Am I qualified to teach?

[ggrant4569]

Hello. I am an 18 year old casual pianist. I have my level 10 RCM certificate, and am able to play ARCT level pieces. I have a younger sister that I have helped practice before, and I am a tutor in non-music related classes, but that's the extent of my teaching experience. I have been told by a music teacher (not mine) that I should start teaching on the side during university to make some money, but I don't feel entirely qualified. Any suggestions? Thanks.

[klavieronin]

My feeling is that virtually nobody is qualified when they start teaching piano. I certainly wasn't, and I had a music degree and had taken two semesters of Piano Pedagogy.

Still, you may find at this stage that students will ask a lot of questions that you have no answers for.

My suggestion is that you do some research, read some books, and really think out how you plan to run your lessons for students at different ages and levels.

Definitely don't do what I did which was just to wing it and hope nobody notices how unprepared you are.

Do those things and you'll be fine, I'm sure.

[lostinidlewonder]

You have experience teaching classes, have a RCM certificate and can play ARCT level. You obviously understand requirements for examinations and have gone through them yourself. Of course not all students will want to do examinations so you will have to come up with programs which allow them to learn the piano successfully and enjoyably. All teachers had to start out somewhere with little teaching experience. In my experience as a student and peer I have found teachers with teaching experience are better than those without experience but lots of qualifications.

[quantum]

You are likely better qualified than teachers employed by certain questionable "music schools."

What you need is some teaching experience.  There is only so much you can learn from pedagogy texts, there comes a time when you have to teach in person so you have perspective of what those text are talking about. 

Maybe start off by tutoring music theory students, and that will get you in the frame of mind for teaching music. 

[michaellanglois]

You can absolutely do this. You'll learn as you go. Charge a very modest fee commensurate with your lack of experience, but read everything you possibly can on the topic and spend plenty of time (especially in the beginning) preparing for the lessons. Whether or not your pianism is casual as you say, don't let your teaching be - and both you and your students will gain much.

Mike

Hello. I am an 18 year old casual pianist. I have my level 10 RCM certificate, and am able to play ARCT level pieces. I have a younger sister that I have helped practice before, and I am a tutor in non-music related classes, but that's the extent of my teaching experience. I have been told by a music teacher (not mine) that I should start teaching on the side during university to make some money, but I don't feel entirely qualified. Any suggestions? Thanks.

[bethany]

I was less qualified than you when I started, honestly! I have a Bachelor of Music now and 5 years experience (which I am aware is still not much) and still feel a little out of control at times! As others have said, read widely and learn as much as you can. Maybe ask to sit in on a few lessons given by your teacher, with permission from the student/their parents.  Also, accept that you will make mistakes and feel embarrassed at times, but that's okay, you are learning, and as long as you make that clear to families you aren't doing the wrong thing. Just do your best and over time you'll get really good!

Also, choose your first set of students wisely. Mine consisted of two sassy teens who saw right through me and two naughty 6 year olds, which made things hard. Try to find students with families that are supportive of you and children who WANT to learn. It will make life a billion times easier for you. 

[Bob]

Yes, go teach.  Not all students and parent are that serious about it.  Use them to practice teaching and get paid.  If you want to be a better teacher, you need more experience.  Teach beginners.  You'll get whatever you get for students.  Whatever you make for money isn't much.  Even what an experienced teacher makes isn't much.  You also get "paid" with the experience.  After you've got enough and know the type and level of students you end up with, you don't have to put as much effort into it.  But at first, you get paid less and do more prep work.

Look for any teacher guides for a piano series that will guide you as a teacher.  It's more paint-by-numbers that way.

You'd probably end up with some 8-10 year old and a parent who doesn't want to spend money on a more experienced teacher.  Maybe they only have a keyboard.  There you go.  You've already got some experience of helping your sister in music and actually teaching others in whatever topic.  That's not nothing. 

If you can find a more experienced teacher who can kind of guide you, great.  I doubt you'd really be competition for them.  You probably won't have students knocking down your door.  Plus, if you're 18, you might be moving on before the students are.  Your student(s) might end up with a teacher who gives you a nudge of help at the start.  Otherwise, there are forums like this one.

[anacrusis]

I dove headfirst into teaching without any real qualifications, and it was a real challenge. But you learn a lot. As long as you are coming from a space of genuinely wanting to create a safe space for the student where they feel respected, and wanting to do your best to support and teach them, and take a honest look at where you are doing well and where you need to improve, you'll likely be fine. Don't be afraid to ask other teachers for help and support.

