A Study on the Curriculum of Departments Related to Martial Arts- Focusing on Departments of Martial Arts in Korea, Japan, China and USA

2011. 10. 28. 16:43Report/Research Note

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  • 김용범(2009)선생의 경희대학교 박사논문 영문초록입니다. 
  • This study aims at suggesting the fundamental data in establishing the academic identity of martial arts by comparing the curricula in the departments of martial arts studies in three Asian countries, i.e., Korea, Japan and China with those in the western country, i.e., USA. For the comparison, we analyze and verifies the curricula of martial arts programs that are necessary for martial artists to develop personalities as the intellectual martial artists through training and education.
    Therefore, the author of this study could conclude the followings:
    First, this study analyzes the characteristics of curricula in three fields such as martial arts, physical education and general studies.
    The martial arts programs in Korea have the balanced programs with martial arts studies, physical education and general studies. However, Taekwondo studies relatively lacks for the subjects related to general studies while their programs are balanced in both martial arts studies and physical education. In the most of universities in China except a few, martial arts studies are less than either the physical education or general studies, while those universities with well-organized martial arts have the unbalanced curricula in either the physical education or general studies. In Japan, the overall curricula in martial arts studies, physical education and general studies appear to have the balanced programs. In Unite States where the martial arts program has been established recently, it may take some time to have any balanced programs in martial arts studies, physical education and general studies with characterization under the specific academic environments in each university.
    Second, this study analyzes the characteristics of curricula of martial arts studies in three areas such as the humanities, natural science, and practice and practical skills for martial arts studies in martial arts programs.
    Although Korean martial arts departments have various programs for general subjects for practices and practical skills, they have somewhat fewer programs in the humanities and natural science. Specifically, they have not carried out approaches in the natural science toward martial arts studies, which can be found in the curricula of Taekwondo studies as well. In addition, the universities except a few in China have fewer programs for subjects in both the humanities and natural science, which prevent them from studying the core values in martial arts studies as a whole. Although Japan may have relatively good subjects in the humanities comparing to those in the practice and practical skills where they could have various options, the programs use the same approaches in the natural science as that of physical educations. USA has various programs in the practice and practical skills, but they seem to have the unbalanced programs in both the natural science and humanities.
    Third, this study analyzes the characteristics of physical education programmed in martial arts studies with the classification of the three fields such as the humanities, natural science, and practice and practical skills.
    All the departments of martial arts studies and Taekwondo studies in Korea have the balanced programs entirely in the humanities, natural science, and practice and practical skills, while it is noteworthy that the departments of martial arts studies in China also have various programs with subjects in the physical education comparing to other analyses. In Japan, it is analyzed that the departments of martial arts studies also attempt to have the same approaches for the overall areas as those in the physical education in general. However, two of the programs in USA have kept the balance as a whole except for one.
    Fourth, this study analyzes the characteristics of the general studies programmed in the martial arts studies with four areas such as religion/philosophy/history/psychology, language/literature, society/economy/culture, nature/science, and art/health.
    The most popular subject among the general studies in martial arts and Taekwondo studies in Korea is English. In addition, such subjects as employment or security guard are also offered. The most programmed subject in China is also English while they are strengthening the education on thoughts of socialism. Japan has various programs in the entire fields such as religion/philosophy/history/psychology, language/literature, society/economy/culture, nature/science (IT), art/health, etc. In particular, Japan has various programs in the language such as French, German, Spanish, Chinese and Korean other than English. The characterized feature in the department of martial arts studies in University of Bridgeport in USA lies in that they allow students to select and take classes from Korean, Chinese and Japanese for their language subject. Considering situations in the language subject in the general studies, the departments of martial arts studies in the East emphasize on English, while those in the West encourage students to learn Oriental languages. While such phenomenon might be considered natural as the culture of martial arts is thought to have been passed down from the East to the West, we can assume that the value of martial arts studies lies in playing a role of a bridge in the mental, historical and social culture in such aspects.
    Fifth, this study analyzes which items in martial arts practice are offered in martial arts studies.
