There are literally hundreds of martial arts schools and instructors out there offering courses on child abduction prevention. On the surface this appears to be a good thing. However, the problem is that not all of these schools or instructors are qualified to offer such courses and their courses do not always reflect "reality". This is a fact and once we realize this we have to then determine what makes an instructor qualified to offer certain material. For one, the instructor has to have a strong desire to actually help both the parents and the children. If the instructor actually does have this desire then he or she will do everything in their power to bring the students the latest and and most advanced material in the particular field. The instructor will make absolutely sure that the material offered holds up to the "reality" of the situation, in this case it must hold up under the stress of an actual abduction attempt. If the material doesn't appear to be based on this "reality" then I would suggest finding another instructor. As an example, a martial arts instructor in a nearby town is offering so-called child abduction prevention classes. Some how this instructor cohursed the local news channel into doing a segment on his school and his classes. During the interview the instructor states that his classes are based on teaching the children how to punch and kick. He claims that punching and kicking is the key to children surviving abduction attempts. This is absolutely an absurd idea and any instructor teaching such nonsense is being negligent to their students as well as the parents and in my mind, commiting a criminal act. The majority of techniques taught in martial arts schools are absolutely useless for child abduction prevention and this includes punches and kicks. The fact is, the majority of child abductors are both larger and stronger than the children they abduct. This means that children will most likely be unable to effectively employ punches and kicks to escape such a situation. Anyone teaching such tactics to children has never had to face a violent situation where the use of force was a requirement to their survival. If they had, they would know that it's difficult for a large adult to effectively use punches and kicks in such situations. This being the case, how can they expect a child to effectively use such tactics??


The next thing that qualifies an instructor to offer "reality-based" child abduction prevention classes is the possession of a solid background in both martial arts and various areas of self-defense and security. Being a black belt instructor in one style of martial arts does not automatically qualify anyone to teach child abduction prevention, in fact it doesn't even qualify them to teach basic self-defense. The key is finding those instructors that have invested years of dedicated research into the field of child abduction prevention or have pursued instructor certification with reputable organizations who specialize in this particular area. Also It must be pointed out that there is a big difference between martial arts and self-defense and any solid self-defense program will only loosely be based upon any particular style of martial arts. To that end, child abduction prevention, which is a form of specialized self-defense, should not remotely resemble a martial arts program. If it does, find another instructor.


Lastly, financial gain should not be a priority of any credible instructor. In fact most credible instructors will be conducting such courses for free in order to agressively help the parents and children in their communities. However, it's not uncommon for an instructor to charge a small fee for their valuable time and possibly to cover the charges of various program handouts. If the instructor is charging an unreasonable amount for such a service or if it seems that finacial gain is a top priority, find another instructor.


In closing, child abduction prevention is ultimately the responsibility of parents. With this understanding they should seek out qualified instructors to help them gain a better understanding of the subject and learn how they can keep their children safe. They should also learn what to look for in a qualified instructor and choose such an instructor wisely. The end result can be either positive or negative, based upon these choices. Remember, we are talking about the safety of children here!


Copyright 2004, Personal Safety Unlimited- Steve Zorn