TCMA Survival

[SevenStar]

This is true. I don't personally know ANYBODY who's gotten rich off of TCMA. Teaching it is a minor secondary occupation at best, and for most it's a pastime. Maybe somebody like Wong Tat-Mau can make a good living from TCMA and retire, but that's a very rare exception and requires great business acumen. Anyone who thinks that just teaching TCMA is a great way to milk students of $$$ and get rich is a fool. You teach it because you love it and feel the calling to share it and pass it on to others.

I will point out that a high percentage of people will not value something that is offered for free. Many believe that if you don't place some type of monetary value on what you're offering, then it can't be worth much.

Nobody finds it odd that to learn ANY other category of knowledge or set of skills requires tuition. But for some reason a TCMA teacher should be shamed for charging a fee. In most cases, the fee you're paying is paltry compared to the knowledge and experience the teacher is imparting to you, as long as the teacher is really teaching you.

far from rich, but when I had my program going in the city schools, I was getting about 3,000 a month, which is good for a TMA teacher. It was free to the kids, so I wasn't milking the parents, and It permitted me to teach full time and not have to worry about supplementing with another job to pay the bills. I think there is a way to make money doing it, you just have to find what works for you. I'm good with kids so it was a good fit. But no, it's definitely not realistic to expect to be able to retire from what you make teaching TCMA.

[mickey]

Greetings -N- and SKM,

-N-

The driving force is that it is something that you are passionate about, that you love to do and that you want to have a lifelong relationship with. I have seen many people who have pursued the academics, got the degrees and the good jobs while putting their real passions on the back burners or down the toilet. And when the opportunity comes to pursue their passion, they are so past their prime they can only dabble with it. There is nothing wrong in having a double major or a minor in martial studies. That way you can still get a good job and still pursue what you love.

SKM,

I did have the thought of rebranding TCMA as a martial philosophy. It would work well in that way.


mickey

[SevenStar]

There's a reason for the expression "starving artist".

Probably even more so for starving martial artist.

There is actually a person in my city working on a starving artist housing complex. It offers nice, yet very low cost housing to artists of all varieties. I happened to run into the person one night and she gave me a brochure. Out of curiosity, I asked her if martial artists were included under their designation as artists and she said yes. Something like that could be a huge benefit towards promoting arts of all kinds in any city.

[mickey]

Greetings SevenStar,

I think charter schools are the way to go when it comes to specialized interests. There is much talk against them. People are not looking at the possibilities. For children, I would try to develop a curriculum that would initially keep it light and fun while rotating other sport activities with it.

I would also consider the use of educational vouchers that would allow for students to train with those outside the educational system who have an approved program of study. Field experience should be encouraged, allowing those students to travel cross country and abroad to get closer to the well of their discipline.

mickey

[mickey]

I forgot something: money,

There is ALOT of money out there. Corporations are always looking for ways to spread "good will". Cultural preservation is a magnet for such funds; so, maybe cultural anthropology and preservation just may be the field of study that embraces martial disciplines, dance, ritual, social and spiritual practices. This could be a great thing.

mickey

[SevenStar]

Greetings SevenStar,

I think charter schools are the way to go when it comes to specialized interests. There is much talk against them. People are not looking at the possibilities. For children, I would try to develop a curriculum that would initially keep it light and fun while rotating other sport activities with it.

I would also consider the use of educational vouchers that would allow for students to train with those outside the educational system who have an approved program of study. Field experience should be encouraged, allowing those students to travel cross country and abroad to get closer to the well of their discipline.

mickey

The problem with the charter schools, as with all schools in my city is funding. Yes, that is what I did. I was teaching techniques, arranged a demo at the end of each semester so the parents could see what the kids were learning - that gave the kids some focus because they wanted to impress their parents. Also, I would include other things to break the "monotony" for them. Instead of the normal warm ups and line drills, we might play dodgeball for a few minutes one day, freeze tag another. I added certain things into it, for example, with freeze tag, you had to hold horse stance or some other posture until you were unfrozen.

I didn't arrange trips to other countries - would be difficult with kids - but there was an effort to get the kids to a local kung fu school so they could have the experience of training in a traditional school setting.

[SevenStar]

I forgot something: money,

There is ALOT of money out there. Corporations are always looking for ways to spread "good will". Cultural preservation is a magnet for such funds; so, maybe cultural anthropology and preservation just may be the field of study that embraces martial disciplines, dance, ritual, social and spiritual practices.

mickey

Grant money. that is the best way to get into something like that. you will not do well trying to fund yourself on student tuition, but if someone else is footing the bill for the students to learn, It can work. That was the driver for the program in the charter school. It was money from a grant to create a physical fitness program.

[mickey]

Hi SevenStar,

I would not recommend travel for children, I was thinking along the college level.

It is good to know that there is someone out there already trying to do something. Do you have concerns about being able to transmit you art fully at this time? Do you see that as a possibility at this time?

mickey

[SevenStar]

Hi SevenStar,

I would not recommend travel for children, I was thinking along the college level.