    The departments of martial arts studies in Korea have offered the characterized curricula by university through sufficiently adopting foreign martial arts such as mixed martial arts, Judo, Kendo, etc. including traditional Korean martial arts. We can observe that the department of Taekwondo studies has been growing faster although it started lately in the academic culture than Judo or Kendo. Taekwondo studies have gradually established the department in many universities in Korea. Most of the departments of Taekwondo studies have offered the subjects focusing on the technical education. Another characteristic is that many universities have a subject for Taekkyon. Chinese programs show there are many subjects with various traditional martial arts. Specifically they mainly have programs with Taekwondo rather than Japanese martial arts. The reason is that they have been affected by the culture of Korean trend that have been a characterized phenomenon in a time. Another reason is that Taekwondo has been rapidly propagated with influences from the fact that it has been an item in the Olympic Games. However, Japan has offered for major subjects with Kendo and Judo in most of universities, and programmed for martial arts such as Karate, Sumo, Aikido, Naginata, etc. In particular, Japan has no subject for Taekwondo just like there is no subject for Karate in the curricula of martial arts in Korea. On the other hand, they have programs for Chinese martial arts in two universities. In addition, all the three universities that we researched in USA are based on Taekwondo to the extent that they have Taekwondo as their major subject. Also, they have relatively wide programs since they adopt Taijiquan and Karate in University of Bridgeport, Aikido, Judo, Jujitsu, etc. in Indiana University, and the techniques of weaponry in Concordia University for their major subjects in martial arts studies. It is analyzed that such academic trends in martial arts have resulted from influences by the trends in international sports as well as their cultural and historical backgrounds in addition to the national traits in terms of their national views.
    In order to establish a new martial arts studies, this research propose three approaches through the curricula and subjects related to martial arts as studied above.
    First, it is necessary to secure the identity of martial arts studies in order to become an independent area in the world-wide learning.
    Although martial arts traditionally have the Oriental views of thoughts and cultural backgrounds, they have been educated in the frame of Western education in the present. It is difficult to establish the identity of martial arts studies under the assumption that they transfer to the academic definition as a neighboring study called the physical education is playing a major role while they are converging on the neighboring study not as a form of a study where they are forming from the inside of martial arts studies. Although colleges of martial arts have been established in some of universities in Korea, it is true that they fall into the department of martial arts studies belonging to either the college of physical education or the faculty of physical education. It is however necessary to have a new academic structure in order for martial arts to become an independent learning. Instead of offering the programs with the name of curriculum in the department of physical education, it is necessary to understand the paradigm of learning structure organized with the structure of cognitive knowledge learning through the practical activities of training, to open subjects on martial arts studies necessary for such an area, and to forge out the academic identity based on the kinetic science as it is a learning studied on the basis of movements in the body. Although most areas of martial arts have been dependent on the physical education up to now, it is considered that there clearly exits an academic area to be approached fundamentally by martial arts studies. Consequently, it is important to secure the identity through such works as this study in many departments related to martial arts.
    Second, it is important to develop the balanced curricula for learning above all.
    There are characteristics that have learned and recognized through unique activities of training in the structure of martial arts studies while other studies are thought to be the practical learning of knowledge for the cognitive learning. Therefore, although they have more programs for the practice and practical skills, it is necessary to have more aggressive developments in the curricula of humanities and natural science and to recognize and advance to more systematic patters of concepts integrated among the humanities, natural science and practice for developing those characterized processes into more specialized studies.
    Third, it is necessary to have the structural balance around core subjects in the practical skill.
    It is important to teach students items of martial arts and their culture of each country that vary continuously while maintaining their diversity, through the fundamental analysis of techniques in martial arts, although it is also important to teach them the traditional methods and skills in terms of martial arts training for universities. Accordingly, it is also important to have programs in the curricula including striking techniques, Jujitsu, weaponry techniques, Qi training, etc. in a balanced manner as shown in this study. This is because that various patters of martial arts, which is considered necessary for modern people, have been already developed in USA in the West as they recognize martial arts with the integral concepts and open minds rather than with the individual aspects although each martial art is important in the East.
    It is considered that the active interchanges between the East and West with the development of martial arts studies can be realized through the precious values of culture called martial arts if the curricula in the departments of martial arts studies are continuously supplemented and improved with such principles and alternatives. Such efforts are thought to ultimately result in the curricula to form the body of personalities for the intellectual martial artists that will be forged out through the training of martial arts and learning processes.


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