Episode 272: Cheers to Getting Out of the Barn  (seeing the unseen) (seeing students as they really are)

Well, hello there, studio teacher friends!  Welcome to your weekly shout-out of solidarity, otherwise known as the Beyond Measure Podcast. Christina Whitlock here, your host and self-appointed Anytime Piano Teacher Friend. I’ve been teaching private lessons for more than 30 years.  I don’t claim to have all the answers, but I DO have a lot of experience and I love unpacking all the human elements of teaching here alongside other thoughtful teachers like yourself. This show is supported by a terrific crew of people I call my SuperFriends, and if you are interested in joining in on THAT fun, membership does come with some pretty great perks. Check out ChristinaWhitlock.com/superfriends for all THOSE details, and in the meantime, let’s get on with the show!  Thanks for listening to the Beyond Measure Podcast.

It’s one of my favorite times of year, friends. I love the start of a new school year. New goals, new books, new routines… I just love it all. To make things even better, this is the second year that Janna Williamson and I are leading a cohort of teachers on a deep dive of teaching Intermediate students and we just LOVE this work. As of this recording, we are into our fourth week of class with a BRILLIANT crew of teachers. It’s giving me so much life.

I mention the cohort because two weeks ago, we focused on transfer students. We talked about everything from onboarding surveys to evaluation criteria to transition plans… it was great. We also talked about common weaknesses of transfer students, and that’s what got me thinking for today’s episode.

There are several characteristics teachers often complain about seeing in transfer students. We see underdeveloped technique, weak rhythm skills, and – you probably know where I’m going – we see students with weak reading skills who are playing music that is TOO DIFFICULT for them. Right?  How many times have you inherited a student from another teacher and you think, “why are you playing out of these books?! They are way too hard for you!”

This is certainly not the case every time, but seriously: the amount of times I’VE thought a student was playing music assigned over their heads? Combined with the number of times I’ve heard the same complaint from other teachers? Something is going on here.

Now, maybe all the other teachers are just terrible at leveling their students. Maybe we’re the only ones who know what we’re doing, right?  Maybe. But if you know me, you know I’m not satisfied with that answer.

Today, I’m asking ALL of us how so many students end up in music that is over their heads? And – even moreso – I’m asking if maybe – just maybe – WE are making the same mistakes?

…because, it’s true, sometimes we get transfer students from a teacher who *does* work to very different standards than we do. But I’ve also seen transfers come from perfectly competent teachers, still playing music that I deem too difficult for them.

For me, this begs the question: do we ALL have students who are playing over their heads? Do we make the same mistakes,  but fail to notice it because we are too deeply engrained in our weekly routines?

This feels like a good time to talk about The Barn Metaphor. I’ve heard The Barn Metaphor many places over the years, but the first time I remember hearing it was from Tim Gunn on Project Runway. When my first daughter was born, I nursed her around the clock and I watched a lot of Gilmore Girls and a lot of Project Runway. Okay? Don’t judge me.  Anyway: on an episode of Project Runway, Tim Gunn explained that, when you spend all your time in the barn, you stop noticing how badly it stinks. He had been looking at a collection that a designer had been working on for weeks, and basically pointed out that they’d become a little TOO comfortable with the things that weren’t working.

Stay with me here….

His point was, when you’re working intensely on a project, we sometimes become blind to things that once seemed obvious. And I do believe we are guilty of this with students. At least, I know I am!  As teachers, we become so accustomed to the way our students work, sometimes we miss things OTHER teachers would spot right away.

…maybe it’s been awhile since we checked in on certain skills. Maybe we’ve gotten a little lax on our repertoire planning and are assigning things we haven’t thoroughly considered. Maybe we’re just turning the pages of our students’ books and assuming we’re teaching them everything they need to know.

How long HAS it been since your intermediate students have actively studied arpeggios? How many of your students CAN hear the difference between tonic and dominant? When was the last time you checked in on their home practice environment – their instrument AND their seating position?

Look. I’ve been guilty of ALL these things (and more).  Especially when you have a large studio, it’s easy to fall into routines with your students. You put things off for later study. You default to turning the page. You stop researching new music and materials.  You give your student books at the beginning of the semester and you just roll with them until it’s time to buy more.

A lot of us have been sold a bill of goods. We believe we teach from a method series and those books are going to make sure we teach students everything they need to know. While it’s true those books can provide us some pretty clear guidance, they’re never going to be able to meet and evaluate the full scope of a students’ needs.

We have to get ourselves out of the barn, friends. We’ve got to get a fresh start. Clear those sinuses so when you re-enter the barn, you see (and smell) things as they truly are.  Does that make sense?

I guess the million dollar question is, how do we do that?

