Teaching Music with Empathy
People who show empathy are less likely to bully. People who show empathy are able to see the world from other perspectives, which is not just important for student-to-student interactions, but also imperative for student-teacher relationships. Teachers seeing situations from student perspectives builds positive relationships between students and teachers. Music is an emotionally complex process, so empathy plays a huge part in learning it.
What is Empathy?
Empathy, from a teaching perspective, can be a fine line. There’s a fine line between being empathetic and being taken advantage of which has to be carefully walked. Empathy, in the context of music education means aligning yourself as a teacher with the students goals, accepting that they have a life outside of your classroom, and understanding that not everyone picks up on specific concepts as quickly as others. Empathy means understanding that a students’ emotional state will affect their practice, their lessons, and their ability to connect with their instrument as well as you, their teacher, sometimes. Being empathetic with a student allows them to feel their emotions and enjoy music without it being a punishment. Allowing students to come to their instruments and their lessons as a comfort rather than an obligation helps them build a positive relationship with a positive outlet. Sure, there are times where you may have to tell a student they need to practice more, especially if they have goals of making a career out of music, but allowing them to enjoy their instrument and find emotional comfort in it is the goal. We, as teachers, can be empathetic in many ways - simply asking our students how they are outside of their flute, relating to their experiences, validating their emotions, and even validating taking time away from their instrument (to go on vacation, when they’re sick, during the first week of school, etc.) is the best way to build trust, mutual respect and understanding, and ensure your students will enjoy coming to their lessons, even during times of struggle, rather than dreading them. Not only does this ensure a positive relationship with music for them, but it also builds a relationship that isn’t likely to just quit.
Benefits of Teaching with Empathy
As a teacher, using empathy in your classroom builds strong relationships with your students, meaning they’re more likely to be engaged in the classroom, relate to you and your advice, taking more of what you have to say to heart, and overall being motivated to continue to get better. Students that look up to, respect, and actually LIKE their teachers are more likely to want to please them by practicing, as opposed to being afraid of disappointing them by not. Not only do students engage with you more, but you’re more likely to attract learners of all backgrounds considering you promote a safe, inclusive, and understanding environment. Understanding that not all students are the same, come from the same homes, live in the same circumstances, etc. is hugely important in building a safe and inclusive studio. Teaching with empathy also models positive emotional intelligence for students, helping them to build on what they’re learning at home or in school. This also gives students the skills to channel emotions into their music rather than externally into situations that aren’t healthy.
Strategies for Incorporating Empathy into Music Teaching
To start implementing empathy into your classroom, you can begin by asking questions and active listening. Asking, first, how they’re doing, how their flute playing is going, how’s school, etc. The key here, though, is that you really have to want the responses. Just asking isn’t enough. Being interested in the responses, making mental (and sometimes written) notes about what’s going on in their lives, following up, and really building the relationship with your students is even more important. It’s okay to talk about your life too! If you have an experience that relates to what they’re going through - talk about it! Open communication builds empathetic relationships. It’s also important to build your curriculum based on the needs of the individual student. You’re less likely to be empathetic or sensitive to students as individuals if you’re running them through the same structured curriculum as everyone else. This doesn’t mean every student has to be extremely different! This just means that their books, repertoire, etudes, etc. might look different than other students that are progressing at different rates or have different goals. It’s also important to promote creativity and self-expression, specifically when it comes to peice interpretation. So, allowing students to compose their own pieces, write in articulations and dynamics that make sense to them, and acknowledging that while you, the teacher, can give notes on those things, ultimately their creativity matters and your way is not always THE way when it comes to self-expression. Opening the doors for students to be creative is KEY for creating an empathetic and inclusive environment for your students. You can also build a safe and empathetic classroom by encouraging camaraderie between students - having a network where they can meet and interact by throwing studio parties, recitals, group outings, masterclasses, and ensemble opportunities.
Overcoming Challenges and Potential Pitfalls
Of course, balancing empathy while also maintaining standards for student progression is difficult - there are certainly times when tough conversations have to be had, because there’s a difference between being a student’s bestie and being their teacher. Your job is still to make sure they’re progressing, and if they’re not, it’s not for lack of effort. Finding that line can be difficult sometimes, but maintaining and open mind and paying constant attention to what’s actually going on in your students’ lives musically and not. Emotional exhaustion in teachers is also common, particularly in empathetic classrooms, so it’s important to maintain self-care rituals, because it can be difficult to bare the emotional load that comes with students struggling. Therapy can also be a great tool, allowing yourself to unravel the emotional weight your students may pass on to you and learning how you can help if you have students in difficult situations at home and at school. Teacher and student relationships must also maintain boundaries. Going for the occasional coffee or driving the occasional student home is fine, but students and teachers must respect the line that comes with the fact that there are boundaries set between bestie and teacher.
Collaborative Opportunities to Teach Empathy
Collaboration is a great way to create an empathetic and safe space for your students to learn! Allowing students to bring in their “flute besties” in my case on specific days, collaborating with other studios for small ensembles, and having studio parties throughout the year builds friendships, fun through music making, and can be a great way to make sure your studio is a great place for students to be. You can also use these collaborative opportunities to teach students about working with other students of varying playing capabilities, emotional intelligence, and creating their own safe spaces with the way they interact with others. It’s also a great opportunity to teach about conflict resolution within groups (as, inevitably, there will be a group conflict - it’s in the nature of musicians to disagree!) and how that can translate to every day life.
Conclusion
Teaching music with empathy can not only builds your students to trust you, but also builds better musicians. Musicians who learn their instrument in an empathetic and safe space are more likely to have higher emotional intelligence, to treat their instrument and other performers with respect, and to build relationships through music. Incorporating empathy into the classroom is not difficult to implement, but may take some self-reflection and small shifts in the way that you treat your curriculum as well as how you speak to your students. You will benefit from these changes. Teachers that choose to teach with empathy see lower drop-out rates and higher practice levels amongst their students, so the answer is clear. Teaching with empathy is the superior method in the music classroom. By breaking the mold of the mean music teacher, we can inspire a whole new generation of well-rounded humans and incredible musicians who value emotional connection and creativity through music rather than competitiveness and rigid structure. Be the change.
