How do we measure progress (and no we don't mean exams!)?

I have two really important questions for you:

1) Why do you want your child to learn the piano?
2) Why does your child want to learn the piano?

I wish I could have your answers before I continue writing this post, however I'll make an assumption that you want your child:

• to enjoy music;
• to be able to express themselves through music making;
• to develop a lifelong love of music and all the pleasure that brings. 

I'll also assume your child wants to learn because he or she likes / loves music and really wants to play an instrument. 

I think it's unlikely you want your child to learn because you want him or her to get onto an exam treadmill where the sole purpose of playing an instrument becomes passing exams that get harder and harder, thereby killing any joy in music making and leading to the exact opposite of what I've assumed your goals are in getting instrumental tuition for your child.

So now we have a problem.  Much instrumental tuition revolves around exams because to date they have been one of the only absolute ways of measuring progress.  This means that parents also become exam focused because it is the only way they have been told progress can be measured, and doesn't everyone know that if you learn an instrument you 'have' to take exams.  But things don't have to be like this.

Following exam syllabi is very different to delivering a rounded curriculum and cannot possibly be a substitute.  Even Ofsted has finally come around to the view that good exam results 'do not always mean children have received the subject knowledge they need' and the focus on exams is at the expense of 'rich and full knowledge'.  Read the full article here. 

Children who learn using this exam focused approach often find they do not enjoy their learning, it is hard and they do not have a foundation on which to tackle harder and harder pieces.  They also tend to have the opinion that once they have reached the highest grade their learning is complete and they do not need to play anymore.

But what if there is a different way?  What if progress can be measured without relying solely on exams?

What would it be like if you could see your child was progressing within a well structured framework and you could see where your child was going? 

Would you be less interested in putting your child through exam after exam? How would your child's attitude to playing their instrument change? 

In September 2017 The Curious Piano Teachers released the Piano Framework.  It is the first attempt of its kind to write a piano curriculum and it details all the musical and technical skills students need to develop into well rounded pianists.   This gives teachers and parents a way to measure progress that does not revolve around exams. 

Children learning within this framework make structured progress and no areas for development are neglected.  Teachers can also add to and adapt the framework so it meets additional goals they or their students may have. 

Exams have their place and are very useful formal benchmarks for measuring progress, however they must not become the focal point of instrumental tuition because this does not lead to enjoyment, rounded development and the lifelong love of music you want for your child. 

At Surrey Music School we are slowly moving all our students onto this framework to ensure that we continue to do our best to give children the most holistic music education we can. 

If you are an existing student with Surrey Music School and your child is pre-grade 1, before Christmas 2017 you'll receive a copy of the Piano Framework with a Piano Tracker so you can see how your child is progressing.  Children who are Grade 1 and above will receive the Piano Framework but The Curious Piano Teachers are still developing Piano Trackers for the rest of the levels.  As you can see, the only way I have to measure level is 'grades'... but hopefully this will soon begin to change:)

If you would like your child to learn piano within this structured framework, in a group environment, where the focus is on developing a love of music and all round musical skills through piano playing then please do get in touch. 

Read:
'Why working to exams is anti piano' by Tim Topham
An open letter to parents from Tim Topham
Ofsted to punish schools pushing exam targets over learning from The Guardian (although schools have been saying so much testing is bad for decades - read more here.)