Posted by Rick Denney on February 09, 2004 at 12:30:31:
In Reply to: I have a confession. I HATE TO TEACH posted by Sean Chisham on February 09, 2004 at 00:28:08:
Though I would never subject a student to my teaching of music, I do spend about a third of my time teaching in my field.
Like all jobs, sometimes I love it, and other times it's a chore. Unlike many college professors, who might teach the same thing once or twice a year, I teach the same short courses over and over again, and I might be presenting the same material 15 times a year. That's a little more like teaching music to beginners and school kids. But I teach groups, not individuals, and that's probably a major difference.
Something that was written below strikes the nail on the head: You have to be enthusiastic about the subject, and then explore that enthusiasm in front of the student. Then, it becomes a mutual exploration--or not. If they don't come along, then at least you have your own exploration to keep you interested. If you depend for your satisfaction on the enthusiasm of the student, then you will be mostly disappointed. But if you depend for your satisfaction on finding better ways to express the subject you love, it will be fun even if the students don't always care about it. Some will say this leaves the student out of the collaboration, but looking for the response from the student is part of finding new ways to express the subject you love. It's just a difference in the formula of satisfaction.
Do you love the subject? I suspect you do. If not, don't teach. What do you love about it? That's what you should convey, even if you do it in a systematic way. It is up to the students to determine if what makes you enthusiastic is of any value to them. If it isn't, you may not be commercially successful as a teacher, but at least it won't drive you mad. And in your shoes, you are teaching as a second job, so the commercial pressure isn't so high.
When I get up in front of a room full of people who are told by their supervisors to be there, I have to bring my own enthusiasm with me. Fortunately, I love the subject. It is discouraging when the class gets up in the middle of your sentence and leaves because their shift is over (and they forgot to tell you when it would be over, because they assumed you'd know). But it doesn't make me any less enthusiastic about the subject. The classes are more fun when students are really into the subject, but it is generally satisfying even if they aren't.
The next time you are asked to speak in front of people, think about what it is that most catches your interest right now, and talk about that. Notice how Gene talked about the subject that he'd been thinking about recently--it was a subject important to him and that he could teach enthusiastically. He chose his subject the same way he programmed his music--he picked music that he thought was beautiful, about which he had the enthusiasm at the time. Don't assume that what interests you interests you alone. Your enthusiasm might create that interest, just as a bunch of 20-something tuba players are now interested in Gene's comments on aging.
With beginners, I suspect you have to stick to some sort of program. Maybe you should put yourself out there as a teacher of adults. That way, your students would select themselves rather than being nudged into your studio by their parents. That might be a good way to learn about how to express that enthusiasm.
Rick "who thinks the best teachers have a hard time containing their enthusiasm" Denney