Being connected: why I renewed my membership ... why wouldn't I?(Forum Focus: Collegiate Chapters)

The idea of going to a conference sounded as appealing as cleaning the bathroom. But since my sister lived in Seattle where the conference was (cheap housing and food!), and I would get 50 percent off that first year for being a StAR award recipient (see sidebar), I decided to go. What's the worst that could happen? It would be really boring, but at least I would get to visit my sister and be in a beautiful city!

Instead of boring lectures, I found myself in sessions jumping around in our bare feet, passing imaginary musical phrases back and forth like some sort of silent mind-tennis, watching a master teacher spark a child's imagination in order to form mere notes into an exciting story and listening to an amazing musician beautifully touch our human spirits. And this was all before lunch on the first day!

I learned more about piano teaching in those few days than in all seven years of college! Not to belittle my college education; I DID learn a lot and grow tremendously, but as far as teaching piano, the conference wins.

When I tell people I'm going to a conference, they feel sorry for me and say, "At least you get paid to go since it's work-related, right?" When I explain that since I'm self-employed it's my expense, they wonder why I have to go. "I don't HAVE to go, I GET to go."

I get to do and be a lot of things as a piano teacher. I get to be a counselor, audience, coach, mentor, friend and, my favorite, a psychologist. "The art of teaching is created out of a study of the people we teach, of how they learn, and under what circumstances they learn best." (Richard Chronister, A Piano Teacher's Legacy) This aspect of teaching piano demands that we be connected to others in the same field, allowing us to share information and experiences with each other in order to help our students. This is where MTNA membership comes into play once again.

The national conference is great, but since it's only once a year, the local association is really what keeps me connected to other teachers. Not only do we have recitals and auditions for our students, we also have workshops, demonstrations and discussions for our own enrichment. I don't understand why anyone would NOT be a member. Some teachers think they are too good for it. They don't need to hear about everyone else's piano teaching issues. They have already figured out the best way to do things. Needless to say this isn't the best attitude. Other teachers think they aren't good enough or they're too young or inexperienced:

...