 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Olivia
Date: 2002-12-09 01:52
I am a private clarinet teacher and have been teaching for 5 years. I was a good clarinet player in high school, making the state band, region etc. and I played with a youth symphony for many years. I received a music scholarship to college and majored in music for 4 years before changing my major. I decided I didn't want to put the time in necessary to be a great clarinet player and my personality won't let me be anything but the best. So instead of being so serious I am playing when I feel like it and teaching a lot while finishing up a History degree. I have about 50 private junior high and high school students. I love teaching and my students do very well. They are consistently the top students at region band auditons and ofter I will have half of the entire region band being my students. Because I've only been teaching for 5 years, most of the students I started in 6th grade are just now reaching high school. I have one student in particular who is very good. She has always done well at auditions (1st chair region band and orchestra, youth symphony as an 8th grader among high school kids) and is now a 9th grader. She just qualified for area yesterday and has a great chance of making state. The problem is that her director told her she needs to stop taking from me and take from a particular older, more experienced teacher. He doesn't feel i am good enough to teach her. I understand his concerns, but I feel like we are doing fine. The teacher he wants her to take from is my former teacher and I still talk to him all the time. Of course I know he is a better teacher than me, considering he is more than twice my age, but I think we are doing fine together. My former teacher also feels we are doing fine together and tells me I am doing great. He had agreed to do periodic check-ups with us and make sure I'm not missing anything. He is confident in my abilities because he has worked with me for many years. So my question is, can someone of my background be a successful teacher of students at this level, or should I pass my students on to someone else like this director wants? I don't want to, but I want what is best for them and this girl in particular. Any advice from techers out there would be helpful.
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Author: ron b
Date: 2002-12-09 05:37
I was in a similar situation eons ago, Olivia. Please understand, I do not teach now but I'm full of long-winded opinions these days
I feel as long as your former teacher approves of your work, keep it up. It's very nice of him to offer periodic check-ups. That sounds like a fine arrangement. However, I don't find any reason whatsoever for you to feel intimidated into sending any of your students to him. Your teacher obviously has confidence in your ability. If the student wants to change to another teacher that's fine. But really, it should be the student's choice, not the director's. As fine a teacher as he may be, he won't be teaching forever and may wish to have a say in the matter.
Sounds like the director needs a little direction.
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Author: Mark Charette
Date: 2002-12-09 11:56
However, no matter how qualified you are, the band director has now sown the seeds of doubt in your student, and if by any chance the student "slips" a seat or messes up in a competition, it's going to be <b>your</b> fault in the director's eyes, and perhaps in the student's (or the parents) eyes. Rightly or wrongly, you get the blame now, and the director will see to it that you don't get the credit when the student succeeds. Life in the big city ...
We can all tell you what's best and fair and so forth ... but it doesn't really matter when you're competing against an authority figure like the director. Some day you'll be able to, but don't be surprised or upset when the parents moev the student to another teacher.
All the best,
Mark C.
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Author: ~ jerry
Date: 2002-12-09 12:03
Olivia, if you were in my area, I would ask you to sign me up. I've been looking for another teacher for a while now. It sounds like you've had considerable success with your students, and I would not mind a little of your direction (actually I need a lot of direction).
GL
~ jerry
Still in clarinet bootcamp.
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Author: Ginny
Date: 2002-12-09 15:56
I am a former classical guitar teacher. It is common for students to change teachers and can help them. It sounds like you've gotten the story second hand, as far as what the director has said, he may just feel its time for a change. I can understand the lack of a degree as a concern and working for a history degree as a problem. Bluntly put, it would be a problem for me in selecting a teacher for my children, although your reputation (all those sucessful students) might over come my doubts.
Even without the above, switching teachers is often good for the student, if only to get a different bag of tricks. My younger son, has had three clarinet teachers in his 3.5 years of playing and four different piano teachers. The first few months with each teacher (except for one piano teacher) had explosive improvement for him. With the one exception, all of his teachers have been excellent. He will probably stay with his current piano teacher as long as possible, but it is an unusual match of temperment and musical opinion. She is dedicated to music and imparting her love of it to her students.
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Author: ken
Date: 2002-12-09 20:29
Unless you can acertain the band director is causing you to lose business with his "opinion" of your teaching abilities I wouldn't be the least bit concerned about them. What's important are the students you're training/developing for the future; after all, THEY (and their guardians) are the ones putting the pork chops on your table. As for your student(s), I wouldn't doubt yourself for one second or allow anyone to influence your students. When your gut tells you you've taught your students all you can and they're no longer making the desired progress, do the honorable thing and what's best for the profession, instrument and student. Refer them up the chain; private teaching is a revolving door anyway. v/r KEN
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Author: graham
Date: 2002-12-10 12:52
As with all queries of this kind, there are so many unknown aspects that any opinion must be heavily qualified. The director might be right or wrong, but, notwithstanding, I have the following points about the situation you are in:
1. If you and the pupil are happy and would not have thought for a second about a move unles the director had mentioned it, then it should not be you that makes or facilitates a decision for the pupil to move. The news will get around that you see yourself as good at starting kids off but not developing them further, and other pupils will assume the same applies to them. You should proceed with confidence in your own qualities, or others will not be confident in you.
2. The idea of the older teacher looking over your shoulder sounds like a disaster to me. It will create a very bad impression of your abilities. If it comes to the crunch, let the pupil go, rather than submit to this humiliation.
3. I do not think the History Degree is an issue as compared to the music degree (or lack of it). More important is, what playing do you do? If I were the pupil or the parent, the best credentials in the teacher (apart form the ability to impart or enthuse) would be the standard at which they play, and in whose company they play. That will always be an ultimate bottom line.
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Author: d dow
Date: 2002-12-10 15:19
As a private teacher I can also say that I have fired students from my studio because of the bad attitude exhibited by the parents in so far as they tended to never allow the student to choose or even say what they wanted...
.strangely enough you will find that even then you'll be blamed by them(parents) for things that that aren't your fault.
When you go out of your way to help a student succeedie.( by writing reccommendations to major university) even then some parents and students don't think your sticking you neck out for them....
be clear as to the objectives and goals you set with a given student and why. Each student is an individual and a fine teacher sets a criteria of excellence..
Expect students to practice and work hard...be helpful in finding source material and answer questions objectively as possible...when a student does well be quick to commend them....
other than that best of luck!
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