What Legislators Need to Know - The Benefits of Martial Arts as a Public Good

By Elizabeth Ambrose

As state legislators look for new avenue of tax revenues, they start to look at the service industry as new fertile ground to levy taxes. However, in the state of Washington, one service industry, the martial art schools have been re-categorized as a retail industry, and may be plowed under when the legislators start to furrow and plant their new tax seeds.

Certain industries considered close cousins of the martial art schools are yoga studios, chi gung, Zen or meditation studios are still considered service industries and exempt from tax.

Let’s examine the martial art school and what they offer the public. Martial art schools don’t seem to fit in the retail store category, such as a superstore, electronic store or clothing store especially in the eyes of the people they serve. They may sell equipment but usually because their students cannot find martial arts related products locally and only on line. Martial arts studio offers the uniforms and safety equipment their students need and thats pretty much where the retail portion of the business ends.

So what are the services and more importantly what role does martial arts schools play in the everyday lives of the people and communities they serve, specifically if these martial art schools are servicing and filling a need for a large and vulnerable portion of our population and that demographic is children.  I suggest these are the true services that martial arts offer parents and the children of our communities.

·         Martial arts are akin to an Intramural Activity or Sport Program

·         Martial Arts is a Physical Health and Well-Being Program

·         Martial Arts offer Mental Health and Mental Well-Being Benefits

·         Martial Arts Offers Parental Support and Long Term Collaboration

·         Martial Arts is a Public Service which Benefits the Social and Public Good

·         Martial Arts is a Public Safety Program

·         Martial Arts is a needed Small Business – Making it Too Small to Let Fail

1. PHYSICAL BENEFITS on PAR WITH INTRAMURAL ACTIVITIES

Many martial arts schools focus on teaching children and usually they represent the bulk of their revenue via tuition.

Seemingly, a purely physical endeavor, martial arts offers all the benefits of a fine physical exercise program. The martial arts program is on par with any physical gym class, or intramural sports program out there whether that be all the ball sports you can name, wrestling, lacrosse, swimming, or badminton that are offered by school districts or city programs.. However, martial arts are now considered outside of that realm. Not all children are the same and some children do not thrive in the competitive team environment  and need something more individualize. Parents seek out a martial art program because they expect the same kind of result and benefits they get when they enroll their child in any sports program. Martial Arts is high quality sport and exercise program, it just has not been recognized or made intramural - yet.

Consider that cities throughout the United States have their own community centers that offer martial arts as part of their community programs. Many Martial art schools offer an excellent afterschool program and offer the service of picking children up directly from their schools. Martial arts afterschool programs are an excellent alternative to afterschool or latchkey programs. They have more to offer their students. Police departments around the country endorse afterschool programs, because crime rates decrease during “latchkey” hours when children have a safe and nurturing place to be after school.

We get the same results such as increased focus, attention to detail, body control and coordination, increased fitness as other sports. With schools paring down their gym program, parents need to find a replacement program that increases their child’s activity level outside of the school system. More physical exercise than school can provide is needed to help fight children obesity, just getting them off the couch, increasing coordination, flexibility, strength, and with help in developing precise fine motor skills. The CDC (Center of Disease Control and Prevention) recommends:

 “Children and adolescents should do 60 minutes (1 hour) or more of physical activity each day.”

Martial arts have successfully built a system that helps replace or enhance what local middle and elementary schools lack during a school week, increased physical activity. Martial art schools are convenient for parents, less travel and expense involved and usually right in their neighborhoods. A good martial arts program is an excellent supplement to any gym class for elementary/middle school aged children or a replacement for the typical intramural sport.

Please consider labeling children martial arts classes as part of the network called intramural sport.

2. HEALTH AND PHYSCIAL WELL-BEING – CHILDREN vs. ADULTS

What legislatures fail to see is that not only Yoga, Chi Gung, Meditation, and other arts recognized by the medical profession as industries enhance the health and well-being of patients, that these types of mind and spirit connections are more likely to be directed and practiced predominantly by adults. Because the medical profession has started to look upon these types of activities helpful to health and well-being, these categories of studios get a pass when it comes to imposing a sales tax. 

