By Alex Crowe
Teenagers are training in martial arts in response to increasing youth violence in Victoria, with Melbourne schools turning to private instructors to keep their students safe.
Victoria’s most recent crime report showed youth crime had climbed to its highest level in a decade, with police warning “the pursuit of notoriety or social media likes” had contributed to an increase in violent assaults.
Avila College health curriculum leader Matthew Roberts.Credit: Eddie Jim
Both public and private schools have enlisted self-defence instructors to provide safety training to students, including Avila College, which runs a program as part of its curriculum.
Curriculum leader Matthew Roberts said the school wanted students to feel physically and mentally confident.
“This health and physical education unit on self-defence is all about giving students practical skills that could keep them safe,” he said.
Instructor Dean Kobatsiari said the bulk of his education program clients were all-girls schools like Avila.
Results Progress Fitness trainer Dean Kobatsiari training Avila College students Sruti Saravanan, Joanna Praveen, Saya Sazegar, Alexandra Mitchell and Jessica Plant. Credit: Eddie Jim
In a survey of the year 9 students from the Catholic secondary college in Melbourne’s south-east, one in 30 girls said they had been chased by someone with a knife or knew someone who had, Kobatsiari said.
He said students reported witnessing threatening behaviour and having their property stolen, including shoes and jackets.
“We start every class with a discussion: ‘How was your weekend? Did you see anything? Did you feel vulnerable? See something on TV?’
“And disturbingly ... they see it all the time. They don’t feel safe.”
The program Kobatsiari runs teaches students confident body posture and language that might “get you out of a sticky situation”, as well as “the kicking and punching”.
“I base my program over these four things: to be seen, to be heard, make a distance and don’t get caught,” Kobatsiari said.
“If you can have some street smarts about where you’re walking and who you are talking to, for any sex, that could make a big difference.”
The Victorian Department of Education is currently reviewing its policy for schools to ensure martial arts is taught safely. Peak body Martial Arts Australia (MAA) has been asked to contribute.
Youth crime in Victoria reached its highest level in a decade last year.Credit: Joe Armao
As part of its recommendations, MAA has outlined the need for a nationally recognised qualification for the growing number of instructors teaching in schools.
“We strongly recommend programs marketed as self-defence be reviewed in greater detail as they can endanger students, doing more harm than good,” MMA said.
MMA director Graham Slater said martial arts classes varied considerably in the content delivered and the qualifications of instructors.
“The lack of a standardised qualification can mean inconsistency in what students are being taught – which can negatively impact their experience,” Slater said.
The abduction of a Glen Huntly teenager and multiple armed robberies of students around Hawthorn, Kew and Malvern last year put families on high alert.
While some community members reported Victoria Police’s increased patrols around schools, including the mounted branch, had helped restore confidence, other parents turned to private self-defence classes to help provide reassurance.
MAA, which oversees 3000 businesses nationally, reports enrolments for teen classes are up.
Moorabbin instructor Dave Friedman said the increase was partly from teenagers wanting to protect themselves and partly from parents concerned about youth violence.
Friedman, who teaches self-defence programs across Melbourne, said it should be taught in all schools alongside swimming lessons and bike safety.
He said the challenge was changing the misconception that self-defence was “learning to punch and kick”.
The program includes teaching consent and personal boundaries, which aims to empower the participants with autonomy over their bodies.
“A lot of it is prevention and avoidance,” Friedman said. “There’s a big difference between teaching kids personal safety and teaching them to fight.”
Self-defence instructor Dean Kobatsiari and Avila students.Credit: Eddie Jim
Avila College deputy principal Carmela Marino said self-defence classes were part of a “toolkit” for young people to feel safe.
Student Saya Sazegar said the classes taught her to maintain “confident body language and [use] clear, assertive communication”.
Classmate Joanna Praveen said she gained confidence in learning to evaluate whether to defend herself or run.
Mind skills and box breathing to control fight or flight response were also important lessons, she said.
“It really got me into the headspace of always being alert wherever I am, and always carrying something on me that I could potentially use to defend myself,” she said.
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