Oh, and at least one person was less than supportive and said "you shouldn't teach unless you got a degree first" but I had already signed a contract to teach for six months at that point, so I just had to roll with it, and I did ok.

So it can be challenging and uncomfortable, but coming out the other end you'll have grown, and you'll definitely know if you want to keep doing it or not

[Bob]

I was recently remembering on "school of music" that I'm now thinking probably hired anyone to teach.  They found students for the teachers and took a cut of the lesson fee, but provided the building, etc.  The teachers just got paid an hourly rate.  I don't think they really grilled teachers on how they qualified they were though.

[lelle]

Yeah, there are many of those around here as well. Many parents are happy enough to have a teacher for their kid that is a student at a music college even if there are no other real qualifications. Many learn by doing in those environments.

[keypeg]

Teach beginners. 

No, no, and double no.  Beginners is where all the foundations are created.  It is the least appreciated and most important level.  Do not start with beginners.

[timothy42b]

No, no, and double no.  Beginners is where all the foundations are created.  It is the least appreciated and most important level.  Do not start with beginners.

I sort of agree, for the person who is a serious student and will progress to advanced levels. 


Yes, beginners should get a sound basis in the fundamentals early, or they will eventually be frustrated when they progress to advanced levels and find that bad habits are much harder to unlearn, or find that necessary skills have been skipped.  On this I am in agreement with keypeg.

On the other hand, the percentage of beginners that will ever proceed to those levels is very small, and the percentage that practice enough to actually engrain any habits is also small.  Many students are sent by their parents for enrichment or resume padding, and for them this doesn't matter as much.  An enthusiastic beginning teacher may not have all the skills to start out the prospective conservatory candidate, but might teach a little piano along with a little fun and a lifelong love for music to everybody else, and over time will hone their teaching skills.

So yes, you are qualified to teach, but remember to do no harm, and improve your teaching with as much effort as you worked on your playing.   

[ranjit]

I would say that a teacher who is decent but not great is better than no teacher for many people. I still think that a talented student with some ambition should go for a good teacher and that is what I've had to search for. But, if you cost half as much as a great teacher, and provide a decent foundation which will get students playing in a reasonably relaxed fashion, there is nothing wrong with that imo. The worst teachers are the ones who do not have the humility to accept their shortcomings.

Many excellent pianists teach a lot of beginners, who quit within a couple of years. Many of the things such teachers emphasize develop skills which would have been useful several years down the line, but by quitting in the middle, it is often time wasted for the student, who might have wished to learn more practical skills quickly. It's something to keep in mind.

[derekchiupiano]

It's not about are you qualified to teach as much as it is "are you ready to teach?".  This is more important than anything.  Teaching is a responsibility and let's not forget a service that has a dollar value attached to it.  Are you ready to teach means are you ready to charge people.  Do you have something to offer students? Do you have grounding in piano pedagogy? What primer method book do you use? Or how do you teach students to read notes?  What are some supplemental materials you can use to support your students' learning?

What are you doing to acquire teaching skills? Are you being mentored by your teacher? Have you taken piano pedagogy courses? How open minded are you to learning how to teach?

These questions are more important than "am I qualified".  The Royal Conservatory has a wonderful Online Piano Teachers Course that teaches candidates to be teachers.  By completing the course you will be 1/3rd of the way towards completing the ARCT in Piano Pedagogy.  My recommendation is to check this course out and use it as your foundation for teaching:
https://www.rcmusic.com/teaching/online-piano-teacher

If you have questions, pm me.  I can answer questions that you have with this course or teaching.

[pianoteacher5]

When I started teaching piano, I found it helpful to work at an established community music school with a set curriculum, books provided for students and me, students of various levels, and a director who regularly checked in and provided advice and support.

Having the structures and people around me to learn with and from was invaluable.

Yes, the pay is lower (a lot lower!) than what I could earn if I did it on my own, but as an earlier poster noted, the experience is worth something too. View it as a paid internship, and it will pay back dividends in the end!

[1hummingbird]

   Probably you are qualified to teach piano to others who only want a casual approach.  Not everyone wants to eventually compete or teach classical piano.  If you make sure you advise parents or others who pay you that you are not degreed or a credentialled teacher, you will do fine.    If you can relay a joy for music in general, it's a good start for most any student.