As a music student, one of the most important tasks you must undertake is finding a teacher. Whether you are an aspiring music major, an enthusiastic amateur or a newly minted beginner, finding a teacher you “click” with is essential.
There are tons of amazing teachers out there in the world. They come from all kinds of backgrounds, educations, and experience levels. There is no singular resume that renders a teacher excellent. Of course, a good teacher must have a solid mastery over their subject material. However, there are other elements of quality teaching that absolutely influence a student’s growth and success. Here are a few:
- They spend time assessing your skills before working with you, and can give you a straightforward explanation of what they hear and how they can help.
- They can clearly articulate any technical issues they hear, and give you concrete ways to improve.
- They can explain a concept in multiple ways.
- You don’t feel forced into a particular method or sound.
- They set goals WITH you and check in on them over time.
- They switch up tasks or tactics if you say something isn’t working for you.
- They encourage you to seek out additional forms of musical development.
- They focus on YOU during the lesson, rather than talking about themselves.
- You feel safe making mistakes and trying new skills around them.
- They don’t bad-mouth other teachers or methods.
- You feel they listen to you and don’t dismiss your thoughts and concerns.
- They use positive, kind and affirming language.
- They encourage you to embrace your musical interests.
- If they don’t know something, they say “I’m not sure, I’ll look that up for you.”
- They refer you to another source of information when something is not in their area of expertise.
Whether a teacher engages in these behaviors (or not) can radically influence not only your lesson experience, but also how much progress you make and the rate at which you make it. If you notice your teacher practices these behaviors above, you can feel very confident that you have found a teacher who not only cares about your development, but also about YOU as a complete human being!
On the flip side, there are destructive behaviors that some teachers engage in that you should be on the lookout for. If you notice a prospective (or current) teacher engaging in the following behaviors, take some time to evaluate how you feel about your lessons. It may be time to consider a switch:
- They insist they are the only teacher who can help you.
- They don’t take the time to learn about your goals or ambitions before working with you.
- They use aggressive, coercive, or bullying language in your lessons.
- They make you feel that you can’t perform without them.
- They solicit complaints and negative comments about other teachers and their methods, and/or disparage their colleagues.
- They get frustrated when you struggle with tasks or technique.
- They gossip about other students with you.
- They discourage you from engaging in learning opportunities outside their influence and control.
- They make you feel unsafe or anxious before, during or after your lesson.
- They do not admit what they don’t know.
- They withhold information or gate-keep educational/performance opportunities.
- They control conversations so you are unable or afraid to express your thoughts and feelings.
And finally, trust your gut! If something feels “off” to you, don’t hesitate to speak with your teacher about it. There is never a single, faultless way to do anything. So if a teacher tries to convince you that they somehow have all the answers, think twice before returning to them.
