I've never been atracted to teaching. I consider that the role of a teacher is a very complex one that encompasses a series of requirements that not everyone is capable of fulfilling. Furthermore, you must have a teaching vocation and be a calm and patient person in order to be a good teacher. Now, having to give classes online, that is something much more complex.
I still remember some of the teachers I've had over my years in the classroom; some I remember with disdain, others with a lot of affection, others with only respect, but what is true is that I have learned something from everyone. And thank goodness, because life put the work of teaching in my way. Since I am a musician, an Oboe player, in some way I am accredited, in an informal way, of transmitting the basic knowledge of my instrument to children who are interested in learning that particular instrument.
So, since I was 18 years old, I have been commissioned to initiate children into playing the oboe. I thought I would get a taste for it on the way but it didn't, however, I never reflected that in my classes, on the contrary, I tried to hide it very well, because above all, I thought that maybe some of my teachers went through the same thing than me and gave his all for me to learn, so why can't I do the same? But I went in another direction and gave it up, with no difficulty whatsoever.
I had not taught classes for years until a month ago, when my brother who is in Peru and is conducting an orchestral project, asked me to help him train a child. In that locality they had not even heard about the Oboe and therefore, he asked me to teach a kid to play the instrument and even offered me a payment per class. The need for that little bit of money is great, and he's my brother, so I couldn't say no to him, so at the beginning of June I started classes from Venezuela to Peru.
It has been quite a challenge, bigger than any of the previous ones, because I have had students with very varied characteristics that have made the process either fast or slow but I have never taught anything online. The Oboe is a very difficult instrument to teach, and it requires special attention because it involves the use of almost the entire body. Because of this, the interaction between the teacher and the student is key, to accommodate the position of the fingers, the back, verify the physical effort at the time of breathing, if the technique is well grasped, in short, a lot of things that in online mode are very difficult to handle.
You can only imagine how complicated it is, however, thank God the child has good conditions and aptitudes for learning the instrument, and despite the fact that the process has been somewhat slow due to the type of classes, he has advanced; now we have to wait and see how everything will develop as time goes by. And despite I still don'n enjoy the act of teaching, it always is good and conforting to know that you are giving something back, that that my life experience serves to train and help others, and that my knowledge is also valued and appreciated, and I only hope that I'm making a change in that kid's life and for the better.
✨✨Blessings to all✨✨
