I’m taking a short detour from my Star Wars blog posts and social media posts, because I was listening to a music teacher podcast yesterday that was somewhat blaming the lack of practice from students because of iPads/phones/technology. As I’ve thought through this today, I disagree with that thought. And here’s why.
Yes, I use an iPad in my studio as part of my lessons. Why? There’s some excellent technology resources out there! When students spin the studio wheel and land on the sightreading part of the wheel, I open up the sightreading factory app and away we go. There are many wonderful apps and games that reinforce music learning and music theory. I have purchased a lot of Boom Card decks (on boomlearning.com) and they are interactive and fun ways for the students to learn.
Is technology evil? It depends on how it is used, I think. I mean, back in the 80’s when I was taking piano lessons, I did NOT want to practice. But it wasn’t because of a computer. I didn’t get one until I was in college. It was a cell phone. Didn’t get that until 2002. It wasn’t video games. I didn’t get my Nintendo until 1988. So why did I not want to practice? I wanted to play with my Transformers, G.I. Joes, be outside riding my bike, and many other things.
So, how did I practice and overcome those distractions? I had a mother who made me practice. She set up a plan that if I wanted to do something fun, the first thing I had to do was spend time practicing. Or, while my mom was handwashing dishes after dinner, because we didn’t have a dishwasher, she MADE me practice. And she took her time! Parental involvement is what is important when it comes to students practicing. There are those few students who enjoy practicing and work diligently….but that’s very few and far between. Students need encouragement, reminders and sometimes a strong push to make practice a priority.
As we head into the summer, practicing is important. I have a number of students who are taking the summer off from lessons. I understand the reasons behind that, but the reality is, just like when school resumes in the fall, there will be a lot of time spent in reviewing and reminding of the basics. And while I’m used to it, I’d much rather prefer starting in August with everyone remembering what the musical concepts are and we can get going from day one.
So yes, I use an iPad. I use technology to help my students learn. I don’t think it’s a negative, but I think it’s a positive. Technology is a tool. How we use them is what is the important part.