have you ever messed up a grading test?

Posted by: jc4199

have you ever messed up a grading test? - 02/25/07 12:46 AM

Today I had my test for 1st kyu it was going well and I was feeling great. Then came the kata part of my test. I did my first 4 felt great but on my last kata I blanked out I could not find the moves. My instructor told me to stop and to take the sparring and grappling parts of my test.

I had a few min of time while my partners were getting their gear on. I tried my kata and nailed it felt good and crisp. For the life of me I have no clue why I blanked out. After the sparing and Grappling parts of the test I went back and did all of my katas once again had no problem with any of them that time.

Just hoping I passed will find out in a few weeks.

Has any thing like this happened to you?
Posted by: mindNOmind

Re: have you ever messed up a grading test? - 02/25/07 01:09 AM

look it happens to people all the time, not just to Martial Artists. It has happened to me during training, although not for a grading. You could have been nervous, tensed up, etc. I don't think it's anythign to worry about.
Posted by: clmibb

Re: have you ever messed up a grading test? - 02/25/07 02:12 AM

JC this has happened to me plenty of times. Not only during class but during a test. I still get teased about it and it was 10 years ago. During one of my red belt tests we were at a different school and was not aware of everything in the room, the biggest thing I didn't notice was the wall-to-wall-floor-to-ceiling mirrors that was off to my left. We do through all our techniques and I'm feeling pretty good. I like forms and I knew that portion was next. They randomly pick forms for us to do and I think Dan-Gun was picked for me to do first. I go to the first move (a double knife hand block to the left) and was fine (I must have had my eyes closed on the first move). I step forward and punch and open my eyes. I freaked out and lost track of where I was and even the name of the form I was doing. The test board was looking at me like I was crazy and my instructor asked if I was ok. Told him I was and he gave me the form name again so I could start over. Even today I sat on the test board of a red belt test and they told the group that was testing to not pull a "Casey" and scare yourself with your own reflection. So yeah it happens to the best of us! don't let it discourage you.

Casey
Posted by: haze

Re: have you ever messed up a grading test? - 02/25/07 08:13 AM

Has happened to me several times on a test. Blanked out one time and the examiner gave me a break to get my head together. got the opening moves back and thought I was all right. Got half way through the kata and "DUH", was stuck again. Green belt 5th kyu, only test I ever failed.

I'm sure if you came back and nailed it you will pass! As long as all the other aspects of the test were good.
Posted by: Ronin1966

Re: have you ever messed up a grading test? - 02/25/07 11:19 AM

Hello Jc4199:

In answer to your question, let's just say I keep expecting he'll come to his senses, and rightfully ask for them back... Has not happened yet, but will certainly understand if/when he does...
Jeff
Posted by: Dereck

Re: have you ever messed up a grading test? - 02/25/07 03:40 PM

Been there and when testing last year in March for 1st Gup I didn't break my boards though I excelled on forms and one-steps and did fine in sparring but I failed the test because of this and had to wait 6 weeks till April to retest; I didn't fail again. Up until that point I had never failed; though I have failed in life at many things. How we recover from these failures is what is most important.
Posted by: DaDoN_1

Re: have you ever messed up a grading test? - 02/25/07 05:08 PM

At our gradings we are purposely distracted, the instructors, senseis, grand master all sit, whipering while you perform your kata to make you take your mind off the task at hand. But they watch us every single training day so they know that we know it . I try to be as relaxed as i can, i always sing to myself to keep my nerves down , we all screw up at some point, the test is actually how well we can recover and how fast
Posted by: RazorFoot

Re: have you ever messed up a grading test? - 02/26/07 03:15 PM

I would hazard to say that it has probably happened to everyone at least once. I had it happen to me the first time I tested in front of our instructor's instructor, Grandmaster Lee. Completely and utterly choked on my poomsae (patterns/forms). To the point where I simply stood there, staring out into space, asking if I could try later.

I did well on every other aspect of the testing but I was politely informed that I would test again on poomsae the following weekend before I could receive my new belt.

Sometimes, the nervousness wins. Sometimes we just lose focus but it comes back and we can move forward just fine. Don't sweat it. Could it happen again, yeah. Do I worry about it happening again, nah, not anymore. I breathe and go on to the next thing I know I do know and hope it comes back to me.

All part of the process.

Scottie
Posted by: oldman

Re: have you ever messed up a grading test? - 02/26/07 03:27 PM

Ditto.
Posted by: VDJ

Re: have you ever messed up a grading test? - 02/26/07 04:27 PM

Never happened at a test, but I was at a tournament doing Gae Baek and came to the last 4 moves and my mind went completely blank, even if I ended up remembering them, too much time went by for me to pull out any respectable score. I just bowed and left the ring. The worse part was that I was busting a buddy's chops for blanking on the same form just minutes before I was called out. I learned my lesson of humility that day and my buddy still raz's me about it and that was about 4 years ago !

VDJ
Posted by: Jik_Chueng_Lover

Re: have you ever messed up a grading test? - 03/25/07 02:36 PM

I've never messed up a grading test, but that is only because we get train for our gradings, not normal everyday training, but training for THE GRADING and then we get a two week notice before the grading, and like magic everyone suddenly becomes your best friend and wants to train in there off time.. then when the event comes around for three hours before it, everyone is training and going over things there worried about. You just need to make sure your training out those worries and remember your fellow Martial artists are not just bodies warming up a place in the room, but are family, or are at least in my school. Just practice practice practice those worries out, you did the right thing with moving on from it and coming back to it.
Posted by: JKogas

Re: have you ever messed up a grading test? - 03/25/07 03:36 PM

I did years ago. I was testing for green belt (right below brown in my old style). I'd done everything correct. In sparring, I had beaten a brown belt and really thought that my performance there would certainly weigh in heavily. I knew brown belt was mine.

