Starting teaching

[Oscar South]

Hey, I'm starting teaching and am giving my first lesson next week. I think I'll do a pretty good job but I just lack experiance at the moment (only one way to get that eh?).

Can anyone give me some advice on how you think I should prepare for it, how I should structure the lesson and also what info I should get from students?

I was thinking for a first lesson I'd go over basic technique at first and talk a bit about the fretboard, then talk about the function of bass in music with examples, then go through scale/arpeggio basics and then look at a bassline which shows ways that these are used. After the lesson I'd suggest some basic scale, arpeggio and technique exercises and also the student would have the basslines learned to play.

Thanks,
Oscar.

Edited July 6, 2008 by Oscar South

[iamthewalrus]

Hi Oscar,
Is your first student a beginner, or someone who's been playing for a while?

If it's a beginner, I'd do real nuts & bolts basics - tuning the bass, fingerstyle or plectrum basics with open strings, where some of the notes are, getting the fretting hand working by using the one finger per fret system higher up the board, using 1, 2, & 4 around about the first five frets. Teaching a basic 12 bar Blues would be a good idea too. The Louis Bellson book (Modern Reading Text in 4/4 Time), combined with some examples of the function of the instrument within the band would also come in handy for learning about rhythm. Working with a metronome or drum machine would be a good idea too.

If it's an intermediate player, you would have to really see where they want to take their playing. You would probably have to judge their current playing skill & suggest things here & there. There may be parts of their technique which might need to revisited, or they might need some more in depth music theory to extend their vocabulary. Sightreading or doing some more advanced rhythm work.

I'm not a teacher by the way (maybe some of the guys who are can suggest other things). If I was starting out again, this is some of the stuff I'd be looking at learning.

Cheers,
iamthe walrus

[endorka]

[quote name='Oscar South' post='233743' date='Jul 6 2008, 08:10 PM']Can anyone give me some advice on how you think I should prepare for it, how I should structure the lesson and also what info I should get from students?[/quote]

Be careful not to give them too much at one time - what you have suggested for a first lesson, as Walrus says, is WAY too much, especially for a beginner. Depending on their ability, for a 1/2 hour first lesson for a beginner I'll generally get them to adjust the strap and hold the bass properly, then attempt to teach them how to pluck some open strings with a decent tone. Don't expect any more - e.g. tuning the bass using harmonics may be many, many lessons away for some.

Perhaps one of the biggest lessons of all is to be humble as a teacher; the student is the focus of the lesson, not you. Sounds simple, but you'd be surprised at the number of experiences I've heard of where the teacher spent the lesson showing off their abilities to the student: net result - student feels inferior and learns nothing.

Jennifer

[xilddx]

Not what to teach them as such, but HOW to teach them. A few basic principles which you may or may not have heard before.

Four stages of learning:
- Unconscious incompetence
- Conscious incompetence
- Unconcsious competence
- Conscious competence


[u]Three stages of the lesson:[/u]
1. Tell them what you'll teach them.
2. Teach them.
3. Tell them what you taught them.


[u]An old proverb:[/u]
Tell me and I'll forget.
Show me and I'll remember.
Involve me and I'll understand.

Something I learned when teaching that really works is the feedback sandwich.

[b]- Ask them how they felt about what they just did, ie. a self-assessment,
- then tell them some good points,
- then how they could improve what they did (in a positive way - use the word AND, not BUT when critiquing),
- Tell them some more good points and summarise.[/b]

It's really important to find some good points and praise them for it, even if it is difficult. Language is really important too, plenty of [b]"good"[/b]s, [b]"excellent"[/b]s and [b]"I like"[/b]s are all encouraging and give the student confidence that their future uphill learning struggle is not insurmountable. Be aware of your body language and the tone of your voice, actual words account for less than 10% of your communication.

There are different learning styles, visual, auditory, kinaesthetic, academic.

Finally, like the previous two post said, don't give them too much to do, they need to feel they are achieving but being challenged. Set SMART objectives for their homework.

Good luck, tell us how you got on.

[cheddatom]

Don't get angry when they don't practice. It looks unproffessional and makes you feel bad!

I think teaching beginners can be quite easy but quite frustrating.

[Bass-ic]

I am having problems finding a teacher in Bristol!
M

[warwickhunt]

As has been said previously you just need a small amount to start with but your first lesson should be pretty much assessing where they are up to so that you can plan what you intend doing with them in the future.

