ISSN: 2226-6348
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Adaptations of Tai Chi for new learners have mostly shortened or changed the routine, and almost all have been developed for older or clinical groups. This study describes the development of the Tai-C Matte Steps, a numbered floor mat that lays out the foot placements of the standard 24-form Taijiquan for novice learners, and reports its content validity and implementation feasibility. Development followed a design and development research approach in five stages and is reported against the GUIDED and TIDieR checklists. The programme kept all 24 movements and comprised a two-row grid mat with three cell sizes (30, 35 and 40 cm) matched to body height, a four-stage lesson structure, and 24 supervised 60-minute lessons over 8 weeks with home practice. Five experts from the host institution rated 12 programme components on appropriateness, clarity, safety and feasibility in a single round (240 ratings). All ratings were 3 or 4 and 234 (97.5%) were 4, so every item-level and scale-level content validity index was 1.00. This ceiling shows that the panel accepted the programme; it does not show that the panel discriminated between components. Equipment and layout received the lowest mean rating (3.85), and the experts' comments led to stride-matched cell sizes, explicit use of the numbers as reference points within continuous movement, and clearer learning progression and assessment. In one class of 15 physically inactive college students, all participants completed the 8 weeks, attendance was 98.1% and self-reported home-practice completion was 98.1%; no adverse events were recorded. Feasibility criteria were not set in advance, so these results are descriptive. The Tai-C Matte Steps is a fully specified teaching programme that experienced local staff judged appropriate and that could be delivered in a college setting; whether it improves learning is a separate question addressed in a companion study.
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