MMTA State Conference: Session 1

Dr. Derek Polishuck presenting "Transformational Piano Teaching: Being a Mentor to Our Students"

Dr. Derek Polischuk presented on "Transformational Piano Teaching". A piano teacher is much more than a piano teacher, they are someone who wields tremendous influence on development of young person's artist and empathetic potential, as well as their personal motivational framework for the rest of their life. 

• Inspired students learn independently
• Motivated students yearn to achieve at higher levels
• Motivated students find pride in their practicing
• Unmotivated, uninspired students will not develop a love for the instrument
• Student's motivation most important factor in student retention

Piano Teacher as Mentor

• Applied lessons are unique to a student's regular learning environment
• Applied lessons have multiple impacts; they give the teacher an opportunity to exhibit how much they care

Statistics: 

• Increase in adult and 4,5 y.o. beginners
• Decrease in 9, 10 yo beginners
• 4% decrease in sheet music sales
• Decrease in acoustic piano sales
• Increase in sales of $200 keyboards

This shows us that a more common type of students is a "recreational" player, not a student with commitment to much more practice. There is also tension between sports and music. While there is also a competitive culture, it is also a distracted culture, with students pulled in many directions.

Mentoring High Achieving Students

• Tremendous pressure to succeed
• Students already thinking about cost of college tuition at a young age. 
• Practicality vs. learning for learning's sake

Note: Gifted Students are hard to spot, they come in many varieties and do not follow stereotypes. Be on the lookout for gifted students and be creative with how you work with them. Simply giving them more work than other students could be missing out on opportunities (composition, etc).

Mentoring Recreational Students

• Cultivating intrinsic motivation in a student to "just have fun"
• Balancing the compolicated skill of learning an instrument with a hobby
• Are all students recreational?

Mentoring Special Needs Students

• ADHD: Research proven ways to retain interest. 1) organized lesson plans 2) clear structure of awards for good behavior/achievement 3) eye contact 4) simple instructions 5) semi-competitive games to retain interest 6) review concepts learned at end of lesson.
• ASD: Many forms of ASD. Learn about Wing Mentor Program, which helps showcase ASD students' particular gifts, while practicing social skills, giving them confidence. Communicate with parents
• Depression: Be attuned to students' emotional state. Be a listening ear for students and alert proper professionals and authorities if students reveal suicidal thoughts. 

Get to know your students as individuals, teaching each in a different way. 


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