New Teacher - new impetus!

[Halfers]

When I first joined the forum, I'd had recent struggles with a teacher, who I just didn't get one with. I'd packed up lessons after my first 3 sessions as I was getting annoyed with the guy. Lots of negatives, no positive feedback and lots of Teacher playing, and when I got to play, he'd disappear from the room with an 'I'm listening'....

After packing him in, I made the decision that I'd carry on learning on my own and armed with a few books, including 'Taming The Saxophone', of course! I set myself to work pretty diligently on learning my scales and picking up bits and pieces from the countless channels of learning that can be used these days. I made progress, but I increasingly became aware that I needed some kind of external focus to help me along the way.

I contacted a few local Teachers through various online directories. Frustratingly I didn't get a response from any of them. I pretty much gave up on the idea of finding a Teacher.

Last November, I was at The Turner Sims and I saw a face that I thought I recognised from the lists of Saxophone Teachers I'd been looking through. I didn't think anything of it at first, but a few weeks later I thought why not give this guy a try? I got a response back straight away and sorted an initial lesson just before Christmas. It turned out he was the Guy I recognised at the Concert Hall and from the off I could tell this Teaching style is a lot more suitable for what I want.

I had my second lesson with him last Friday and I've found a new impetus. Also, six Months down the line, learning the little tunes from the Teaching book we're using is a lot more fun (how it should be). I'm getting told what I'm doing wrong, but more importantly, why I'm going wrong and how to fix it. I'm also getting lot of positive feedback, which counts for a lot when learning something new.

He's encouraged me to take a bit more mouthpiece and give it some welly on the loud bits ( the complete opposite of what I had been taught before). I struggled with this over Christmas, especially with volume control which went completely out the window with a default (deafening!) But now, a few weeks later, I've found I'm far more in control of my volume than I was a few Months back.

Funnily enough my Teacher had heard of my previous teacher and had taken on some of his ex students. It seems word gets around!

 

[saxyjt]

It is important to feel comfortable with your teacher. Mine is always encouraging me and I leave the course with a good feeling even if I've been playing very badly lately. We have ups and downs, that's normal. I changed my kids piano teachers a couple of times over the last few years and never regretted it.

 

[Halfers]

It is important to feel comfortable with your teacher. Mine is always encouraging me and I leave the course with a good feeling even if I've been playing very badly lately. We have ups and downs, that's normal. I changed my kids piano teachers a couple of times over the last few years and never regretted it.

Very much agree. With all the interesting discussions going on within other threads regarding what is taught, from an Adult 'hobbyist' perspective, and I guess from any other perspective, the 'how' it's taught is as important, if not more, important. It's still early days with this new Teacher, but the signs are positive going ahead.

When I bought my Sax last Year, I was in the middle of a bit of a 'lull' in my life and I was really looking forward to learning a new instrument. My initial Teaching experience really set me back a bit as I wanted to look forward to lessons, but even after just a few, I was dreading the experience! On the contrary I'm now looking forward to my next lesson already.

 

[kevgermany]

We've seen the effects of good and bad teacher/student relationships at first hand in the family. A bad teacher can kill the student's enthusiasm in a lesson or two.

And a teacher that's good for one student may be appalling for another. At least as adults paying the bill we can decide for ourselves. Not always so easy for kids though.

 

[MikeMorrell]

I agree that how things are taught (= how learners are coached) makes a world of difference. Especially to the student's motivation to keep learning. In their teens (15 years ago) one of my daughter took up; drumming while the other studied ballet at quite a high level.

My 'drumming daughter' got fed up with practicing the set exercises that her first teacher had set her and decided to give up on lessons. A month or two later we discovered a new tutor who made drumming lessons much more about what she wanted to learn and much more fun. Looking back, the main difference between the 2 tutors was 'positive feedback'. The 2nd tutor always made sure she felt good about her drumming and progress, which kept her motivated. She enjoyed her sessions with the 2nd tutor and practiced more than with the 1st tutor. ''Extrinsic motivation' by the 2nd tutor helped her keep going.

My 'dancing daughter' was in a very different learning situation. Not least because students who were deemed to have shown 'insufficient development' over the course of a year were expelled (no pressure 😉). Thankfully, she wasn't but some of her friends were. Anyway, the tried and trusted learning method in ballet is through 'corrections'. A teacher sees something that could/should be improved and says or demonstrates this. OK, 14-15 year olds are impressed by a teacher who has danced with the Bolshoi Ballet. It gives her some street-cred., But it was mostly 'intrinsic motivation' that kept my daughter going. Just the will to succeed,

Very much agree. With all the interesting discussions going on within other threads regarding what is taught, from an Adult 'hobbyist' perspective, and I guess from any other perspective, the 'how' it's taught is as important, if not more, important. It's still early days with this new Teacher, but the signs are positive going ahead.

When I bought my Sax last Year, I was in the middle of a bit of a 'lull' in my life and I was really looking forward to learning a new instrument. My initial Teaching experience really set me back a bit as I wanted to look forward to lessons, but even after just a few, I was dreading the experience! On the contrary I'm now looking forward to my next lesson already.

 

[Halfers]

I agree that how things are taught (= how learners are coached) makes a world of difference. Especially to the student's motivation to keep learning. In their teens (15 years ago) one of my daughter took up; drumming while the other studied ballet at quite a high level.

My 'drumming daughter' got fed up with practicing the set exercises that her first teacher had set her and decided to give up on lessons. A month or two later we discovered a new tutor who made drumming lessons much more about what she wanted to learn and much more fun. Looking back, the main difference between the 2 tutors was 'positive feedback'. The 2nd tutor always made sure she felt good about her drumming and progress, which kept her motivated. She enjoyed her sessions with the 2nd tutor and practiced more than with the 1st tutor. ''Extrinsic motivation' by the 2nd tutor helped her keep going.

My 'dancing daughter' was in a very different learning situation. Not least because students who were deemed to have shown 'insufficient development' over the course of a year were expelled (no pressure 😉). Thankfully, she wasn't but some of her friends were. Anyway, the tried and trusted learning method in ballet is through 'corrections'. A teacher sees something that could/should be improved and says or demonstrates this. OK, 14-15 year olds are impressed by a teacher who has danced with the Bolshoi Ballet. It gives her some street-cred., But it was mostly 'intrinsic motivation' that kept my daughter going. Just the will to succeed,

I think in the main that it's getting the right balance of external and internal motivation to make some kind of satisfactory progress. A good Teacher can help to provide a positive external learning experience, which at the same time enhances internal motivation.

As Kev says, a Teacher who might work for one pupil might not be any good for another. It's the work of a really good Teacher to understand their pupils and work with them in a way that enhances their own particular learning style. I imagine these types of Teachers are few and far between. For most Teachers I think it's a case of providing a comfortable learning environment and ensuring their pupils are happy and progressing at a speed that is suitable for them, irrespective of whether they are Teaching Music, Sports etc.

 

[andyjb]

Enjoyment is all. Life is too short