Yoga, Chi Gung, Mediatation are activities that require greater concentration, long quiet spans of time, and internal learning that are hard for children to master. So where do children go to learn and foster well-being regimes? Martial arts foster well-being and the body mind connection through breathing exercises, kata or forms memorizations, precise movement, training both side of the body equally, and visualization.  

As stated on the Children Health website, "More than 6 million children in the United States participate in martial arts. Martial arts are known to improve social skills, discipline, and respect in children. Children can also improve their abilities to concentrate and focus on activities, as well as bettering their motor skills and self confidence. Martial arts can be fun and beneficial at any age."

Legislators may not realize how many pediatricians recommend martial arts to parents with children that have diminished motor skills. Martial arts is recognized as an alternative to physical therapy for children with mild physical conditions such as toe-walkers, those developing one sidedness, or slight motor skills disorders. If a client does not have adequate insurance then some parents seek a physical exercise for their child that is less competitive and individualized. 

As stated by e medicine health website: "Athletic pursuits that are less competitive (swimming, walking, yoga, chair exercise noncompetitive martial arts) tend to be more tolerable to individuals with this disorder and therefore may be more likely to result in lifelong pursuits.:

Here is what one pediatrician has to say about the martial arts:

“What drew me is that martial arts are explicitly oriented toward individual progression and achievement,” says Dr. Gill, who is president and CEO of Inpatient Specialists Medical Group Inc., in Brea, Calif., a private group of eight pediatric hospitalists.

Another dimension of martial arts that has kept his interest: the strong sense of community and respect, regardless of age or rank, that he has found at individual studios. “That appeals to me as a pediatrician,” Dr. Gill explains, “because I think children are often ignored in adult social exchanges.”

3. MENTAL HEALTH AND MENTAL WELL-BEING and THE BENEFITS TO SOCIETY

Pediatricians have also recommended the martial arts to parents in need of help with children with attention issues, anxiety, in need of discipline, self-confidence or low self-esteem. These children may not do well in a team setting. They need more individualized attention and a path for personal growth. Good martial art school and instructor collaborate with parents and help their children achieve these goals through self-defense and character or life skills training. A number of studies show growing evidence of the effectiveness of martial arts to produce affective, cognitive and behavior benefits. Children develop a more positive response to physical challenges, emotional stability, and assertiveness. It can reduce anxiety and depression and offer stress release. Ironically, according to several studies, that training in martial arts is effective in reducing aggression. Read the whole article by Julius Cezar Macarie and Ron Roberts found on the website Contemporary Psychotherapy.

Evidence that martial arts helps reduce aggressive behavior has major implications to society as a whole. Communities and schools can benefit from this martial art tenet of self-control, self-discipline, creating a proactive child.

Consider putting Martial arts into the wellness and health category.

4. PARENTS NEED A VILLAGE – UNIQUE ADVANTAGE OF THE MARTIAL ART SCHOOL (Excerpts taken from the book “The Secure Child” by E. Ambrose)

“The common thread behind the answers to the question, why did you bring your child to martial arts is that parents needed help not only for their children but also for the family as a whole. They needed help maintaining the discipline and safety construct they had built or tried to build for their children. There is so much going on outside of their home ready to dismantle or entice their children in negative directions. For some, with their family’s busy schedule, it was hard to establish any type of routine or family code of conduct with any consistency. Some parents were just beginning their construct and had no idea how to proceed.  We help supply consistency, routine, discipline and reinforce the importance of the family code and the child’s part in helping create family unity and harmony.

In the Martial art profession, instructors are in a unique position of teaching and training the same children over a span of years, some for three to six years and some  even longer, staying with children during their most formative years, ages four to fourteen, and even to eighteen years old. The martial art school and it’s instructors become another constant in these children’s lives.  We become long-term partners with their parents helping in the positive development of their children bringing about positive changes in behavior, confidence, and awareness. Here was an opportunity to make a real difference in children’s lives by delivering on aspects inherent within the martial arts of discipline, focus, and honor.  Our school concentrates our efforts on the other tenants found in martial arts just as important to the development of children’s personal growth such as self-confidence, self-esteem, doing and being their personal best. The personal development of children was the real goal and martial arts became the means to make it happen. 

