1. THE PARALLELS OF
THE SUZUKI METHOD
AND
CONTEMPORARY LEARNING THEORIES
Shawn Riley
Psychology of Music Teaching

2. Dr. Shinichi Suzuki
• B. October 17, 1898
• D. January 26, 1998
• Son of the founder of Japan‟s
largest violin factory
• In his early adulthood, Suzuki
became familiar with Western Music
and studied the violin in Germany
• Mentored by Freud and Einstein
• By end of WWII, he decided to
devote his life to the musical
education of children in Japan
• Dr. Suzuki founded Talent Education
in 1945 at the Matsumoto Music
School in Matsumoto, Japan

3. PHILOSOPHY AND TEACHING:
THE SUZUKI METHOD IS BORN
 Designed a structured and
effective method of violin
instruction
 His method of teaching is
based on his own life
experiences, philosophies
and intuition
 Suzuki put into practice
independently created
theories
 These theories parallel to
the educational theories of
modern researchers and
psychologists

4. HIS PHILOSOPHY “The destiny of a
“All children child is in their
have talent.” parent‟s hands.”
“Once the
„seed‟ of ability
“What does not is planted, it
exist in the has to be
environment carefully and
cannot be patiently
developed.” tended.”
“Why do all children possess the
marvelous ability to speak their “First character,
mother tongue quite effortlessly? then ability.”
Therein lies the secret of how to
educate all human ability.”

5. NURTURED AT A YOUNG AGE
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Tiger Woods, age 3

6. Howard Gardner states in his book “Frames of Mind” that “one will not become
a great chess player…in the absence of a chessboard.”

7. BENJAMIN BLOOM
 American Psychologist and Researcher
 Addresses issues of relevance that supports the Suzuki Method
regarding the effects of the environment and parental support on
talent.
 Does genetics effect one‟s intelligence and talent?
 Research conducted where identical twins were separated at birth
 Findings: The environment, not genetics, can influence IQ up to 20 points
 What is the common thread among individuals of outstanding
achievement?
 Research studied the life histories of 100 outstanding people including
musicians
 Findings: Human beings born with enormous talent and promise demonstrate
the extraordinary power of parental support.

8. EARLY CHILDHOOD
MUSICAL DEVELOPMENT
 There is significant research in biology and neurophysiology.
 The research supports Dr. Suzuki‟s philosophy of the importance
of an early musical education.
 A child‟s brain from age 0-3 is 2.5 times more active than an adult
brain.
 There are critical periods of growth where learning can be easily
obtained.
 Proper stimulation at the beginning of life forms ability that can
never happen again after the first few years of life.

9. JEAN PIAGET: EARLY MUSIC
DEVELOPMENT
Sensorimotor Stage (0-2) Preoperational Stage (2-4)
 Learns through curiosity  Time for language development
 Imitates sights and sounds
 In the Suzuki Method, a child is
 Learns kinesthetic skills
most ready to begin violin
 Child‟s intelligence is formed lessons during this stage.
 The more the child is exposed to a
musical environment at this stage,  Violin instruction is deeply
the more musical ability they will rooted in language
develop. development.
 In the Suzuki Method, at this
stage the child is listening and
observing. The mother may begin
to start her violin instruction and
daily practice while the child
observes.

10. SUZUKI TEACHING METHOD:
THE MOTHER-TONGUE APPROACH
 Every child learns their
language.
 Music can be taught in the
same way!
 Early exposure
 Imitation
 Rote Before Note
 Daily practice and listening
 Review
 Positive Reinforcement
 Repetition

11. SIMILARITIES:
SUZUKI METHOD AND MUSIC LEARNING THEORY
 Edwin Gordon‟s research finds that music learning is parallel to language
learning.
 Children should be surrounded by music at an early age
 A positive, reinforcing and repetitive environment nurtures aptitude
 A child must listen and observe before introduced to a musical
instrument
 Rote learning before music reading, for this is developmentally
appropriate

12. JEROME BRUNER‟S THEORY OF
INSTRUCTION:
KNOWLEDGE REPRESENTATION
 A body of knowledge should be structured so that it can be most
readily understood by the learner
 Knowledge can be represented in a variety of ways that
represents the cognitive development of the person
 Music can be represented in enactive, iconic and symbolic
modes: simplest to most advanced representation
 The Suzuki Method is similar
 The student’s knowledge can first be represented through listening,
playing and imitation (enactive mode) before a student is ready to
comprehend their understanding in iconic and symbolic modes.

