The Mission
To provide a source of instruction, guidance and support for those wishing to teach the powerful and genius style of practical Tai Chi coming from the Cheng Tin Hung lineage, preserving the key methods and qualities that make it exceptional.
Objectives
- Preserving the key practices and qualities that make this Tai Chi system exceptionally powerful for self defence and health, fitness development.
- To provide you with the highest quality instruction and support as you initially learn the training and teaching methods, and as you develop as a practitioner and teacher of the art.
- Make the learning and assessment of understanding modular so students can focus on areas most valuable to them.
- To develop an open and collaborative community for all instructors both online and in the real world.
The Collective
The problem
Many martial arts organisations begin with good intentions perhaps, but in many cases devolve into rigid, hierarchichal places, usually with negative internal dynamics.
The problem with many of these organisations is that they benefit the top wrung of the organisation financially and in terms of ’power’ or clout but actually are full of problems including;
- Development of fear/controlling culture
- Reduced innovation in the art and the spread of the art
- Less effective and less enjoyable training process for students
- Lowered self esteem of practitioners over time
- Encourages inter group competitive dynamics – students dont become actual friends with each other but competitiors and potential threats.
The solution
The solution to the popular hierarchical structures that abound in martial arts and many other places is to simply operate as a collective. This is a losely coordinated group of like minded practitioners who share a common passion for practicing and teaching Tai Chi in a way that benefits them, their students and the art itself as a priority. No politics, fear culture, cult-like control policies or staleness. Simply the practice of the art, in full understanding of the best practices, training rationale and open spiritedness.
As an instructior within a collective, you will have access to the best possible guidance and tuition in the traditional training methods of the art. You will learn the essential parts of the system that give it the strength and stucture allowing it to be not only incredibly enjoyable to train, but also incredibly effective in health, fitness and martial arts skill building. Its important for us that you understand why things have been done a certain way traditionally.
However, what we understand very well is that for a practitioner to truly reap all the rewards from practice and teaching, you should feel free to explore the art, teaching it and developing it as you wish.
Equally important is continued access to high quality practitioners, who share simillar values and with whom you can train, collaborate and explore the various elements further. In addition you will often benefit from access to and conversations with practitioners and teachers who have exceptional levels of experience in the art as practitioners, teachers and in some cases competitors.
The process
- Sign up for either the full instructor course or specific modules you want to become certified to teach.
- Work through the online learning material and videos and practice the exercises within each tutorial.
- Take the assesments provided and in some cases present yourself online for a zoom assesment question/Viva
- Receive certification
After you complete the course/modules
Once you have completed the courses you will be part of our Tai Chi collective. This means you’ll have access to all of our online group meetups and sessions and for those in the UK or visiting the UK you will also have free access to our monthly instructor meetup/workshop for continual evolution and development. We will also keep providing additional online tutorials which will help you to deepen your understanding and development. There is a small annual administration fee for ongoing registration which allows us to continue to be able to support your practice and teaching and the functioning of the collective overal.
NB. You may elect to teach using our umbrella branding ’13 Dynamics Tai Chi Chuan’ or simply use another name for your individul club. Its your club, your art and you can develop things as you like.