Why video-ing practice sessions helps

For about 1 year now I have been asking my students to video their practice sessions for me to check when I next see them.  I  am happy to say that students who diligently do so have been steadily improving.   Whilst my initial rationale was as simple as ensuring (and having proof) that students do indeed practise, I realize that there are other benefits to recording:

1. As lesson duration is only around 45 mins to an hour, there is a limit to the areas I can focus on.  By looking at their recorded practice sessions, however, I can identify the problem areas that students most frequently encounter during their own practices (students usually play differently on their own without teachers at their side to prompt them), so that I utilize the lesson time more productively to target those areas.

2. It makes students less self-conscious when playing in front of other people.

I remember that when I was learning the piano, I used to tell my teacher that I could execute the pieces and scales better during my own practices than with her during lessons.  I believe this is the same experience of most students as well.  I guess we humans are always self-conscious when other people are around.  That’s why most of us are pretty good  “bathroom singers” ……we can sing well in our own bathrooms, but not in front of other people.  Recording is to a certain degree similar to playing in front of other people …..we get self-conscious as we know that every of our move is being recorded and captured.  Once students are used to recording, however, they will automatically get into the zone of concentrating on their playing without paying undue attention to their surroundings.  This will go a long way in helping them to cope with exam stress.  Whilst  the fear and stress of playing in front of an examiner (who holds the key to passing or failing you) can never be totally eliminated, I believe that recording will help students build some resilience to that stress, and hopefully help them in their confidence and steadiness on the exam day.   Not to mention too that confident students are able and willing to play in front of family and friends.