The most literal thing you could do to get out of the barn, so to speak, would be to get yourself to a teacher conference or meeting. Open yourself up to the possibility of learning something new. Janna and I are in the middle of this Intermediate Cohort and we get feedback from participants almost daily that this material is fleshing out things they already thought they knew. AND – bonus – in studying Intermediate Piano Teaching, they can’t help but build new insights into their Elementary piano teaching. It’s amazing what you can learn when you leave room for the possibility that there is still more to be understood.

So – yes – go take a class. Get coffee with other teachers and share tips and tricks. Join a local association. Start budgeting for MTNA or NCKP. GET OUT OF THE BARN so you can reset and refresh your Teacher Brain.

In addition to sharpening your own saw, think about this: Performance opportunities always give us a new perspective on our students’ playing. The same goes for a Masterclass (and preparing your students to play in a master class).  Seriously. If you KNOW you are going to be putting your student up for evaluation by another teacher? In public? You will suddenly find PLENTY of room for improvement in their playing.

The same goes for sending your students to a summer music camp, a university audition, a bonus lesson with a colleague just so they get a fresh perspective?

There is nothing like knowing another teacher is going to be offering an opinion on your students’ playing to shine the light on anything and everything you think they need to fix.

It’s kind of like moving houses. There are so many little imperfections we live with in our homes. Quick fixes, small upgrades, and they don’t bother us at all until someone else is going to consider living there. All of a sudden, your to-do list grows exponentially and you become very concerned at the number of things that need tending do.

In a perfect world, we would head these things off at the pass. We wouldn’t wait until our student is preparing to play for someone else before we jumped into action.

So – perhaps – that’s the best place to start!  As you are teaching today, ask yourself this question: If another teacher came to your studio today to teach your lessons, what would THEY tell this student? What would THEY tell you in private, after the student left? What would their primary course of action be?

If we can “trick” ourselves into feeling like our students are going to be under someone else’s microscope, the feelings we uncover might very well offer insight into our next best steps.

Aside from playing for other teachers –

I’ve talked here before about the importance of changing perspectives – literally – in teaching. I’ll link to that episode in the shownotes, but for now, I’ll just remind you how important it is to watch your students play from different angles. I teach standing up, and I wander all around my students while they play. Watch them from the right… from the left… and from behind. You might be surprised by how much you learn about your students’ physical technique by watching from different angles. Again, there’s an entire episode dedicated to that topic; check the shownotes for details.

Similarly, record your students playing and try to watch it back as though you have never heard this student play before.

If you’ve ever served as an adjudicator for an event, you know there are common points of criteria that we listen for when evaluating a student. Occasionally, as teachers, we need to put our usual lesson plans aside and simply revisit those filters.  Listen to our students as though they are completely new to us. Examples of what to listen for would include:

Rhythm, Pulse, and Tempo:  

• Is this student playing from start to finish with an uninterrupted pulse?
• How many times do they break the beat as they play?
• Is their tempo consistent, or does it fluctuate?
• Is their tempo choice appropriate to this piece?

Accuracy:

• Are they playing with accuracy, or are there a significant number of missed notes or rhythms?
• Do you observe anything they don’t appear to understand? Indications of 8va, articulations, rhythms?
• Are they demonstrating an understanding of THE METER?

Technique:

• Where are they holding tension in the body?
• Are they pedaling correctly – as in, physical form AND timing?
• What about their eyes? Are they spending too much time looking up or down? Or both?

Overall Presentation:

• Do they seem comfortable with what they’ve been assigned or are they JUST BARELY making it through?

The points I just mentioned are pretty foundational to playing the piano. If a student is struggling with Rhythm/Pulse/Tempo, Accuracy, Technique, or Overall Presentation, it’s important to take note and continue evaluating those points over the next few weeks. These are ALL indicators that our students are playing music that is too difficult. It could also be indicative of holes in technique or reading ability.

As we are still relatively early in the school year, I think this would be a WONDERFUL time for you to quietly evaluate your students on these points so you can move forward appropriately. In fact, I’ve designed a downloadable evaluation for you to use with your students. That link is in today’s shownotes as well.

As we begin to wrap up today, I hope you’re encouraged to get out of the barn today and try your best to look at each student with fresh eyes. I have all kinds of resources linked in today’s shownotes, and I have QUITE a piano teacher confession coming out this Thursday. Check the link in the shownotes to make sure you’re signed up for those.

On that note, let’s share a toast and then we’ll get on with our days!

Studio teacher friends: Today is a new day! May we look at each student with fresh eyes and listen with fresh ears.  There are times when the Status-Quo is perfectly fine, but let’s not rely too heavily on it ALL THE TIME, okay?  I know I can count on you to do this teaching thing up right. Cheers to us, my treasured colleagues!  Hear, hear.

That’s it for Episode 272, friends!  Again, I’ve made a handy little evaluation download for you. You’ll find that – and lots of other goodies – at ChristinaWhitlock.com/episode272.  That’s ChristinaWhitlock.com/episode272. Don’t miss out! I’ll see you later this week in your inbox. Onward and upward we go.