When asked what they wanted their child to get out of our program, the answers were many and varied. Some parents just wanted their child to have some fun and learn martial arts and others had reasons that are more pressing.  Help with the shyness, curb the boundless energy, or with self esteem. Need for more discipline or the lack of discipline. Help with low confidence, help a lonely child, or a defiant child, an overly exuberant child. Help acknowledge a super boy or super girl, a slow child, an attention deficient child, a wild child, a risk averter, a perfectionist, an introvert, a physically challenged child and the labels continue.  Some children needed a good male role model or another positive female role model depending on their situation at home, a parent away in the military or travels extensively for work, a single mother looking for a positive role model, a two-income family that severely limited a rich family life.

Families needed support in a way that few professions could offer.  When your child enters a martial arts program, it usually means a three to six year relationship. In our industry, we are able to reinforce the messages that children hear from their parents. We reinforce the messages of hard work, honesty, self worth, and self-discipline. Every class is a practice in those areas. We encourage bravery, risk taking, recognizing opportunity and individual effort. While children are kicking and punching, while learning to reach mini-goals, while having a fun and exciting class, our instructors continually ask and expect the children to practice and exhibit self-discipline, consistency, precision, thoughtfulness, manners and positive peer reinforcement for one another. We in return give them consistency, encouragement, a nurturing environment, positive reinforcement, a sense of self-worth, guidance in personal growth, acknowledging their unique personalities, help creating personal esteem, cheering them every step of the way and rejoicing in their accomplishments, abilities and talents. 

Collaborating with parents in these critical concepts helps children develop life skills of success.  We reinforce, promote, and encourage children to seek these skills, to learn and implement them every day. We connect what they are doing in the physical world and relate it to the mental world, to the outside world, and to their future.”

5. THE VALUES OF THE MARTIAL ARTS ARE THE CORE VALUES OF SOCIETY AND MILITARY   

A few months before my son graduated high school, college and recruitment brochures flooded our mailbox. The military brochure caught my eye with large words on the front  expressing the same values that we impart to our students at our martial arts school. I realized that what they were offering, such as discipline, courage, self-confidence and duty were all the things that were already part of our curriculum. Instead of waiting until children were graduating high school to offer these attributes, children as young as five and six were learning them in our school as codes of conduct. From the Go Army website here are their list of values. LOYALTY, DUTY, RESPECT, HONOR, INTEGRITY, AND PERSONAL COURAGE.

6. OTHER TRAITS OF SUCCESS FOUND IN MARTIAL ARTS

STRIVING TO DO YOUR PERSONAL BEST

Almost every school that teaches children has a creed. The children recite it every class and usually the creed starts with the words, “I will strive to achieve my personal best.” Good schools do everything that they can to help children realize and live by this creed. Instructors show faith and confidence that their students can achieve this goal and with that kind of unwavering positive reinforcement, children believe and follow through.

GOAL SETTING 
Building real self-esteem is what martial arts schools do. The achievement of the next rank is one way. The belt rank system offers a way for a child to set up mini-goals. By focusing and achieveing these min-goals, they learn an important trait of success. Whether they are learning a form, kata, or techniques that are part of a whole, children learn to break these goals down and set goals of learning. They are asked to practice these traits of success at home and at their schools. They carry this ability to other aspects of their lives.

LEADERSHIP AND MENTORING PROGRAMS 
Many schools have leadership and mentoring programs giving an opportunity for
older children to mentor younger ones, run drills, be coach for a day, or join the leadership team and receive leadership training. They become role models and leaders of their peer group. Real self-esteem, confidence and personal growth develop strong character and principled actions.

           

           GRADES 
           It is common to hear reports from parents and teachers of improved behavior, calmer dispositions, positive social interactions, and better grades after children join a martial           arts school or program. Behaviors can change almost immediately in many cases. 

