Asking questions during the lesson

[c_minor]

Hi everyone,

I've noticed that my teacher sometimes makes changes to the printed score we use. Would it be considered rude if I ask why he makes those changes (e.g. in articulation and phrasing)?

I'm still a beginner, and I don't want to come across as arrogant by asking questions. I just want to learn.  Do teachers get annoyed with questions from students?

[dogperson]

To me, asking questions during my piano lesson is one of the pleasures of taking lessons as an adult. I start all of my lessons  with the questions I have from practicing during the week.  if my teacher suggests something it usually creates a dialogue  where I ask "why" or "where else would this  apply".   She knows I'm asking because I want to learn and want to understand how I can apply it to other music.

 Don't be afraid to ask questions... you will learn quicker if you understand the underlying principle for what you are being told.

[stevensk]

 If you don’t ask questions, how can you learn? Asking questions is essential 

[lostinidlewonder]

I find it a little sad if you have lessons with a teacher who dictates how music should be done and who refuses to explain the reasoning behind it. You should feel promoted to ask questions as they explain the procedure and they should encourage you to ask questions to ensure that the feedback you provide verifies that you understand what is being taught. To merely parrot what is taught to you without any understanding doesn't help you much for the future. Certainly don't feel shy or rude to ask for clarification and reasoning of what is being taught. Actually I feel annoyed as a teacher if a student doesn't ask any questions at all, when they ask questions they are thinking for themselves and trying to consolidate the information which I actually like very much.

[dogperson]

Lostinwonder
 Just out of curiosity, do your students who are children  ask questions  during their lessons? Back in the dark ages when I took lessons as a child, I don't remember asking any and I don't know if it was just not expected  it or if I was just too shy.  It's been too many years since then for me to remember the reason.

[lostinidlewonder]

It is more my older students who ask questions without persuasion. The younger students generally follow instructions and answer questions that I give them, I find I am asking the younger students questions a lot more than the older students because if they don't really know something they often will be quiet about it, so prompting them to demonstrate their knowledge I feel is an important step.

I try not to give answers directly all the time and instead encourage the young student to come to the conclusion themselves with some guidance, if they don't quite give a good answer I keep asking them to "dig" for an answer and if they are lost often they will come up with questions of their own so they can find their way to a solution.

I find myself not always trusting my students of any age that they fully understand what I teach them 100% of the time so I will ask them questions and get them to ask any questions of their own if I sense they don't completely appreciate something that is taught, I feel it is a great success if I can get them to ask to ask questions themselves (or if they naturally ask which is even better) to clear up any issues in their mind. It highlights that they are engaged with the issues at hand which is a good sign, submissive obedience to me is a too guarded and I don't know if they understand me well enough but of course certain people can be like this and be absorbing the information effectively (although I will still encourage these types to open up and share with me what they are considering through Q+As). It can be as simple as asking them if they have any questions, if they do not often I will go about testing their knowledge on an issue if I am not completely sure they really know it or are just parroting my ideas on the spot.

Many of their questions are about answers I have already given to them, they say things like "so it is/isn't like this?" *and demonstrate an idea* then I can offer my assessment of their demonstration. This of course can be done non-verbally and merely done through demonstration but I feel it is important to verbalise the testing process also, it especially makes students more ready to expose their own thinking process during the lesson which teachers needs to know about since we cannot thoroughly  know for sure what is going on in our students heads without them giving us feedback verbally and demonstratively.

[c_minor]

Thank you to everyone who replied. It is reassuring to hear that lessons are fine during the lesson. A reason why I hesitate to ask is because my teacher might get annoyed (I plan to continue lessons with him, and I don't want the teacher-student relationship to be ruined). My anxiety really gets in the way..

dogperson, that's a nice reason for asking questions. Will try to keep that in mind.

stevensk, I was thinking of the large classroom setting.

lostinidlewonder, my teacher asks me questions too, probably because I space out sometimes. He also explains the reasoning for some revisions he makes. Maybe he thinks he already explained the concept in the previous lesson, or I forgot.. Thanks for the ideas, I think they can be applied even to non-music fields.