Social media is rarely a place for nuanced discussion, especially of serious topics, which is why I tend to keep my engagement on social media relatively light, and include what I’m up to professionally. Because of this, I do not engage much in online arguments, even when I am attacked or disparaged.
Recently, someone I respect said to me, “your silence is noticed.” That tells me that by not saying anything people might be assuming thoughts or feelings that are in no way mine.
That brings me to this: I’d like to discuss the responsibility of being a teacher. Growing up, I never thought teaching was something I would have any interest in. All I wanted to do was get out of school and go play trumpet. Right after I finished my undergrad, I won a job playing lead trumpet in the U.S. Army Field Band Jazz Ambassadors. I didn’t know a lot about the band at the time, but was very excited at the prospect of playing lead trumpet in a big band for a living.
Once we were out on the road, I found out that the band would often play morning concerts at high schools, and offer clinics for the high school students. The people in my section were not enthusiastic about doing the clinics, so that duty quickly fell to me as the junior member. My first two clinics were in Elko and Winnemucca, both in Nevada.
These two days changed everything for me. As I have said many times, I am a product of good teaching. I was fortunate in growing up with a supportive family, good schools, and great teachers. When I was put in front of young trumpet players in these two small towns in Nevada, I found out that they were not in the same position I was. I started by asking them what they were working on. They, reasonably, said their band music. Trying to help, I asked them if any of them had their Clarke or Arban’s books handy. Not only did they not have those books- they had never heard of them.
They were not getting good information about the trumpet.
They weren’t getting much information at all.
So I spent the time we had giving them as much good information as I could. And guess what happened? They listened, seemed interested, and took what I was giving them and started putting it to use. After that I told my section mates that I would be happy to do all of the clinics in the future. They didn’t argue.
In thinking about teaching, there are so many facets to think about. I’ve talked and written a fair amount about how I try to simplify this in what I do now- trumpet teaching. I could go on and on (and often do) about the nuts and bolts of trumpet pedagogy, or even teaching on a larger scale.
I’ve taught a lot. After leaving the Army, I was a teaching assistant at the University of Miami. During my time there, I taught trumpet lessons (mostly non-majors), ran the 3rd jazz band (mostly majors), and in one semester taught an undergraduate ear training class. After leaving Maynard Ferguson’s band, I did something perhaps a bit unusual; I taught kindergarten for a year. At that school, I also ended up teaching one class of algebra, one class of pre-algebra, and coached the 8th grade boys basketball team (to their first winning record and playoff victory!). I was also teaching trumpet lessons at the local music store. After moving to Chicago, then West Lafayette, I started teaching private lessons while freelancing. I’ve had students from ages 6-65.
Today I want to talk about the most important part of teaching. Without this in place, all the best information and pedagogy will be useless.
Today I want to talk about trust.
When working with students, it is the teacher’s responsibility to build trust with their students. Some of you might be wondering how you do that. I’m glad you asked.
There are lots of universal truths in teaching. My favorite is this: You cannot fool students. It’s true. Think about all of the teachers you’ve had in your life. You know which ones were really there for you, and which might not have been. Having taught kindergarten, I can assure you there’s no fooling a group of 6-year-olds.
Here are three ways to help build trust with your students.
Be Honest
This may seem obvious, but it is worth starting here. When working with students, it could be easy to sit back and tell them they’re doing just fine, even when they aren’t. This, in the short term, might make the student feel okay, and be easier on the teacher. I call these people “Etude Checkers”, as they amass the number of students they think they need to make the right amount of money, then go through the motions rather than really teach. The teacher gets paid, no one gets upset, and no one gets much better either.
The problems start when the student realizes that what their teacher is telling them isn’t the truth. At that point, there’s no reason for that student to study with that teacher, as they can’t believe anything that is said to them.
It can be more difficult to face each student’s challenges head on. This is where the hard work begins. As a teacher, it’s imperative that you are clear with each student on what is the best path forward for their growth. This does not have to be negative. Everyone has stuff to work on. As a teacher, your job is to help identify your students’ weaknesses, and then give them a path to improvement.
Invest
If you have a student studying with you, they’ve made an investment. They are giving their time, energy, and money so that they have time with you. As a teacher, you must invest in your students. You do this by being there for them, knowing what they’re doing, and making sure the time you have together is well spent.
Your students need to know that you care about them. You must give them your full attention when you are working together. If you are distracted or doing other things on their time, you are sending a clear message that you don’t care. This is the time you have to see what they’ve been doing, offer clear feedback on what you see and hear, and give them information on how to continue to grow. That’s a lot, and needs to be taken seriously.
Hold Yourself Accountable
Your students are accountable for what you assign them. As a teacher, you have their grades in your hands. The teacher’s accountability can be much less clear. In most cases, there aren’t firm guidelines for how to hold teachers responsible for their actions. And that is an enormous problem.
Unfortunately, I’m not in charge of everything, so all I can do is offer some helpful guidelines. Being a teacher is a HUGE responsibility. As a teacher, you’re not just telling your students what to do and how to do it, you’re showing them. Students will learn at least as much from teachers’ actions as their words. Think about it: if a teacher is a really nasty person, when you’re their student you will be less likely to listen, even if the information is good.
As a trumpet teacher, I, like my colleagues, stress the importance of regular, smart, and dedicated practice. I’m also here at 7:00 in the morning actually doing it. If I’m just saying it, and my students think I don’t really practice, those words probably don’t hold nearly as much weight.
Finally
Whether you like it or not, students look to teachers as role models. What this means is that teaching is more than just conveying what you believe to be good information. Teaching is about helping people grow. As teachers, our responsibility is to both tell and show students how to do that. This includes everything from how to put the mouthpiece into the horn to how to treat other people. Students learn what they are shown. When they are shown how important professionalism is, they will learn it. When they are shown the need for truly great playing, they learn that too. When they are shown what it means to be a good person, they will also learn that.
If you’re not able, willing, and interested in showing students these things, then you shouldn’t be teaching. Go and do something else. Students are too important and deserve the absolute best.
Tartellog 