5 Reasons Why Piano Teachers Should Consider Furthering Their Education (Maybe Taking Lessons Themselves)
By Nicole McCray
Piano teachers already know that playing the piano provides them with many benefits. Relieving stress, expressing yourself, improving social skills, gaining discipline, and building confidence are just some of the beautiful gifts students can discover when taking piano lessons. Music enriches our lives in numerous ways, and teachers are constantly searching to find ways to be more innovative and creative within their lessons.
Many teachers have been playing for a very long time, so they easily grow accustomed to their ways. After studying and playing for years, it may seem that they have already benefited from all of the things the piano can give them. Teaching and educating others about the piano is a rewarding job for them to share their knowledge and skill with their students.
However, there is always room to improve upon a skill or craft. After all, how do we know what we don’t know? There is always a chance to be better, to do more, and learn more. Here are some ways that Piano teachers can continue to further their education, take piano lessons themselves, and why they should consider doing both.
THERE IS ALWAYS CHALLENGING NEW MUSIC TO PLAY
Teachers should never give up on trying to learn a new piece that may be difficult. If you consistently challenge yourself, you can identify and consistently work on the areas you feel need improvement. You can do this reasonably quickly, too, by trying out a new music genre that you aren’t used to playing or possibly learning a song that maybe has always felt intimidating to you or hard to achieve.
You can reward yourself when you have been able to master it (finally!) and acknowledge that you have done something to further your piano knowledge. A great sense of accomplishment comes with tackling a complex piece, and you can further relate to your piano students who, as beginners, might be working hard to learn the five easiest piano songs. In addition, it brings you a whole new level of understanding of those challenges for your students.
You can also find challenges in working on specific areas of your playing. For instance, maybe you know how to play and move through chords very well, but you want to work more on your finger coordination to play individual notes easily. Perhaps you know that you need to practice sight-reading more or explore a difficult part of music theory. Expanding your skills can only help you to become more equipped and more helpful to your students.
NEVER STOP LEARNING NEW THINGS; BE A LEARNER FOR LIFE!
One of the best ways to inspire and take on being the best example for your students is always to be open to continue learning and advancing in your craft, skills, and techniques. Open yourself to learning new things because society and ways of doing things are constantly evolving, always changing.
In any profession or position, no one can get to the point of knowing absolutely everything there is to know about one thing. Even as teachers who share our expertise, we never should stop wanting to learn more about it because there’s always something we might have missed or hadn’t considered.
You never know when the time comes that you may need to adapt. The pandemic was a fantastic example of that since many teachers accustomed to teaching in their studios had to quickly pivot their learning structure for the change of staying at home and continue their work to earn an income. So keep your mind open and adopt that willingness to learn and take on more always so that you are always ready and prepared for whatever life throws at you.
PIANO TEACHERS SHOULD TAKE PIANO LESSONS THEMSELVES
Yes, you can, and you should!
There have been many opportunities for customized, online lessons for the piano from music schools that specialize in in-person education with the pandemic. You now have your pick of experts to choose from to help you find more challenges with your instrument at home from your computer. You can even customize your learning to areas that you know you need to or want to improve upon, such as composing or arranging your own pieces of music or working to be better at sight-reading sheet music.
The best part about working alongside another instructor that teaches piano is that you can pick their brain to get valuable tips and tricks that they utilize in their classroom. You might gain insight as to how to approach something you weren’t sure about before. Collaboration is a great way to establish new and exciting ways of conducting your lessons.
Your students will appreciate it, too, because you will come out with a better understanding of what they are experiencing, just like working on a complex piece of music. You will be able to provide your students with more individualized and targeted learning.
LEARNING ONLINE WITH COURSES, CERTIFICATIONS, AND MASTERCLASSES
Online learning is on the rise, so you should take advantage of the opportunities in front of you. For example, Skillshare is a site where you can browse thousands of free online tutorials and courses to take.
Better yet, look for online resources specifically for piano teachers to create new goals for your students and yourself to work towards in your lessons and establish new objectives for yourself and what you want to accomplish next in your own piano business.
Another take on online courses with a goal in mind is to get a new certification in teaching piano. Piano Marvel offers a teacher certification course that gives piano teachers powerful tools to take back to their students to keep them engaged and make learning fun. Connect with other piano teachers and see where they might have studied, and explore different methods and might apply to you or help some of your students that you can take on.
EMBRACING OUR DIGITAL WORLD AND LEARN NEW SOFTWARE
Piano teachers should take full advantage of the opportunities that come with this digital age. So many music teachers and instructors had to swiftly pivot their businesses and studios to an online setting during the pandemic (especially if in-home) to adapt to changes. Learning and embracing technology can take your musical teaching business to new levels.
Many instructors have continued teaching while learning software to organize virtual recitals, virtual performances, and online workshops while also continuing their online music lessons. Since many schools went virtual with classes, and many music classes were cut in the process, online piano lessons for students were an excellent option to help grow, develop and keep music enriching their lives.
Playing the piano does take many years of learning and practice. To effectively do this, teachers must enjoy the instrument that they are learning. Most instructors are very passionate and have put forth the perseverance to learn and master their skills. However, the best instructors are still learning what they don’t know about the piano and finding ways to improve and continually overcome obstacles.