13. Images that Read and Write
Play The Violin
Represent Music Music

14. Suzuki Parental
Role
To create a nurturing
learning environment at
home by acting as the
HOME TEACHER
with the use of
POSITIVE
REINFORCEMENT
&
SCAFFOLDING

15. POSITIVE REINFORCEMENT
 According to the research of B.F. Skinner:
 Behavior that has positive consequences will reoccur
 Punishment is not effective in eliminating or reinforcing a
behavior
 These same principles are used within the role of
the parent as the home teacher in the Suzuki
Method.
 Responsible for creating a nurturing and stimulating home
environment
 If practice is fun and rewarding the child will be more likely
to accomplish and enjoy practicing
 Parent should not focus too much on a child‟s mistakes
and always reinforce the good
 Parent should value and praise their child and notice the
everyday accomplishments

16. SCAFFOLDING
 Developed by Jerome Bruner
 Child learns to become a member of a community by
learning from more knowledgeable members of the
community
 This happens within the Suzuki Method
 Parent learns the violin before the child does to become the expert
 With the guidance of the private Suzuki teacher, the parent becomes
the home teacher and practice partner of the child
 As the child becomes more knowledgeable, the parent will step in
and help less
 The ultimate goal is for the child to become independent in playing
and practicing

17. THE SUZUKI METHOD:
THE CURRICULUM
 Built on an anthology of musical works spanning through 10 books
 The scope and sequence is exceptional spanning from “Twinkle Variations” to
Mozart‟s “Violin Concerto No. 4 in D Major,” or from simple to most complex
 The Suzuki student keeps an active repertoire in place.
 They will consistently learn new works while reviewing the old in their daily
practice.
 The foundational concepts are always reinforced and strengthened as the
student progresses
 The teacher adds advanced and new concepts to works that the student has
already mastered.
 The curriculum builds the foundation for mastery by continuing to return to
learned works with a new understanding as the student‟s knowledge and
experience grows.

18. THE SUZUKI CURRICULUM AND
BRUNER‟S SPIRAL CURRICULUM
 A teacher‟s goal is to give instruction that
prompts cognitive development that matches a
student‟s cognitive ability
 Content should be first taught in a simple
fashion and then taught in a more complex
fashion when the student is developmentally
ready
 The foundational content should always be
revisited to strengthen knowledge and to ensure
mastery

19. Schema Theory with in the
Suzuki Method
In Third
Meaningful learning occurs in the Position
Suzuki Instruction that can be
explained by the Schema Theory. Rhythmic With
1. When a student engages in a Variations Vibrato
new experience, they will seek
understanding through prior
experience
Twinkle
2. Alteration to a student‟s schema
will occur in a minimal way.
3. Over time their knowledge will
grow!

20. SUZUKI METHOD:
STUDENT CENTERED CURRICULUM
 Similar to Thorndike‟s findings
 If the student is ready to accomplish a task, it is pleasurable.
 If the student is ready to accomplish a task, not to do so is annoying.
 If the student is not ready to accomplish a task and is instructed to, it is
annoying.
 The Suzuki Student is allowed to progress at his or her own rate
 Building a foundation and learning with high comprehension and
mastery is more important than to get through all of the songs.
“Education is more important than instruction.” – Shinichi Suzuki

21. THE SUZUKI METHOD:
CONSTRUCTIVIST APPROACH
Group Class
 Learn to play with others
 Review materials presented in private lesson
 Opportunity to lead group and show leadership
 Opportunity to play games while reviewing, violin is fun!
 Consists of students of many levels, novice and expert
Lev Vygotsky: Social
Constructivism
 Students, novice and expert, learn from each other in a social context
 Zone of Proximal Development
 Teacher alternates works students play in three levels, mostly focusing on pieces in
the zone of proximal development
 All are engaged, all benefit from the social context.
 Students will play if they know the work and observe if they do not.

22. THE RECITAL: A SOURCE OF
MOTIVATION
Parallel to Albert Bandura‟s
The Recital
Self-Efficacy Motivational Theory
 Joyous and motivational  The child forms an
 Variety of types from informal expectancy of how good they
to formal will be in the future
 Milestone of achievement  Forms the belief that one can
achieve the desired outcome
 Graduation Recital
 Help learners to set specific
 Annual recital where all
and attainable goals
students in the studio
participate

23. THE SUZUKI METHOD‟S
HUMANISTIC APPROACH TO LEARNING
 The end goal of the Suzuki Method is to help to nurture a kind,
giving and cultured human being.
 A child will build valuable skills of work ethnic and dedication
while understanding the importance to always strive to reach their
full potential.
 Finally, the child will develop an appreciation and love for music
that will last a lifetime.
 This idea is parallel to Maslow‟s “Hierarchy of Needs” where the
ultimate lifetime goal is to reach self-actualization.

24. IN CONCLUSION:
A quote from Dr. Suzuki found in “Nurtured by Love.”
“My prayer is that all children on this globe may become fine human
beings, happy people of superior ability, and I am devoting all my
energies to making this come about, for I am convinced that all
children are born with this potential.”