Menu
Often as a teacher, I am tempted to always instruct, correct, and give them solutions to their mistakes. I become the judge of how well they are doing. I grew up with this method. It’s traditional. Although it produces skillful students, it creates a sense of monotony, robotic playing and most of all, leaves creativity out. Unfortunately, it enables the student to rely on the teacher to direct their learning and evaluate if they are doing well or not. I was trained this way and it caused me to want to quit piano. It wasn’t fun. In fact, it was intimidating. I was taught by a renowned pianist and I never wanted to make a mistake to upset her or ruin her reputation. I did not want to repeat this result in my music teaching. Music is about Play. It’s about instilling confidence, and discipline with JOY. Without joy, students won’t want to learn especially children. My philosophy in teaching is to give my students the fundamentals of music theory, note reading, improvisation, and artistry. Once they gain those tools, then it’s their choice on how they want to play and create music. I’m delighted when I see my students go off their homework assignments and play songs I’ve never taught them, or with my voice students, learn piano chords to accompany themselves. Learning piano should not be confined to just their homework and piano lessons. My goal is to see music exploration interweaved in their everyday life. So here are some tips I found useful to empower my students.
1. Ask Questions and have them come up with the answers
2. Give Them Choices on what they want to work on
3. Compliment them on any progress versus only critiquing
Try apply these tips if you’re a parent or teacher and I bet you’ll find positive results
Read more about my teaching strategy and philosophy here.
