Train the Trainers: Teaching a Simplified

Style Tai Chi for the Elderly in France

Sing Kai Lo, PhD(UC Berkeley)

Associate Vice President (Assessment / Graduate Studies)

Dean (Graduate School)

Co-Director (Centre for Special Educational Needs and Inclusive Education)

Co-Director (Assessment Research Centre)

Knowledge Transfer ≠ Teaching

Based on research(primarily own research)

2. The French National Research Agency (ANR) / Research Grants Council (RGC) Joint Research Scheme

Cognition and emotion in gait initiation for elderly:

Impact of Taijiquan Practice

1. Food and Health Bureau, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region

Enhancing psychosocial wellbeing: a simplified Tai Chi program for

adolescents with mild intellectual disabilities

Research Projects

Eight-Style (Movements)Simplified Tai Chi

簡化八式太極拳

Brief Description the of 8 Styles

Open Posture

1. Wild Horse Shakes Its Mane

2. Step Back and Whirl Arms on Both Sides

3. Brush Knee and Twist Step

4. Roll Back & Press (Lu, Ji, An)

5. Apparent close up

6. Cloud hands

7. Step up to shuttle

8. Apparent Close and Push

Closing Posture

Results and KT of the Health Care Promotion Project---- Eight forms (Movements)Simplified Tai Chi Video

Results and KT of the Health Care Promotion Project

Results and KT of the Health Care Promotion Project

The Salvation Army Shek Wu School

Shatin Public School

Choi Jun School

SAHK Jockey Club Elaine Field School

8-style Teaching Manual (2010)

9-style Teaching Manual (2020)

Nine-Style (Movements) Simplified Tai Chi

簡化九式太極拳

Background

• For population aging, the increase in functional limitations and resulting

loss of autonomy are due to multiple factors, including falls. Practicing Tai

Chi has shown to be useful in reducing the risk of fall.

• Tai Chi has become very popular in France lately. The French have been

behind (compared to other developed countries such as USA and UK)

which has attracted the attention and interest of many French not seen

previously.

Purpose: Produce and promote a user-oriented package for trainers to teach Tai Chi to elderly in non-Chinese speaking communities

Targets: Non-Chinese speaking Tai Chi coaches(in France initially)

九式简化太极拳

起势

1. 野馬分鬃

2. 倒卷肱

3. 摟膝拗步

4. 捋擠式

5. 開合手

6. 雲手單鞭

7. 左右穿梭

8. 進步搬攔捶

9.如封似閉

收勢

八式簡化太極拳

起勢

1. 野馬分鬃

2. 倒卷肱

3. 摟膝拗步

4. 捋擠式

5. 如封似閉

6. 雲手

7. 上步穿梭

8. 進步搬拳

收勢

• added feet movement in multiple directions

• added the symmetrical mirror movement

• added the turn back movement

Main Tasks

• Translate the 9-style Tai Chi into English for non-Chinese speaking users

• Produce user manual / CD / internet file showing the movements of the 9-style Tai Chi

• To conduct a trainer workshop in France to train French Tai Chi coaches how to teach the 9-style Tai Chi correctly, effectively, and efficiently

Project Team Members

Prof Lo Sing Kai Project Leader

Prof Shihui Chen Texas A&M University, USA

Dr Laure Coudrat University of Lorraine, France

Prof Jérôme Dinet University of Lorraine, France

Dr Andy Tse HPE / EdUHK

Mr. Yan Shi Malvern College, China

Ms. Yu Bing Han PhD student / EdUHK

Investigators

Wushu Champion

/ EdUHK Students

Scientific Partners

Meeting with French Partners in Jan 2020

Translate the 9-style Tai Chi into English for

non-Chinese speaking users (Handbook)

Nine forms (Movements) Simplified Tai Chi

Open Posture

1. Wild Horse Shakes Its Mane

2. Step Back and Whirl Arms on Both Sides

3. Brush Knee and Twist Step

4. Roll Back & Press (Lu, Ji, An)

5. Open & Close the Hands

6. Wave Hands like Cloud and Single Whip

7. Shuttle Left and Right

8. Deflect, Parry and Punch

9. Apparent Close and Push

Closing Posture

Produce a user video showing the exact movements of the 9-style Tai Chi.

