The 8th International Do Course (IDC) was held online on 21 and 28 May 2023. It consisted of four 3-hour sessions over a 2-day period for a total of 12 hours. Unlike earlier online IDCs, this one was conducted in Spanish.
The IDC brought together 77 registered participants from 11 countries, namely (in alphabetical order): Argentina (27), Brazil (5), Chile (1), Colombia (20), Dominican Republic (1), Mexico (4), Nicaragua (7), Norway (1), Spain (8), Switzerland (2), Uruguay (1). Among them, there were 22 Masters, including four with an 8th degree black belt (namely, Master Pablo Campos and Master Marcelo Divano from Argentina, Master Roberto Webster from Nicaragua; and Master Jorge Züger from Switzerland), and 25 Instructors with a 6th degree black belt.
The course was conducted by Master Janel Gauthier (Chair) and, in alphabetical order, Master Andreu Martínez and Master Joliette Trân. In addition, Master Fabián Izquierdo, a member of the ITF Children’s Development Committee, was invited as a special guest to speak about the integration of the teaching of Do in the teaching of Taekwon-Do with children. Master Abelardo Benzaquén from Argentina, also Chairman of the ITF Umpire Committee, kindly provided the translation into Spanish for the presentations made in English by Master Gauthier and Master Trân. Mrs. Silvina Carasi from Spain provided logistics assistance on Day 1 and Day 2 of the course.
During the course, participants had the opportunity to learn about a wide range of topics and reflect on many of them. Those included, but were not limited to, the following:
(1) the moral culture of Taekwon-Do;
(2) the origin and meaning of the word “Do”;
(3) the tenets of Taekwon-Do (courtesy, integrity, perseverance, self-control, and indomitable spirit);
(4) the Student’s Oath;
(5) the development of moral reasoning from childhood to adult;
(6) the relations between the psychosocial determinants of human behaviour and the relevance of psychological knowledge in the teaching of Do and the building of moral character;
(7) ethical decision-making and how to resolve moral dilemmas;
(8) motivation and perseverance;
(9) the integration of the teaching of Do into the teaching of Taekwon-Do (general guideline and tips).
A wide range of activities were used to grab and hold participants’ attention throughout each day. For example, participants were polled and challenged with quiz questions during presentations. At other times, participants met in small groups in virtual breakout rooms to discuss a particular issue or find ways to address it before returning to the main meeting room to share some of their ideas with the whole group. Still at other times, they were challenged with thinking exercises designed to spark their interest and curiosity. In addition, PowerPoint presentations and demonstrations were used to help participants better understand the information presented during the course. Prior to each day of the IDC, participants were given a link to a web page where they could go to download a PDF copy of the document showing the slides that would be presented during the sessions of that day.
Since the 1st of January 2023, ITF members who wish to apply for promotion to 7th degree black belt and above are required to attend one IDC to be eligible for testing.
The next 2023 IDC will be conducted in English from 3:00 pm to 10:00 pm on 5 & 19 November 2023 (UTC time). For further information, go to https://itftkd.sport/events/category/international-do-course/
Yours in Taekwon-Do,
Master Janel Gauthier, Prof. Dr.
Chair, ITF Do and Ethics Committee
Report: 3rd International Sardinia Open 2023
That’s wonderful! Would like to participate on the next one. Cheers from Montreal Quebec Canada.