As mentioned earlier, your presence is required during promotional testing. Not only are you needed to help hold shields or boards, but also to show support for your school and the organization. It is imperative that the test flows smoothly and that proper protocol and Pil Sung spirit are demonstrated. The general parts of the test are described below with a description of the duties that can be performed during each.
It is important that you show up at least a half-hour before the test begins. During this time, instructors should act as a host to help seat people coming in, direct them where to change, help children and parents (particularly white belts), answer questions, answer phones, and help students with their assignments. White belts often arrive looking confused or nervous. Make it a point to welcome them and make them feel comfortable.
During basics, patterns, speed drills you can help stage the next testing group, help students with their assignments, and answer questions. In addition, watch for students (children especially) that are having difficulty with their material. If a student feels like they made a mistake, they may become upset or start crying. As an Assistant Instructor, it is your job to watch the students and make sure they get some assistance if needed. Finally, this is a good time to determine if any instructors may be needed to pair up with students for defense drills.
As mentioned above, be ready to pair up with any of the students on the floor. It usually a good idea to have your foot pads on with your hand pads near by. If an instructor is needed to pair up with a student, then they can be ready right away without delays. If you are not directly paired up with a student, watch the others for safety and to be sure that everyone is performing the correct drill. You may also be asked to form a barrier between the adult and junior students in order to avoid collisions and/or injuries. This is also a good time for board coordinators to stage the boards for the students from their school and to be sure there are enough air shield holders for the students testing.
When it is time to attack the air shields, instructors need to have shields in hand and ready to go. Try to be in the dojang prior to this point so that there is no delay in getting the air shields ready. Instructors must run out onto the floor and respond to the test conductors commands with a loud Yes Sir! or Yes Maam!. For white belts, position the shield firmly at the student's hip level for kicks and at the students shoulder/face level for hand techniques (see Holding Shields for White Belt Students below for specifics). For white senior belts and above, try to position the shield so that it covers from the students shoulders to their waist. This will help lessen the chance of the student hitting a shield holder because of excessive shield level adjustment. For junior students and/or those of smaller stature, don't brace the shield against the body. Instead, let it give a little for them in order to avoid injuries.
Shield holding for white belts differs from that of the colored belts because they will only be performing single techniques by the count on the shield. Therefore, during punches, the shield should be positioned to the side and angled depending on which hand the student is punching with. If the student is punching with the right hand, the instructor should position the shield on his/her right arm and angled towards the hand the student is punching with. During front kicks, the shield should be positioned at the students belt level. The shield should be properly angled for a front kick with the top of the air shield angled down. The angle of the shield can be lessened for students that have toe flexibility limitations.
As each group prepares for the power test, at least one instructor for each school must be in charge of getting the boards out of the stack and setting up the appropriate number and size boards. This needs to be done before the air shield attack is finished in order to keep the test flowing smoothly. If you encounter a bad board, quietly discard it in the broken board pile. Not Under ANY circumstances should an Instructor break a bad board in front of the students and/or audience. It makes the board breaking look fake or rigged and takes away from the credibility of the art. If you are responsible for getting boards for the students, do not give the board to the student. Instead, give it to the people holding the boards for them or place it on the floor in front of them. We do not want students handling or playing with their board prior to the break.
