Teaching Questionnaire
I was recently contacted by a fellow violin teacher to answer some questions regarding private lessons. She was asked to speak at a homeschool conference and wanted to get her peer’s insights into the material she was going to present. I was happy to oblige and I thought some of you might be interested in her questions and the answers I gave her, so here they are!
Q: What, in your mind, are some of the most important qualities of a good student?
A: A good student gives their best to the task at hand. They do what’s asked of them, engage with the information and the teacher, and do the work outside of lessons that is assigned by the teacher. A good student is NOT necessarily a good musician. Some of my worst players (or rather those to whom the instrument did not come easily) have been my best students. I have also had students who showed great potential and natural ability, but were not willing to put the work in to harness that talent, and I would consider these poor students. The important thing to realize is that a good student is more likely to succeed than one who shows natural talent but is not interested in putting in the work necessary, and as a teacher I would much rather have a good student who will never become the next Itzhak Perlman, than a naturally talented musician who thinks they can get by with as little effort as possible.
Q: How would you describe a successful hour of practice? What qualities characterize a successful practice time, and how do you teach these to a student?
A: A successful hour of practice in my book is one in which the student has made progress on previously set objectives (usually made by the teacher) using good practice techniques that make the best use of their time.
These include but are not limited to:
- Isolating problem spots (not just playing through something top to bottom several times in a row)
- Use of a metronome to insure correct rhythm and to work things up to tempo
- “Problem solving” mistakes so a student is not just going over the same passage multiple times, messing up and practicing the mistake in. For instance, figuring out if their problem is a left hand one, or a right hand one, are they moving too quickly or too slowly, etc. These skills should be developed in the lesson.
- Break problem spots down to identify what’s not working, and then identify how to fix it. (If you can’t play the measure, play half the measure, if you can’t do that break it down by beat, if you can’t do that subdivide the beat, etc. or if you can’t play it at the tempo written, play it a 1/4 of the tempo, if that doesn’t work cut the tempo in half, keep going until you CAN play it.)
- Once you identify the problem and solve it, do it CORRECTLY at least 5 times in a row to solidify the correction. Then work up to tempo using a metronome and put the isolated passage back into context.
There are numerous things that these practice techniques can be applied to; intonation, technique, tone, bow control, left hand control, etc. And it can be used on any repertoire; scales, arpeggios, etudes, pieces, etc. These practice techniques apply to all styles of music as well; classical, contemporary, jazz, religious, latin, etc.
If a student is practicing correctly they should be able to see and calculate their improvement from day to day. It may not be large, but it should be measurable.
I believe the best way to teach these practice techniques to the student is to show them how to do it in lessons. When I teach I do exactly what my student needs to do at home in a shortened version in lessons, then I write it down for them in their practice notebooks so they won’t forget. At the end of the lesson the student should have WHAT they need to practice and HOW they should practice it written down for them. Then there’s no excuse for not doing it at home, and in time they will learn how to figure these things out for themselves. I always ask to make sure the student understands what we just went over and how to implement it.
For one student I had this system didn’t seem to be working, so I tweaked it by allowing the student to write down her own notes. This allowed her to put into her own words what to practice and reinforced what we had just talked about in her own mind. This made a big difference in her productivity each week, so the extra time taken in lessons for her to think through and write it down was well worth it!
Q: What specific benefits do you see from music education (private lessons, practicing, performing, etc.)?
A: There are many benefits I see from music education, specifically private lessons. This excerpt is taken directly from my website (www.playviolinmusic.com), which includes additional information you may find helpful:
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Music lessons are essential to playing an instrument well.
- The ability to play an instrument cannot be self-taught.
- Students gain direct access to their problems and solutions to those problems through one-on-one instruction.
- A private instructor will be able to teach students how to practice correctly and be most productive in their practicing.
- Lessons help stop and correct bad habits early on before they become big problems.
- A private instructor can give students the skills they need to enjoy music into adulthood.
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School instruction is not enough.
- Due to time restraints students often receive little to no one-on-one time with music faculty.
- Students need one-on-one time to continue building on the good techniques that are initially taught in school.
- The amount of group time students receive through orchestra is not enough to learn an instrument.
- It is best to start lessons earlier (age 4+) than when schools make it available.
- Music faculty in schools often do not have the time to make sure students learn good practice habits and efficient use of practice time.
- Without one-on-one attention students are prone to bad habits which take twice as long to correct.
- Schools alone cannot prepare students to study music as a career.
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Private lessons help foster success in other areas of life.
- Becoming skilled at an instrument gives students confidence and a sense of accomplishment in life not offered by other disciplines.
- Studies have shown a link between music and a student’s performance in other areas of study:
- Music students have higher test scores and IQs
- Music promotes creativity
- Music aids in student’s success in other fields of study
- Music promotes self-sufficiency as an adult
- Music students have decreased disciplinary problems
- Music aids in giving students problem solving techniques
- Music provides a healthy and unique atmosphere for making and keeping friends
- Music gives students the ability to express their emotions in a healthy way.
- Studies show that the ability to perform complex rhythms allow students to make faster and more precise corrections in many academic and physical situations.
- Lesson and opportunities to perform teach students to conquer fear.
Q: In your opinion, what place does parental involvement have in private music lessons and practicing, whether or not the parent is musically educated themselves?
A: I believe that parents should be involved with all ages of students, with the level of involvement being appropriate for the age and ability of the student. Young students (10 and under) definitely need parental help in their daily practice, and parents should be attending their children’s lessons in order to know what the child needs to practice. In lessons I tell parents everything they need to know in order to help their child. In some ways it’s as much instructing the parent as it is the child during the very first lessons and for very young children! A child cannot be expected to learn on their own at this age and both child and parent need to be instructed in good practice techniques as well as the foundations of music if the parent does not have a musical background. If a parent is not going to be involved in daily practice time then they might as well not take lessons. As a student grows older and is more capable of practicing on their own the parent can be less involved with the daily practice time. This depends greatly on the maturity level of the student rather than their age. When a student is practicing fully on their own I still encourage parents to know what’s going on and be involved. I’ll usually treat the student as the one in charge of themselves, but if I see problems I will definitely bring this up to the parents. The parents are usually the ones paying for lessons so they deserve to be involved and notified of their child’s progress!
Q: Anything else you’d like to add?
A: I think one of the most important things for parents to understand is that not all teachers are equal. They need to inform themselves on what to look for in a good teacher and a good method of teaching. They also need to find a teacher who is a good fit for their child. I don’t think most parents understand what to look for, or even that they should be evaluating. While it would be nice to trust that if someone has a degree or is teaching they must know what they’re doing, it’s just not the case! This makes a parent’s job harder, especially one who does not have a musical background, but this is where I hope my website and blog can help. One of my goals is to educate parents and give them the resources they need so that they can do the best for their kids.
If you want further information on what to look for in a teacher please check out the other blog posts I have written under the category of Music Lessons. If you don’t find the answers to your questions here, please feel free to contact me with your specific questions. Your question(s) will probably inspire another blog post which will help other parents, so don’t hesitate to ask!
Emily Williams is the creator of Strategic Strings: An Online Course for Violin and Viola Teachers
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