Then I screwed ONE little thing up in a kata and subsequently failed my test (passed it next time around).

This was the formative stage of my bias against many of the traditional methods. Everything in my early experiences showed me that function was secondary to form. People didn't care about how great a fighter you were so long as your Goddamn form was perfect (perfect in a non fighting situation).

I believe rank should be given according to how you perform against your peer group in the above rank you're shooting for (in the way it's given in BJJ for example).


-John
Posted by: Xibalba

Re: have you ever messed up a grading test? - 03/25/07 03:56 PM

Quote:

I believe rank should be given according to how you perform against your peer group in the above rank you're shooting for (in the way it's given in BJJ for example).
-John



John,

In general, I like this way of giving rank. However, I must play devil's advocate for a moment.

Is it possible for someone to earn rank and just not be that great a fighter? I mean, we are not all created equal. Not everyone is a fantastic fighter, despite possessing a wealth of technical knowledge. An old buddy who came up through the dan ranks with me, for example, has gone on to do NHB fighting. Even then he was the toughest fighter in our club, bar none, and I could not have beaten him with one arm tied behind his back. Does this mean I do not deserve the ranks we earned together? (I know you are not saying this, but I am playing devil's advocate ).

I am in no way advocating giving belts to folks who cannot fight their way out of a wet paper bag. But I see nothing wrong with also rewarding those who are technically knowledgeable, despite their performance in the ring/mat/wherever against equally trained peers. We can't beat everyone, and if we could, what fun would that be after a while ?

Peace,
Mike

Oh - BTW: Just to qualify my above statements, we have given rank to those based on their fighting ability before, regardless of how "classically pretty" their technique looked. And believe me, not all of our fighters are "classically pretty" (except for me )
Posted by: JKogas

Re: have you ever messed up a grading test? - 03/25/07 06:19 PM

Quote:


Is it possible for someone to earn rank and just not be that great a fighter? I mean, we are not all created equal. Not everyone is a fantastic fighter, despite possessing a wealth of technical knowledge.





I think its fair to give rank to other folks in one's peer group though. That doesn't mean that one has to be a world class fighter or athlete. It just means that you can "hang with" others of the same general age, size, speed, etc.

If one is a superior athlete in every way, it's obvious at that point (or should be) that such a person isn't really in one's "peer group". This is the same concept that BJJ is based on.

If not, Dan Inosanto wouldn't have been given a black belt in BJJ in his late 60's, because I can GUARANTEE you that he probably couldn't hang with a PURPLE belt in his athletic prime. See my point? You should only be judged by your performance against your peers.

That said, there will ALWAYS be superior athletes out there. However, rank based on performance should not be based on athleticism but one's performance and expression of the "art" and its fundamentals.


Quote:


An old buddy who came up through the dan ranks with me, for example, has gone on to do NHB fighting. Even then he was the toughest fighter in our club, bar none, and I could not have beaten him with one arm tied behind his back. Does this mean I do not deserve the ranks we earned together? (I know you are not saying this, but I am playing devil's advocate ).



Again, rank should be given based upon ones performance of the art and its fundamentals. Rank shouldn't be given out based upon physical attributes.

Basically it's the discretion of the black belt handing out the rank. But if you can't perform the basics against your own peers, you probably shouldn't have the rank.


Quote:

I am in no way advocating giving belts to folks who cannot fight their way out of a wet paper bag. But I see nothing wrong with also rewarding those who are technically knowledgeable, despite their performance in the ring/mat/wherever against equally trained peers.



If they all were truly peers and equally trained, there shouldn't really be that much of a difference in skill. Sure there are going to be discrepancies. There are going to be off days. But over the long haul, over time; one should easily be seen to be in or about the "same class" as the belt or rank that he is striving to achieve. If so, he is that belt. There shouldn't even be a "test" per se'.


Quote:

We can't beat everyone, and if we could, what fun would that be after a while?




It isn't really about "beating" at all. It's about simply being of the same general level. At that level, you will both win some and lose some. You should ideally win about 50% of the time.


Quote:


Oh - BTW: Just to qualify my above statements, we have given rank to those based on their fighting ability before, regardless of how "classically pretty" their technique looked. And believe me, not all of our fighters are "classically pretty" (except for me )




I'm not pretty in ANY sense of the word.



-John
Posted by: aikiuke

Re: have you ever messed up a grading test? - 03/27/07 11:25 PM

I remember my first aikido test I was about a 12 or 13 year old 7th grader maybe 5 feet [i'm 5'1" now] and we had to do forward rolls over a folded up mat standing on its side idk, it seemed like it was up to my hips in hight. So I was nervouse, [not like I was nervouse enough as it is being my first test] and landed kind of hard and sloppy a couple of times. My instructor asked me if i was ok, and even though i was perfectly fine i burst into tears because i was so nervouse and embarrassed... yeah... I was a bit of a cry baby I guess. I think that was the first and last time that I ever cried there though. Although I have let out some tears of pain from various injuries like getting a finger jabbed in my eye, but idk... I'm weird like that.

oh and then there was this for my nikkyu test. I was being tired and stupid. Never try things while you are testing, especially if you dont really know what it is that you are trying... http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=645415563