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Show Choosing A Music Teacher notes. He is concerned w ith all aspects of music sight reading, read-ing, improvising, theory and history; all should be taught from the beginning. A good teacher will give students opportunities to hear music and perform. Parents need to evaluate themselves as well. Young students stu-dents need help with practice along with rides to lessons as well as financial aid. The parents' pa-rents' attitude and the home environment are important factors. Are you thinking of starting your child on private music lessons? If so, you're not alone. Many parents enter into this venture each year. The Utah Music Teachers Association Associa-tion would like to list a few guidlines to help parents solve the dilemma of how to choose a music teacher. TOO MANY parents have the attitude that a good teacher is more important for an advanced adv-anced student than for a beginner. begin-ner. Nothing could be further from the truth. Potentially talented musicians can be discouraged dis-couraged by poor teachers. The selection of a good private pri-vate teacher is complicated by the fact that there is a lack of standardization among teachers. Some have college degrees, others only a few years of training. Some are performing artists, others never nev-er play publicly. However, training and background alone will not assure competent teaching. Other significant fac tors are the personality of the teacher, teaching experience, and the teacher's interest in teaching. BY FAR the greatest factor is the teacher's personality. Is she pleasant, enthusiastic, patient? pa-tient? All these are necessary qualities. A genuine interest in children is also necessary. A good teacher recognizes the importance of continued study and self-improvement. Continued practice and study makes a good teacher even better. Also, affiliation with a music teachers association where she can gain new ideas and "keep up on the latest" is helpful. IT IS wise to collect as many opinions as possible about a teacher. Talk to his students, colleagues, and other parents. If possible, hear some of his students play, or observe a lesson. les-son. A good teacher teaches more than just how to play |
