student types and teaching style

[Bob]

What are the different types of piano students?  The serious student, the piano-for-fun students, the student with a million after-school activities, the my-parents-are-making-me-take-lessons students.... what else?


And, what type of teaching should go with these students?   For example, you certainly don't want to load a student who takes piano lessons for fun with lots of serious, conservatory music, do you?

[m1469]

Well, my underlying philosophy is becoming somewhat simplistic.  I have come to realize that to my understanding, there are really only two kinds of students in the world.  Those who play in some form (it doesn't matter in what form that is) for the rest of their lives, and those who do not.  And the truth is, I don't actually have any idea which one I am dealing with.  So, my goal as a teacher is singular, in that, I treat every one of them as though they will be playing for the rest of their lives. 

The other reality is, I will not be with any of them (in the same way) forever.  And, if I am doing my job correctly, they will not need me in the same way forever.  However, there is a certain part of me that will be as fully invested in what they are doing, as they need me to be.  I will decide, on most levels, how much they actually need me because most of the time, I can see a larger picture than they can.  But, it is worth mentioning that I feel we are all learning together the entire time.  So, their position in my studio is as important to me and my growth as it is to them and their growth.  I take my teaching very much to heart and view the relationship as a form of parent-child relationship.  A relationship like that can indeed be life-long, but will change and bloom in ways that go beyond the scope of certain parameters.

My main job, as I see it, is to relay information in a way that each student can connect with and make their own.  So, there are infinite layers and facets involved in that, but the underlying focus is what I stated above.  The information I relay is basically all of the things I feel are necessary to read music, hear music, and use the piano to express music in a way that is satisfying to them, individually.  I have a basic curriculum that is the backbone of everybody's experience in my studio.

With that being said, there are of course ... varied circumstances and expectations.  I will teach any student anything they want to learn about (that I feel is within my scope of teaching), however, I will make decisions on behalf of some students based on things like their age and their expressed level of interest.  For example, I will naturally encourage conducting, for several reasons, in a 6 year old child more than I would with a 65 year old retiree.  Mainly because with a child I see this skill as more broadly pertinent to their possiblities in a musical career (and various other things), than with a retiree.  But, if conducting is something that an individual is bent on learning as part of their own musical education, I will of course include it (and it doesn't hurt because it is an important aspect of music as well as helpful in one's feeling of dominion at the piano, specifically).  Otherwise, for a retiree I will include something like that mostly as it is pertinent in more singular circumstances, like learning counterpoint, for example.  Or we may cover something like that as a dipping of the toe in the water, in the adult class I hold once a month.

This is the service that I offer, and I expect it will attract its own cliental and repulse the others.  But in the long run, that is exactly what I want. 

These are my (current) personal thoughts on this subject. 

m1469



ps-  There are also some great posts by Bernhard on this subject :

https://www.pianoforum.net/smf/index.php/topic,2450.msg21250.html#msg21250
(Four levels of students)

Teaching at a young age
https://www.pianostreet.com/smf/index.php/topic,2246.msg19041.html#msg19041
(teachers and students getting matched up appropriately)

[lostinidlewonder]

I like to see students in the way they absorb or deal with information.

1)Some need to be shown through demonstration and need to be told if what they are doing is correct, I guess these students are those that are not fully confident in their own musical ear or playing ability. With these students I often play passages wrongly and instruct them to hear how bad it is or observe how ineffective wrong fingering can be, how uncomfortable it feels, then show them the right way.

2)Another group like to develop their learning procedure, or see the most effective pathway to attain perfection in the piece. These students I will highlight which passages to repeat and how to repeat them. They do not like to be able to play perfectly or even be shown this straight away during a lesson, but like to boil over it themselves once they have been told HOW to practice it, then come back the following week with their issues if any. These students usually do not have the physical factor of playing in their way but more they wish to improve their efficiency to learn and absorb music.

3)Another group I notice are those that do not care about playing at the highest standard, they just want to play. This I find in a lot of my younger students, I refuse to teach them how to play something perfectly simply because it isn't in them to do it, they are not musically mature enough. They just want to play, get their fingers moving, small details they don't want to think about. I try to make all kids master their music, but I can notice when a student get uncomfortable when spending 10 mins on 2 bars. Some can deal with it, some absolutely cannot and it is torture for them. Fair enough I let those students move on to other pieces, I wont perfect things with them because they don't want to and it is too much stress on our learning relationship if you force it.

