curriculum overview

The American Kenpo curriculum is something that, for many reasons that will not be touched upon here, is somewhat disputed in terms of how it is presented. Simply put: different groups teach different philosophies of American Kenpo in different ways. With that said, Blue Raven teaches and belts according to the technique breakout developed by Mr. Brian Duffy (founder of the AKF) out of Austin, Texas - a direct student of Mr. Parker and respected instructor with decades of experience under his black belt. The following excerpt from the AKF describes and gives a breakout of the curriculum as well as provides a link where additional information can be obtained regarding the history of the curriculum. 

The 16-technique Curriculum

This curriculum was developed by Mr. Duffy while a member of the IKKA and is based on Mr. Parker's material. Mr. Duffy designed the curriculum for use in his school and as a way to make the material more accessible when compared to the traditional 24-technique breakdown. At the time this format was presented to Mr. Parker, Mr. Duffy was informed that the 16-technique breakdown may be suitable for mass distribution and that Mr. Parker was considering doing so. Unfortunately, no decision was made before Mr. Parker's untimely death in 1990. As can be found on Mr. Duffy's site, the 16-technique curriculum is presented here for your consideration. This breakout is an overview of the material that comprises the bulk of Blue Raven Kenpo student manuals. For more information on the history of the curriculum's origin, follow this link.

Adult Curriculum vs. Children's (Jr.) Curriculum

The Adult 16-technique Curriculum was developed by Mr. Duffy to reduce the "front end load" of the 24 technique curriculum (i.e., an initial chart of 10 followed by a chart of 24). This is accomplished by redistributing the material over an additional 2 belt levels. This curriculum does not delete any material and remains true to the Web of Knowledge so that each chart teaches material from each category in the same order as it appears in the standard 24 technique curriculum. The 16-technique curriculum may be further analyzed here:

16-24 Technique comparison - adult

The first four belts on the 16-technique children's curriculum have reduced requirements and shorter-term goals with 2 stripes per belt. At Jr. Blue, the student is the equivalent of an adult Orange Belt with all the same forms, sets, techniques, and basics. From that point on, the junior requirements are the same as the adult charts, only two levels apart. This allows the instructor some options. For example, if the instructor feels that a student has "outgrown" the childrens' class, that student can move into the adult class and take the adult rank. Alternatively, that student may continue on the junior curriculum in the adult class or even retain his current jr. rank and test for the next adult rank. This makes for a smoother transition of students from the junior class to the adult class. The relationship of the children to the adult curriculum is illustrated below.

16-24 technique comparison - kids

The following is an equivalence chart for the 16-technique material breakdown to show how jr. (children's) material compares with that of adult material.

16-technique curriculum equivalence - Jr. (Children) to Adult