The Belt System Makes Everyone a Winner
Wednesday 04 January 2023
When you first begin martial arts, the hierarchy of belts all the way to the Black ones looks like Jacob's Ladder, or a mountain impossible to climb. In truth, the mountain has no top (there is always something more to achieve, perfection is an illusion), but like any real challenge, it is conquered step by step. Coloured belts and stripes mark each milestone on that upward journey.
The belt system traces its provenance to Jigoro Kano, considered the founder of modern judo, who awarded the first black belts in the 1880s. This was followed by Gichin Funakoshi, considered the founder of modern karate, who awarded the first karate black belts in 1924.
This expanded to different coloured belts to mark a range of lower grades achieved. Adding stripes to belts further divides the milestones of achievement. By accident or design, it is a brilliant system. Not only does it mean that a student always has an attainable next goal, i.e., the next belt or stripe, even more importantly it also enables them to proceed at their own pace. This is highly beneficial, because everyone is an individual, and the belts system recognises this. Some will move fast up the ladder, especially in the early stages. Others will take their time, are never under pressure, and still get there just the same - the tortoise and the hare.
Every belt is worn with pride. It's had to be earned, so you know visually that a student, whatever belt, is recognised for his or her achievement.
One sometimes wonders why a belt system isn't more prevalent in other areas, and not just sport - anywhere, in fact, where achievement of goals is in the culture. Perhaps our education system would benefit from constant, ongoing recognition of its pupils. Not just through exam results, but in between, or sometimes even as a substitute for exams. Achievement should be constantly recognised and available to everyone. If you create a system that values the small steps as well as the large ones, then everybody is a success, and that fosters self-confidence and character development, while preserving the importance of each individual as a person of merit and worth.