[Alun]

[quote name='silddx' post='234257' date='Jul 7 2008, 04:17 PM']Not what to teach them as such, but HOW to teach them. A few basic principles which you may or may not have heard before.

Four stages of learning:
- Unconscious incompetence
- Conscious incompetence
- Unconcsious competence
- Conscious competence


[u]Three stages of the lesson:[/u]
1. Tell them what you'll teach them.
2. Teach them.
3. Tell them what you taught them.


[u]An old proverb:[/u]
Tell me and I'll forget.
Show me and I'll remember.
Involve me and I'll understand.

Something I learned when teaching that really works is the feedback sandwich.

[b]- Ask them how they felt about what they just did, ie. a self-assessment,
- then tell them some good points,
- then how they could improve what they did (in a positive way - use the word AND, not BUT when critiquing),
- Tell them some more good points and summarise.[/b]

It's really important to find some good points and praise them for it, even if it is difficult. Language is really important too, plenty of [b]"good"[/b]s, [b]"excellent"[/b]s and [b]"I like"[/b]s are all encouraging and give the student confidence that their future uphill learning struggle is not insurmountable. Be aware of your body language and the tone of your voice, actual words account for less than 10% of your communication.

There are different learning styles, visual, auditory, kinaesthetic, academic.

Finally, like the previous two post said, don't give them too much to do, they need to feel they are achieving but being challenged. Set SMART objectives for their homework.

Good luck, tell us how you got on.[/quote]

Great post

Cheers
Alun

[xilddx]

[quote name='Alun' post='234447' date='Jul 7 2008, 07:59 PM']Great post

Cheers
Alun[/quote]

fanx.

Actually, that goes for selecting a tutor too, if yours is not doing much of that stuff, you are probably not going to learn as much than you would if they do.

[Steve Lawson]

silddx - that's great stuff there! Fine words.

One of the things I try and impress on my students is that if they don't get it, it's my fault, not there's, as the onus is on me to explain what they need to know in a way they can understand it. It my job was just to rant, they might as well buy DVDs and at least be able to watch the rant again.

What to teach? All depends on what the student already knows, what they want to know, what kind of music they want to play. I try and have them playing some kind of bass line to a song as quickly as possible, even if it's just a loop of a couple of chords - making actual music, not just playing exercises. At an early stage, the inspiration that comes from realising they can do way more than they thought they could can pay serious dividends in helping them focus at home.

I guess it also depends on how long the lesson is... I don't teach for less than an hour at a time, so that gives me a little longer to develop ideas.

Steve
www.stevelawson.net

[stingrayfan]

[quote name='silddx' post='234257' date='Jul 7 2008, 04:17 PM']Four stages of learning:
- Unconscious incompetence
- Conscious incompetence[/quote]
Sounds like me over the course of a gig.

Re: OP. My teacher gave me a couple of MP3 tracks to take home that we'd played along to in lesson. [i]Very[/i] useful for practice afterwards.

Otherwise, don't rush through stuff and don't waste time on small talk or telling anecdotes. I find that really annoying when you're paying for someones time and they're wittering on about how they "used to have a Jazz bass but then sold it for blah blah...hold on, I've got a magazine here somewhere with a nice picture of a Jazz....blah blah....fancy a cup of tea....oh we're out of time."

[Oscar South]

Hey guys, thanks for the help, its all been really useful. Two lessons in now and my student is doing pretty well, getting the basic technique down and develop a good internal rhythm.

[jakenewmanbass]

If you are a good teacher giving lessons will expose to you your own areas of weakness as they will be most difficult to get across, this is good if you cope with it in the right way and it will firm areas where your info is sketchy. In Germany doing a music degree in some places involves teaching the students in the years below you. It's a great way to really establish your knowledge, which in turn makes you a better teacher.
Some good advice in here, one thing that I think has been missed; don't be afraid to say you don't know about something if that is the case, humility is a great leveler and an honest and open, trust based relationship with a student will bring much quicker results.
There's a great saying:
It's better to keep your mouth shut and be thought a fool than to open it and remove all doubt.

[BigBeefChief]

That reminds me, I could do with some lessons in th London area. Was there a thread somewhere whith bass tutors listed?