In December 2018, I arrived at a martial arts studio in Indiana to volunteer as a Taekwondo instructor. At the studio, a boy about 5’2 feet tall, stood in front of a full-length mirror practicing a roundhouse kick. He seemed proud of his performance. At the back, another boy with cerebral palsy was repeatedly practicing a punch in his wheelchair. It didn’t look easy but his movement was precise. And as two children with Down syndrome came to say hello smiling beautifully, another boy who looked about 10 years old came up, kicked my butt, and ran away swinging his arms with joy. I could see his parents being startled at what their son had just done. That was my first visit to the Taekwondo Studio for People with Disabilities at Indiana YMCA. As you can see, this place is always filled with energy.

During my time at the studio, I could learn and conduct studies on bias against people with disabilities and their potential. Before spending time with them, to me, disability only meant things like inconvenience, pain, and hardships. Even though I knew from my personal experience that Taekwondo education is very constructive, I never imagined its impact on the disabled. Likewise, people with disabilities still face similar prejudice even in the United States, where we believe disabled people are respected and the social integration system is relatively solid. The disabled are generally believed to be always in need of help, not able to enjoy sexual activities, and not feeling comfortable when enabled people are around (Easterseals, n.d). Such prejudice may come from personal experience, ignorance, or insufficient infrastructure for disabled people. During the study, I could explore the most essential values of martial arts practice. I hope my study contributes to reducing  prejudice against people with disabilities, eventually bringing about positive changes to our community and relevant policies.

All of the 17 students at the studio have practiced Taekwondo for more than two years, and five of them have practiced Taekwondo for more than 3-years. They are living with disabilities such as autism, developmental, physical, and behavioral disorders. At the studio, one teacher and four volunteers are working together to help them learn and enjoy Taekwondo. Although the students are slower learners than enabled students, their Poomsae is precise, and physical strength is remarkable. For my study, I interviewed parents of eight practitioners about health benefits and the difficulties of learning Taekwondo for their child. The interviews were conducted respectively and each interview took about an hour on average.

The parents answered they had seen biggest improvement in social skills. Due to a lack of impulse control, children with ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder) or autism find it hard to adapt to their communities. According to a special education teacher, students suffering from autism show disruptive behavior during classes. Additionally, due to poor communication with their friends, school life is challenging for them. However, with Taekwondo, their school life can change in a positive direction. It helps them understand principles, improve self-control, and nurture thoughtful minds. During Taekwondo class,  everyone shows his or her respect to their teacher by bowing. At the beginning of the class, they take a few minutes for meditation. The parents are all surprised when they see their child staying still for minutes with their eyes closed.

Second is development of physical strength. Amy (not their real name) is a 20-year-old Taekwondo practitioner with Down syndrome. She has learned Taekwondo for more than four years and recently earned a Red belt. Her specialty is a high roundhouse kick. In the past, due to hip dislocation, she often had to skip classes and it made her unhappy. Hip dislocation occurs from excessive joint flexibility, a physical characteristic of people with Down syndrome. However, after continuous training and efforts, not only did her arm and leg muscles gain strength, but her overall body coordination essential for lower body balance and physical performance has improved. As a result, the frequency of hip dislocation has decreased.

Third, is enhancement in cognitive ability. William (not their real name), a 21-year-old boy with autism, is the oldest student at the studio and has learned Taekwondo for four years. He always arrives at the studio earlier than everybody else and repeatedly practices basic movements including blocking and kicking, in front of the full-length mirror. I can never forget the moment when he perfectly performed Poomsae Taegeuk 5 Jang on his evaluation test. He slowly, but precisely, recalled every movement, leaving the audience in awe. William’s parents said in the interview that his ability to remember and perform physical movements have improved significantly, and he can now perform movements he could not have done before. Studies support that cognitive performance of ADHD children differed depending on whether they had experience in Taekwondo education or not(Kadri et al., 2019).