When SHOULD You Start Teaching?

[chrism05]

Hello everyone, I'm 16 years old and I've been playing piano for almost 9 years. I realize that there isn't a set-in-stone skill requirement that you need in order to help people improve at the piano, but I am curious as to when you all started teaching your first students, and when you would advise that somebody should consider it. I have a few friends who have already started teaching with 5-6 years of experience, but I would hate to rush into it personally out of fear of accidentally hurting somebody's piano progression, so please let me know what you all think. If it helps, some of the material I've been working on recently include Chopin's Ballade No. 1, Chopin's Revolutionary Etude, and Kreisler's Liebesleid (arr. Rachmaninoff). Thank you!

[ranjit]

Teaching something has two components: knowing that thing well enough, and being able to break it down and observe a student to the point where they can learn it, and knowledge of how someone learns a skill. If you can play something, it's the second which you need to get better at, and that will come with thinking about how to teach, and experience teaching.

I think you're definitely qualified. But realized it's not about whether you can play well enough. It's about whether you can communicate the essential components of skill and think of a method of progression which works for a given student. Each student is different.

Check out Bernhard's old posts on this forum, they may give you some ideas.

[lelle]

I'd advice you to take at least some basic courses in pedagogy and/or get some mentoring. I started out teaching with zero knowledge and experience and I am sorry to say that my first students didn't get very good teaching as a result. At some point you need to dive in and get experience to get better, like you can't sit in your room for 10 years and read books about teaching to get good at teaching. But I think going in with at least some fundamental ideas handed down to you by more experienced people certainly does not hurt.

[anacrusis]

^I agree with the above, this is my experience too. See if you can get some mentoring from a teacher who's had many students, at least.