COVID-19The project team faced the following challenges:

• France is one of Europe’s worst-hit countries by COVID-19; a 14-day quarantine

requirement for incoming passengers has been imposed by both the Hong Kong

government and the French government. The number of flights to and from

both places have also been substantially reduced.

• There were also restrictions imposed by the French government on the number of people gathering

in public places or participating in activities as a group;

The workshops in France could not be carried out as planned (… next slide)

COVID-19(… from previous slide) The workshops in France could not be carried out as planned

• Have considered online teaching

• Trainers:

• in different centers / different cities in France

• mostly French / Europeans (no Chinese)

• English not first language

• need to master exact movement -- to be more well prepared for teaching their students

• Decided:

• keep face-to-face mode

• re-schedule the training workshops

• created website (both English and French versions)

Website

English Version French Version

https://sway.office.com/TCZPybRiNDvtwLr5?ref=Link

Future Plan and KT Activities

• For each movement in 9-Style Tai

Chi, will attempt to explain the

underlying concept associated with

“Chinese Culture / Medicine”

• That is for easy understanding:

“why such movement” instead of

simply memorizing the movements

Tai Chi – “Cultural Heritage”

Example: Open Posture 起勢

文化內涵(Chinese Culture)：“起勢”這個概念最早出現在陳微明的《太極拳術》（1925）中。太極拳的起勢，有的著作上叫“起式”，有的叫“太極出手”，有的稱“預備式”或“太極起勢”，還有叫“太極勢”。從字體意思的角度出發，“式”是範式，樣式，特定規格的意思，“勢”是趨向，表現出來的樣子，即姿勢，氣勢等意思（《說文解字》，漢代），對太極拳來說，“式”更多的是表達一各招式，一個動作的範式，而“勢”則表達的是一個動作的姿勢，靜止的狀態。另外，“太極起勢”或“太極勢”的起源是因為有考證表明太極拳是依據《太極圖說》（周敦頤，宋代）中“太極動而生陽, 動極而靜, 靜而生陰。靜極複動。一動一靜,互為其根;分陰分陽, 兩儀立焉。”的原理而進行動作的創編，即認為太極由動生陽, 陽極生靜, 靜而生陰, 陰極又生動的辯證動靜關係。同時《太極拳論》（王宗嶽，明代）的開篇也認為太極是由無極而產生，是包含在動靜變化之中，是產生陰陽的根源。太極拳的第一個動作是從“無”到“有”，從“靜止”到“運動”的狀態，即從“無極”到“太極”，從“陰”到“陽”的一種表達變化的形式，因此第一個動作稱為“起勢”最為貼切，既不省略“無極”的狀態，也表達了此動作的發展趨勢和變化狀態。

中醫思想(Chinese Medicine)：起勢動作看似簡單，但內涵豐富，尤其是講究“氣”的運行。“起勢”動作就是手臂上舉時，丹田內收，內氣從會陰穴由督脈向上行到百會穴，松腰斂臀，提襠提肛，五臟六腑依次往上提，隨著隔肌的上提兩肺擴張自然產生含胸和拔背的感覺；雙臂下落時丹田外突，內氣由百會穴沿仁脈下降到丹田，腰部，胯部進而膝蓋都放鬆，兩腿順勢屈膝下蹲。這一過程不是手的上抬下落，也不是手本身的運動，而是由“氣”到從腰、肩、肘、手的貫穿而完成的，雙手和肩肘手都是放鬆狀態。此動作在調整氣息的過程中隔肌上提，兩肺自然擴張，背部挺拔，讓人產生身心舒暢的感覺。

Q & A

Email Address: skl@eduhk.hk