How Many Times Removed?

One of the great challenges of teaching music is the number of times removed the knowledge is from teacher to student.

We teachers only have 30-60 minutes of time each week with our students. In that time, we have to give them an action plan for their practice during the week.

Therein lies the challenge.

Teachers need to notate or record as much of this as possible. Otherwise, students can't be expected to remember everything.

But already, the act of writing the assignment down opens the possibility that the assignment may not be clear. Or at least not as clear in writing as we explained it in the lesson.

Then, when the student (if the student) reads the assignment later, there's potential for it to be misinterpreted.

This often occurs when students assume the assignment is simply a list of what to practice. Not instructions on how to practice. But it can be misinterpreted in plenty of other ways as well.

And then, there's the execution of the practice on the part of the student, which may also have flaws.

By this point, the information has gone through three filters with three possibilities of being obscured.

When we acknowledge this, it opens the door to interesting questions.

Is the assignment book enough? Should the delivery method be different? Do students need more support?

Regardless of the answers, one thing remains for certain. 

Clarity and communication are the most important aspects of the music learning process between student, parent, and teacher.

Probably more than anything else they will ever study.