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Why Do Piano Students Quit? Karen King’s Research Provides The Answers

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Today we’re exploring a question that Trevor and I receive almost daily… a question that weighs heavily on the minds of piano teachers and most likely plays a role in almost every piano teaching decision we make. What is the question?

“How can I keep piano students from quitting?”

On today’s podcast we’ll tackle this question as we explore why kids quit and what we can do about it. Keep reading below and click on the podcast player at the bottom of the page to have a listen.

So Why Do Piano Students Quit?

Today’s podcast guest is Karen King. Karen is a piano teacher who has recently completed her masters degree. The topic of her thesis was focused on why piano students drop out of lessons. She’s here today to share her research on this topic and to give us some valuable insights into how we can improve our ability to retain piano students long-term. Listen in as we discuss:

  • The average amount of time kids spend in lessons before dropping out
  • Surprising findings about parental involvement at home
  • The key differences between piano students who continue and those who who quit
  • How offering choices in repertoire can improve your student retention
  • How piano teachers can create an environment conducive to long-term motivation

Offering piano students a wide variety of repertoire choices can make a world of difference. And a great way to build a varied library of repertoire is with Teach Piano Today’s PianoBookClub… where subscribers receive a new piano book every month for just $8.

Click The Player Below To Listen

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48 Responses to Why Do Piano Students Quit? Karen King’s Research Provides The Answers

  1. This was extremely helpful. Particularly because I just lost a teen student who had asked to study piano all her life, yet her motivation was extremely low… and her mother very vigilant. 🙁 Is this available in transcript form?

    Again, thank you!

    Reply

  2. I listened to this on my drive in to work today, and found it to be fascinating! This is one that I will listen to once or twice again. I meet with parents every year, during the week before regular lessons begin again – and plan to share some of this information with them.

    Reply

    • Great idea Anna! Yes, I think it is important that parents understand this information too – it’s at our fingertips so we just need to find a way to use this information as a team of parent/teacher/student.

      Reply

  4. I’d love to see this in transcript form. With dial up speed internet it’s difficult to listen to podcasts. I couldn’t get it to work.

    Reply

    • Hi Rachel – sorry, yes we don’t have transcripts. Did you try downloading it onto an iPod from iTunes (if you have one)? If you go to the iTunes store and search “Teach Piano Today” all 30+ of our podcast episodes will be there and are easy to download either onto a device or onto your computer. We have so much written info on our blog we like to sometimes break away from that and do audio instead 🙂

      Reply

  5. Interesting podcast! I have been reflecting on the fact that I have been fortunate to have excellent student retention over my 45 years of teaching. I agree with all that Karen says. Parental over-involvement is just as lethal as underinvolvement. In the end it has to become the student’s own passion that fuels the journey. But there are peaks and troughs, for sure, and I believe that finding repertoire that will hook a student is key to getting out of those troughs. So getting to know each student well, and building a genuine relationship with each one, will help a teacher find music that elicits that spark of joy we all want to see. Some really exciting supplementary repertoire can motivate a student to practice without parental nagging. Also …I do think it is vital to establish a feeling that “we are in this together” so that each student feels that you are genuinely invested in seeing them make progress. …Lots of positive feedback, no phony feedback…

    Reply

  6. This podcast was fantastic! Thank you for information that is clear and useable for teachers, parents and students. I will use this information when speaking with parents! Thanks so much.

    Reply

  7. Hi everyone – really glad you are enjoying the podcast! I had so much fun making it with Andrea. I see that a few of you are requesting a transcript which we didn’t do, but I can suggest a better alternative. I’m happy to email you the full copy of my thesis if you’d like to see all the results. What we discussed in this podcast is only a small fraction of the findings. Send a quick note to (*email removed, please contact Andrea to be forwarded) and I’ll forward along the PDF file.

    Reply

  8. Thank you for this podcast. I have been teaching piano professionally for 26 years and have experienced so much of what was discussed. Through trial and error I have learned to put many of these ideas into practice and I am blessed with a high retention rate. Of course, I do want to continually grow as a teacher and there is always more to learn. I am so grateful that there are studies, podcasts, etc. available to us!!

    Reply

  9. Hi, Andrea,
    Could you please send me the thesis discussed in this podcast. Thank you for all the information and education you provide for us teachers.

    Reply

  11. This was an extremely helpful podcast. I have been teaching for 40+ years and retention of students especially after 2-4 years is hard when they seem to hit the Middle School years. I basically have had a better retention rate with home school families and I have used several of your ideas over the years to keep students interested. Relatedness at home is one that I really is lacking with families being lifestyles are so busy yet that really completes the teacher/student/parent. Great food for thought as I start a new school year of teaching. THANK YOU for the podcast and all the great posts!!

    Reply

  12. Hi Andrea,
    I would also love a copy of the thesis mentioned above. Thank you for all of your great resources!

    Reply

  14. Interesting podcast, one which I need to get my eyes past! Please send a copy of this thesis, and thanks!

    Reply

  16. its a great article but I would like to see the same study in relation to adult beginners. The majority of my students are adult beginners who never had the opportunity to learn music as children. Most continue lessons for a number of years but there is always a small percentage who drop out after a term or so.

    Reply

    • Hi Eric! Yes, we’ve just been busy – with PianoBookClub, PianoGameClub and the release of the new editions of the WunderKeys books last week. However, we will be podcasting again so stay tuned 🙂

      Reply

  19. Good morning Andrea :). I’m doing a presentation today and just came across your site last night. Would it be possible to receive a copy of your thesis on student retention? I’ll also e-mail you separately. Your research is extremely helpful and valuable. Thank you!

    Reply

  20. I’d like to have a copy of the thesis too please! I did not get the website mentioned at 20:50, can you included it in the comments too? Thanks!

    Reply

  25. I would really appreciate receiving a copy of Karen King’s thesis. I would like to have it read by a graduate student studying the relationship between finger dexterity and persistence in piano. Thank you so much.

    Paul

    Reply

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