It is good to know that there is someone out there already trying to do something. Do you have concerns about being able to transmit you art fully at this time? Do you see that as a possibility at this time?

mickey

in that setting, transmitting a complete art wouldn't be a thought. if a grant is lost, school loses funding, kid transfers schools, program not being renewed, kids not practicing over summer vacation, etc - there are too many factors that would prevent an entire system from being taught. But they learn something, and they take it with them forever. I recently saw a kid working in mcdonald's. he wondered where he recognized me from, then he realized - "I still practice some of what you taught me, mainly the stances," he said. He was in my class at the charter school several years ago, but he never had the opportunity to train anywhere because his parents wouldn't pay for classes anywhere, and since he transferred schools, he wasn't in my class anymore.

[-N-]

The driving force is that it is something that you are passionate about, that you love to do and that you want to have a lifelong relationship with.

I forgot something: money,

That's what I meant. What is the driving force for society to direct resources to support and promote education in TCMA?

And everything that Sevenstar said about grants.

Even now across Higher Ed, arts and humanities are struggling under the drive to support and promote STEM. And I am a STEM guy saying this.

[Jimbo]

If there were a TCMA program for school kids, which style/system would it be? And how would the school know what the standards are? If there were a school TKD group, there are clear ways to check the credentials of the prospective teacher, if he/she is certified by the WTF (not the Internet acronym) or whatever. TCMA are different. In many instances, the only way to vet a CMA teacher is for him to really demonstrate his knowledge and skill. How could school officials be made to understand or accept that, or even what that would entail?

Again, which style? Or would there be a watered-down, simplified, generic system developed specifically for schools? Kind of like what happened around the 1930s, when karate was introduced to school children in Japan; the methods were modified/simplified for mass consumption, with certain martial aspects deleted from the curriculum.

It would have to be clear that there are no religious connotations to it. North of where I live, there is a high-income school district that incorporated a yoga program for children, and there was a legal issue brought up by Christian parents convinced that the yoga program was teaching their kids 'Eastern values' contrary to their religion. Even though the school district and the kids themselves stated there was no religious indoctrination going on.

[-N-]

In many instances, the only way to vet a CMA teacher is for him to really demonstrate his knowledge and skill. How could school officials be made to understand or accept that, or even what that would entail?

Again, which style? Or would there be a watered-down, simplified, generic system developed specifically for schools? Kind of like what happened around the 1930s, when karate was introduced to school children in Japan; the methods were modified/simplified for mass consumption, with certain martial aspects deleted from the curriculum.

Brings back an old memory from high school in the 70's...

The school encouraged the students to join/create clubs.

I got permission to create a martial arts club where all types were welcome. "In Japan, they get to do Kendo and Karate at school. We don't have anything like that here. We should be able to etc etc..."

We got assigned a club sponsor, the head of the ROTC program - Sgt. Yoshida(because Japanese and military, I guess).

We got to use school facilities and do open sparring.

A few weeks later, I got called into Sgt. Yoshida's office where he proceeded to chew my @ss out.

We weren't supposed to be sparring, and I had "completely misled him" about what our activities were to be.

Actually, we had never discussed the activities. He apparently assumed we would all sit around talking about martial arts. And in my mind, we were going to "do" martial arts, not just sit around and talk about it.

Anyway, we basically got shut down. So we just got together outside of school sponsorship instead.

So much for my small attempt at promoting MA at school.

[Jimbo]

He must have seen the original Woodstock documentary (there is a brief part where some hippies are shown practicing Tai Chi) and imagined you disseminating Eastern philosophy with a little bit of movement to the students, lol.

[-N-]

He must have seen the original Woodstock documentary (there is a brief part where some hippies are shown practicing Tai Chi) and imagined you disseminating Eastern philosophy with a little bit of movement to the students, lol.

Seriously, Japanese... sergeant... ROTC... a little scary to us kids...

Couldn't even begin to imagine that he expected us just to talk and not do.

I think the Principal got wind of the sparring and had insurance concerns.

[Jimbo]

Seriously, Japanese... sergeant... ROTC... a little scary to us kids...

Couldn't even begin to imagine that he expected us just to talk and not do.

I think the Principal got wind of the sparring and had insurance concerns.

We Japanese guys have a scary reputation...

I get it. Back in the late '70s, I trained at a sh!to-ryu dojo for about 18 months under a very militant sensei from Japan who wasn't above being physically abusive when correcting people at times. Personality-wise, he was a bit reminiscent of the Japanese teachers in Fist of Fury. But he was bigger and taller than most of the teachers from Japan, which magnified the effect. He was especially hard on you if you were of Japanese descent, as if he was somehow expecting more from you.

Insurance would be a big issue when teaching KF at school, especially K-12. Some basic training in traditional CMA might not be good for very young children and could even be harmful to their development, such as heavy stance training, 3-star, etc. Plus, they would most likely hate such painful, boring training. It would pretty much have to be a very simplified introductory course, IMO. I'm not trying to be discouraging, but realistically, even if such a program could be implemented, it may or may not ensure long-term growth for TCMA.