision effectively, according to the leader of the club Olga Panchenko.
Evaluation of the athletes qualifications is made by quantitative methods with the possibility of computer processing (a unique technology developed by the members of club under the leadership of Olga Panchenko) and video is recorded for further detailed analysis.
The qualification test for the student degrees (KYU) is held in a friendly manner within the club (I was allowed to observe a qualification test for 6 KYU). Qualification tests conditions for masters degrees (DAN) are different from the conditions for KYU degrees, but, unfortunately, I didnt have an opportunity to attend this qualification.
This section is perfectly fit for popularizing the Aikido and classes for beginners as well as for obtaining a high skill level and maintaining your own health at the proper level.
Contacts: Aikido club “Hokkyokusei”
The website KIWAMI.ORG is published the comparative analisys of aikido clubs curried out by an expert of fighting Kalin Levin (name have been changed). The comparison was made by three main criteria: training safety, training degree and educational methods.