4)Another group I find are those who are very passionate about music, they have a very precise ear for music but they constantly put themselves down by their physical ability at the instrument.  I have one student who when I came one day to their house I hear the Beethoven Moonlight Mvt 1 playing, they opened the door and she was crying. She said she always cries when she hears it, it is so beautiful. When we sit down to play she is nervous about playing, questioning her ability, how much time she has wasted not practicing all these years.

Confidence needs to be implanted with every student really but there are these few students you teach where confidence completely commands how much work they will do with the instrument. Some will give up because they think they can never do it, but keeping at it, keeping your mind set to get it done, this is what needs to be trained and what the teacher needs to pour out. The hands are perfect, the ears are perfect, the mind needs have courage/confidence to DO IT. Baby steps, one bar at a time. Build confidence, 2 bars at a time, before you know it you are doing pages. I get really excited when these students do something good and make it obvious with praise, not because I am acting but because I know how much of a confidence boost it is for the unconfident student to actually get something right. CELEBRATION!!!

5)The disinterested student, those forced to study the piano whether by school or by parents, always get my sympathy. I would hate having to learn an instrument I never wanted to learn, but people can grow to like things. Usually lessons with these students are over simple music, things much easier than what they potentially could do, a lot of the time I talk non-musical stuff with them for 10 minutes or so before we even start.

This makes them more comfortable to start learning stuff they don't really want to learn. I have converted a few students though who hated the piano, they enjoy our chit chats more than the lesson, but they find satisfaction in getting things right on the piano, playing this without error, who doesn't really, and they like to make their teacher happy because I give them prizes if they do well I know bribery is bad but it works a charm!

People only hate learning if it is difficult and confusing, when it is easy everyone likes it. Same with in school, a student who gets top marks in his class does he hate going to class? To learn most definatly not, that doesn't bother them, other things like how other students relate to them might, but the process of learning is a lot of fun because it is easy. Piano is no different, it is a subject but it is a lot nicer to learn if the person you have to deal with is relaxed and nice and gives you a break. I think the teachers duty is to make the "disinterested" student first comfortable then you can start teaching.

6)Selective taste student, to me is a student who only learns through a particular medium of music. For instance I have one student who has Asperges and he only will ever study music from Bach. I have other younger students who only like Jazz, I have a few who only like fast and loud music, others that like gentle music from Chopin or stuff like nocturnes from Field. These students I try to broaden their interest but of course maintain focus on what interest them, learning music can be torture if you have to learn music you do not like. Some who are impossible to broaden their taste like my dear student with asperges, I am forced with the task to teach everything through one Bach, that definatly tests my ability as a teacher and has taught me a great deal more about music that what the student realises!

I am very sure there are plenty more types of students I haven't come across yet. Despite the type a student I think there has to be mutual learning on both sides. If the teacher isn't learning anything from the student then this is bad if not worse than if the student doens't learn anything from the teacher. To me the TEACHER/STUDENT line is blurred, I find that I am the student most of the time and my student is actually a teacher to me. I absorb so much from watching and observing how people learn, I think if I do not I cannot teach, and I cannot get into their minds and guide their progress.

[ludwig]

Interesting reading. I think essentially a teacher only has one type of teaching style. This is just embedded within them. They might treat different situations and types of students a little differently and might change teaching techniques but I don't see how you can have different attitudes towards teaching, only methods. Maybe I'm just a little stubborn but I want all my kids to be good, as in I try to do the best so they can do their best. Some kids have very different expectations, but I only see their potentials as a guide to teaching. If they think something they've played is pretty good, and I know they can do better, I often push them a little harder, even if they only want to learn for fun...Maybe I'm a bit harsh but I think they can see where I'm coming from, especially when I tell them that I believe they can do better.

Students types...hmmm, I think you guys have already mentioned most of them, however their talents and personality determines what kind of pianist they are. Sometimes limitations like their musical experience and levels of understanding restrict them to become more musically mature, but if they are willing to practice I think it doesn't really matter what student type

[pianowelsh]

Very astute observations lostinwonder.  I think its also true to say that students can go through several of these styles as phases in their development and may also display characteristics of more than one group at a time.  I find that each student is very different in the way they absorb information and develop skills and particularly older students who perfer to learn a lot more around the subject rather than just getting the necessary facts they have to be treated sensitively too as they are out of practice at being beginners and need to be encouraged constanly and reassured that they are making progress - its dificult because theyare so aware of the sophistication of music and feel they dont match up so i find myself going into a lot of detail with even quite basic pieces and exercises so they feel like they are mastering each thing rather than just being able to do something really simple - that way they have confidence playing at the level they have reached and their appreciation of good piano playing is more rational.