The size and number of boards per student may vary; however, the chart on the next page may be considered as a general guide:
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Board Size |
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Belt Level |
Break |
Qty |
Adult Men |
Adult Ladies & Men 13-16 |
Children 10-12 |
Children 7-10 |
Children 7 & Under |
|
White |
Rear Inward Punch (with Safety Equipment) |
1 |
12 |
10" or 8 |
6 |
4 |
3 or 2 |
|
White Senior |
Front Kick Rear Leg |
1 |
12 |
10" or 8 |
6 |
4 |
3 or 2 |
|
Yellow |
Rear Round Punch (with Safety Equipment) |
1 |
12 |
10" or 8 |
6 |
4 |
3 or 2 |
|
Yellow Senior |
Side Kick Rear Leg |
1 1 |
12 12 |
10" or 8 10" or 8 |
6 6 |
4 4 |
3 or 2 3 or 2 |
|
Gold |
Rear Vertical Round Punch (with Safety Equipment) |
1 |
12 |
10" or 8 |
6 |
4 |
3 or 2 |
|
Gold Senior |
Swing Kick Rear Leg (with Safety Equipment) |
1 1 |
12 12 |
10" or 8 10" or 8 |
6 6 |
4 4 |
3 or 2 3 or 2 |
|
Orange |
Rear Upward Punch (with Safety Equipment) |
1 |
12 |
10" or 8 |
6 |
4 |
3 or 2 |
|
Orange Senior |
Reverse Swing Kick Rear Leg (with Safety Equipment) |
1 1 |
12 12 |
10" or 8 10" or 8 |
6 6 |
4 4 |
3 or 2 3 or 2 |
|
Green |
Rear Inward Palm Strike |
1 |
12 |
10" or 8 |
6 |
4 |
3 or 2 |
|
Green Senior |
Heel Kick Rear Leg |
1 1 |
12 12 |
10" or 8 10" or 8 |
6 6 |
4 4 |
3 or 2 3 or 2 |
|
Blue |
Rear Round Palm Strike |
1 |
12 |
10" or 8 |
6 |
4 |
3 or 2 |
|
Blue Senior |
Downward Kick Rear Leg (with Safety Equipment) |
1 1 |
12 12 |
10" or 8 10" or 8 |
6 6 |
4 4 |
3 or 2 3 or 2 |
|
Purple |
Rear Elbow Strike |
1 |
12 |
10" or 8 |
6 |
4 |
3 or 2 |
|
Purple Senior |
Crescent Kick Rear Leg (with Safety Equipment) |
1 1 |
12 12 |
10" or 8 10" or 8 |
6 6 |
4 4 |
3 or 2 3 or 2 |
|
Red |
Rear Reverse Knife Hand Strike ( with Safety Equipment) |
1 |
12 |
10" or 8 |
6 |
4 |
3 or 2 |
|
Red Senior |
Twisting Kick Rear Leg with Instep or Ball of Foot (with Safety Equipment) |
1 1 |
12 12 |
10" or 8 10" or 8 |
6 6 |
4 4 |
3 or 2 3 or 2 |
|
Brown |
Spinning Side Kick - 2 boards |
1 |
12 |
10" or 8 |
6 |
4 |
3 or 2 |
|
Brown Senior and above |
Spinning Side Kick (3 Boards) |
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Safety equipment is worn during a board break if it can protect the weapon that the student makes contact with (knuckles, side of the fist, knife hand strike, back of the heel, and instep). For example, if the student punches they would wear a glove while a student performing a side kick would not wear a foot pad because it does not protect the bottom of their heel.
Stances should be lower and more rigid than our regular stances
Elbows and wrists should be locked.
Hold with your thumbs to the outside of the boards.
Clamp boards firmly between the palm heel and ends of the fingers.
Any board six inches or larger must have two people holding side-by-side.
Support the board holders wrists on any board that is four inches and below, when possible.
On multiple board breaks, wrists must be braced and support the board holders backs, if needed.
Place the board(s) in the correct position for the student depending on the technique and flexibility of the student. Bad board placement can result in serious injury.
On all breaks, pull board apart to prevent them from scraping the student's hand or foot.
Only two attempts with a punch or a ball of foot kick before switching to the next smaller size board.
Don't flinch or give! This can cause the student to miss the break, resulting in injury and/or loss of confidence. Try looking away slightly at moment of impact to prevent flinching.
Let the student have about 3 tries with the same board, if they cannot break, quickly go to the next size down. This is particularly important for junior students. We want to avoid a student getting hurt and upset because they could not break.
If you hurt your wrist or your fingers, please do not grimace, dance around, or otherwise make a spectacle of yourself. Remember, always show Martial Art Dignity!
Do not switch to another board of the same size during a student's power test. It makes the break look "rigged". Sort out all bad boards before hand!
Always listen carefully to Examiner's orders and observations. Quickly apply these commands with an enthusiastic "Yes Sir!" or Yes Maam!.
For small children you can help the student a little by applying some pressure to the end of the small boards with your hands and wrists. Never under any circumstances apply enough pressure to break the board before the student even hits it.
To help the break, a slightly looser hold may be used with tension or almost a slight push at moment of impact to in effect, almost "snap" the board over their hand or foot.
After several tries and you are already on the smallest board, you may cover the part of the hand or foot that they are hitting with "help them" through the board. Tell the student that you are going to count to three, then they are going to break.
After all breaks, line students up, Charriot, Kyung Yae, bow, and give them their boards to take home. The boards should be given to the student using two hands and the student should receive with two hands while bowing.
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