Music in edtuation
Thus duly trained and certified, a music graduate goes out into the
field to assume his role in music education. ‘What role?’ you might
ask. And that, as the Americans would say, is the 64-dollar question.
To my mind, there are a few considerations that should merit the
attention of every private music teacher and all music educators alike
in clarifying the role that the private teacher will play in educating
youth and adults.
Anywhere in the world, the school’s stamp of approval in the form
of a bachelor’s degree or a teacher’s certificate is not sufficient gua-
rantee that the holder is fully qualified to teach. While some measure
of competence or mastery of subject matter is ensured in the training
that goes with the diploma, the effectiveness of teaching will lie in the
teacher himself whose responsibility it will be to apply all the know-
ledge and skills he has learned and integrate them in actual teaching
situations. Above this, it would be well for the teacher to ask himself:
‘Am I ready to contribute to the teaching profession or should I use
the profession to develop my career and personality ?’ ‘Am I impelled
by a mission to teach music for the love of it ?’
A teacher who possesses a clear vision and proper disposition will
labour efficiently without fanfare, without promise of great material
reward, and will live, act and breathe music every minute of the day
and every day of his life. He will spread the blessings of music enthu-
siastically to all those who come under his influence. His only reward
will be the satisfaction of seeing the fruitful results of his teaching. If
he has succeeded within his lifetime in enriching and exalting the lives
of his pupils through music, then that achievement is reward enough.
The human element in private music teaching should receive the
strongest consideration. Personal contact between teacher and pupil
in individual private lessons affords a closer relationship between
teacher and pupil than that between a school teacher and members
of the class. The private teacher has a greater chance of getting an
insight into the problems and needs of the student. He will adjust
his approach psychologically according to the individual aptitude of
his pupils. Besides the use of drill exercises for acquisition of technical
skills, the teacher must use the best methods to inspire and stimulate
creative self-expression in the young people. With regard to adults,
the teacher can canalize whatever talents and interests are strongly
evident in them. For both young and old, the skilful teacher can make
music lessons a pleasurable excursion in quest of the beautiful. He can
also contribute a great deal to the character integration of young people
by instilling in them traits and virtues needed for the moulding of