CREDENTIALS

The credentials of a teacher are typically: 1) education; 2) professional experience; and 3) teaching experience. All three areas are equally important, and you must be careful to select the teacher that is best suited to teaching your child.

Performing vs. Teaching: "Those who can do and those who can't teach!" Although this statement is often used as an insult toward teachers by those who are more successful performers, this adage is also a sage endorsement for the qualities you must seek in a good teacher. The reality is that many talented performers who have succeeded easily as a result of their gifts actually have no understanding of "how" they are able to do what they do. That being the case, such performers often do not make good teachers, as they have no clue how to explain something in a simple way, how to approach the challenge from different points of view or how to work with a student who seems "not to get it". Many gifted performers can be great teachers, especially for more gifted and advanced students. Likewise, gifted performers who embrace teaching seriously as a career can often acquire the teaching skills necessary to teach the beginner and less talented student. When seeking a quality teacher, you must be careful not to be dazzled by credentials of a successful career without also verifying the credentials of a successful teacher! This especially holds true for finding a teacher for young students and beginners. After all, would Albert Einstein really be the appropriate teacher for 3rd grade math?!?! At KMI our faculty are very serious about teaching at all levels, and regardless of their performance backgrounds, are committed to teaching students of all types and to improving their own teaching skills at every lesson.

Education: The traditional degree for a musician is the Bachelor's of Music, but many musicians may have come to the career of teaching via other routes that may have included other non-musical careers and educational choices. At KMI we ensure our faculty have the educational credentials required to teach our students, regardless of how they were acquired. Sometimes it can be private study or professional experience instead of the traditional music conservatory education.

SEE FACULTY for more information about the individual credentials of our faculty.