“I never lose, I either win or learn.”
— Nelson Mandela
Teaching Philosophy
In my studio, my goal is to create a space where students are not afraid to fail. “I never lose, I either win or learn.” It is in these great words of Nelson Mandela that I derive my teaching philosophy.
I have found in my personal journey that there have been several times that I have been afraid to make mistakes. I refuse the gift of making and learning from mistakes if I revoke the ability of students to take risks along with me. I have worked with students that have learned to approach music as a cycle of punishment and control. Every little mistake results in arduous amounts of internal and external stricture. This serves only to limit potential and cause undue stress to something that is supposed to be a fun activity and means of expression for a majority of younger students.
In flute specific training, I structure lessons as a collaborator and co-learner, not as an antagonist. In essence, learning flute from an instructor is fighting the shortcomings of the instrument, not the student. My goal is to represent these ideas in a way that is structured and engaging for all levels of students.
Primarily working with younger students, I have most of my experience in teaching those that are still new to the instrument. My first concern is to address what the student wants to learn. This includes specific music and goals they have coming into lessons. If there are no goals in mind, I work through their music to ascertain them and show the student how to formulate their own goals so that they can have checkpoints to assess their improvement, which is always gratifying.
For my older students, specifically those that are degree seeking, working through the common transition of musical hobby to career can be rather daunting. Supporting this change and assuring that a shift in motivation is common, along with providing solutions and structure to continue learning regardless, are my main goals. In my experience, finding inspiration is the key to success and continuing improvement.
I find that it is truly my flute teachers, Dr. Erin Murphy, Dr. Elizabeth Robinson, and even my own mother, who have inspired me to teach the way that I do. It is truly fulfilling to see a student reaching a potential that they could not even see in themselves, just as their investment into my journey was and still is as I continue learning.