Martial arts schools are present and practice these attributes of success so much earlier in a child's formative years. These abstract concepts are made concrete to children of any age by a good school and instructor. Imagine if every child in elementary or middle school could learn these traits of success as part of an attribute curriculum. Martial arts school already have that curriculum in place. 

Children are supposed to learn these traits through observing their parents or through experience. If both parents work, it's hard for children to observe and practice these traits. A martial art school regularly discusses, teaches, reinforces and offers concrete examples that children of any age can implement and understand. Though character development, life skills, or traits of sucess programs, martial arts offer real personal growth opportunities mentally and physically for adults and children. However, when children start young they benefit most. The presence of confident, self-disicplie and proactive children beneft their peer group, parents, school, the community and society. These children will develop a discipline life that will take them farther and faster than their peer group.

Consider Martial Arts as a strong and effective social work and benefits program.

7. CHILDREN SAFETY AND SECURITY and THE COMMUNITY 

We still have yet to discuss the obvious public perception about martial arts, and that is self-defense. Countless children and adults come to martial arts to learn to defend themselves usually because of a bully or the fear of encountering or experiencing violence. Martial arts teaches not only self-defense but safety awareness. Children and adults taught to be aware of their surroundings, to recognize potentially dangerous situations and how to avoid them, and stranger danger are safer. They are taught how to handle a bully, how to deescalate potential peer conflicts,  and how to avoid dangerous behaviors. 

When a person can learn to defend successfully, confidence soars. Sometimes defending is enough to fend off an attack. My son once exclaimed, "I'm not actually learning to hit. I'm learning how to keep from getting hit." Once children and adults learn they can successfly protect themselves, a primordial fear lessens. As skills grow and their ability to fend off attacks grows commonplace they turn their sites on other challenges and no longer fear the unknown. Adults decide to go back to school, change professions, or open a new business. Children no longer care about peer pressure and set their sights on new goals. They decide what they want out of life and go after it. 

Many martial art schools offer women safety courses dealing with self-defense, campus safety awareness, rape tactics and drugs, and domestic abuse. Martial arts schools participate in community events, parades, and give public demonstrations. They are involved in local schools offering their expertise for anti-bully seminars, stranger awareness, and career day or classroom speakers. They encourage their students and participate in local volunteer opportunities.

Consider martial arts as a public safety program. 

8. MARTIAL ART SCHOOL ARE SMALL BUSINESS 

Most martial arts schools are truly a very small business model. They are one man operations or a mom and pop studio helping children and adults realize their full potential. They are businesspersons during the day and martial arts teachers at night. For some it is a way a life and charge very little for the value they bring. Bigger schools help to create jobs that do not require a college degree and usually hire from within helping young people get their first great job. 

Martial arts school are a service industy, not a retail store. Consider all the services they provide that are part of the public good. We can place this industry in categories that allow them exempt status from the exorbitant tax structure propose that will surely drive some schools out of business or create undue financial hardship for owners and student. Can we really afford to lose good schools that offer benefits to the public not yet realized or appreciated due to misconception by the general population and now our legislators?

The parents of the children we serve know the value of a school that partners long-term with them to help raise their children. Legislators, please consider martial art schools, specifically those that work with children, and place these service oriented business in one of the following categories:

A.   A Martial Arts program is Intramural sport.

B.   Martial Arts falls into the Physical Health and Well-Being program supplementing a child physical fitness program, health and well-being.

C.   Martial Arts fall into the Mental Health and Mental Well-Being category helping to create a more confident, calm, and thoughtful individual.

D.   Martial Arts Partners with Parents offering Parental Support in ways no other profession can due to our long-term collaboration.

E.   Martial Arts is a Public Service which Benefits the Social and Public Good by Instilling Solid Values and Positive Codes of Conduct.

F.    Martial Arts is a Public Safety Program helping the public learn real modes of self-protection, physically and mentally.

G.   Martial Arts are a Small Business. Consider martial arts school too small to let fail.

The services that these schools give are an invaluable resource that benefits families directly and indirectly affect the whole community for the public good. 

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