PIANO
PEDAGOGY
FORUM
v. 10, No. 1/January 1, 2007

Kathy Thompson
Oklahoma Christian University
PO Box 11000
Oklahoma City, OK 73136
405.425.5532
kathy.thompson@oc.edu

Panel Discussion: "Teaching to the Millennial Generation"
Martha Hilley, Peter Jutras and Lauren Walworth, panelists

The question for the panel discussion was "Are our teaching methods in sync with the core tendencies and personality characteristics of the millennial generation?" The three panelists were all piano teachers, each representing one of three different generations. Martha Hilley, coordinator of class piano and piano pedagogy at the University of Texas at Austin, represented the Baby Boomers. Peter Jutras, piano and piano pedagogy professor from the University of Georgia in Athens, spoke for Generation X. Lauren Walworth, recent M.M. graduate from the University of Oklahoma, shared perspectives from the Millennial Generation.

Panelists began by attempting to clarify the question. Hilley asked if the question pertained to methods or teaching styles. Jutras asked if it referred to teaching piano teachers in pedagogy classes or teaching piano students. Walworth thought the question was inclusive of methods, styles, computer use, and group lessons, but moreover, how to help millennial students considering their particular characteristics. Most of the discussion evolved in two directions - how to appeal to their characteristics, and how to lead them out of limitations typical to the millennial generation.

Panelists referred to characteristics of the millennial students from Craig Vickio's presentation from the previous session and from Robert DeBard's article, Millennials Coming to College (New Directions for Student Services No. 106, Summer 2004, copyright Wiley Periodicals, Inc.) Typical millennial students were sheltered and highly protected by "intruding" parents. Having highly structured schedules from childhood, they also like structure in their classes. From playing video games they are used to immediate feedback, and they are quite savvy technologically. Millennials generally have a high level of trust toward authority. They tend not to question as much as Generation X students, and often avoid thinking for themselves. Millennial students are team-oriented and enjoy working in groups.

Walworth agreed with the characterizations of her own generation and mentioned that she and her peers had often been showered with trophies and medals not just for winning, but for effort, and that they were used to making A's in high school if they came to class and followed the rules. As current college students, they are most concerned about how to make the grade in college and have the perception that without the 4.0 one can't land a job or get into a good graduate school.

As the panel continued their dialog, several recommendations surfaced for teaching millennial students.

1. Syllabus and Structure: A very specific syllabus provides the structure that makes millennial students more comfortable in knowing what to expect from the course, and therefore frees them from some of the worry. Breaking down long-term assignments into smaller steps or check-points also appeals to this need for structure.
2. Motivation: Walworth suggested not to include only minimum standards for assignments, but to appeal to higher achievement. Giving examples of high quality is one way to motivate. To encourage the student to get away from trying just to please the pedagogy teacher, one might suggest to students, "Make this project meaningful to you."
3. Grading: Hilley suggested explaining that the traditional meaning of A is exceptional, B excellent, and C average, not tantamount to failure. Explain to students often that not everyone will make an A because skills do not develop as soon for some as for others. Explaining rubrics and giving feedback satisfies the student's desire for structure. On the other hand, to lead them away from the need for constant feedback, Hilley does not constantly tell her students how they are doing. Walworth agreed that this is not a disservice because it may be hard to separate self-worth from the feedback.
4. Self-assessment: All agreed that there is a need to help students become goal-oriented for intrinsic rewards rather than the A grade. Jutras encouraged moving feedback from the teacher's realm to the student's by asking questions, such as, "Do you think that was too loud?" and "What did you hear?" Another suggestion for taking ownership of assessment was to have students record and evaluate their playing.
5. Practice: Hilley commented that students want the short cut to a good grade. She recommended that teachers capitalize on millennial students' characteristic trust of authority and show them how to practice to conquer a skill. "Trust me and try it."
6. Teachers' use of technology: Hilley cautioned teachers to use technology in a genuine way to enhance and serve our teaching, not to impress millennial students who likely are more computer-savvy. On the other hand, teachers must keep learning the new technology to be current and effective for this generation.
7. Students' use of technology: Jutras mentioned that as amazing as it is, technology is an obstacle for trusting, unquestioning millennial students, who report all kinds of information from web sites without knowing who wrote it or judging its authority. Teachers should demand that students learn to think for themselves and give them tools to judge the quality of information. Today's students avoid working with books in favor of websites, so teachers need to require other sources as well.
8. Diversity: Hilley mentioned that diversity presents both challenges and opportunities for students. Jutras agreed that millennial students have experienced more diversity and are more sensitive to accept differences. We can use their awareness of differences to equip them with skills to reach students of all generations. Walworth suggested that appreciation for diversity has come from the technology of communication, and that celebrating diversity should become easier as students want to reach out to the world.

This panel was quite effective in bringing generational perspectives to bear on teaching today's college students. Ms. Walworth provided credibility to the characteristics ascribed to the millennial student and reinforced the suggestions made by the experienced professors.

© 2007 University of South Carolina School of Music