I recently heard a story about people in London. Public transportation there is used by the majority of residents in the city. At some point there was some construction done and many of the normal routes were closed or changed. That meant that hundreds of people had to find new ways to get around the city on the bus and train. I’m sure most of them thought it was inconvenient or frustrating. After the construction finished, however, a significant percentage of them kept traveling using the new routes instead of going back to the routes they used before. The construction forced them to find different – and in many cases, better – routes to travel.
Teachers are facing a unique challenge right now. Across the country, schools are closed and students are now learning online or through packets. I never imagined that I would be teaching orchestra online for an extended amount of time, yet here I am. Some many individuals and companies have offered ideas and services, free of charge. I have been inspired by the generosity of so many.
I have also seen and talked with teachers who are frustrated by the challenge and have all but given up trying to actually teach their students during these weeks.
How do you teach a performing ensemble remotely?
How do you keep students motivated to practice on their own?
How do you teach anything of any value whatsoever?
I don’t have all the answers, but I do believe that this unique time has the potential to become a gift. Never before have I been given the time and resources to experiment and explore. Every day I can try new tools and ideas and see what works and what doesn’t. I may go back to what I was doing before, but I also may learn something that changes the way I teach forever.
I believe that this unique time has the potential to become a gift.
Here are some ideas to help you make the most of this time
Get down to the essence of what you want your students to learn.
What do you really want your students to know once they leave your classroom? Break it down and ask yourself why, preferably three or more times. You might say, “I want them to perform in an ensemble.” Okay, but why? “Because I want music to be an important part of their life.” Great, but why? “Because music can teach them necessary life skills.” There – now I can work with that. What life skills do they learn from music? Can they learn them another way besides in a performing ensemble?
On the other hand, take a look at what you are assigning your kids online. Are the assignments you create online helping them to learn those essential lessons, or are you assigning busy work to fill time? If you wouldn’t have done the assignment with the students in class, why are you doing it now?
Find ways to simplify and clarify.
I’ve found that online learning requires a different level of simplicity and clarity. In person, you can explain things multiple times and wing it if necessary. Online, you have to be as clear and simple as possible. In just three days of online teaching, I’ve simplified and clarified things about my teaching that I didn’t even know I could. I’ve surprised myself at how much better my teaching can be. I certainly hope to continue that once I can work with my students in person.
Spend time getting familiar with tools that could be helpful.
There are mountains of resources available to teachers for free right now. Not every tool will be helpful, but there are many tools that might be exactly what you have always needed. Talk to other teachers first. Read online forums and see what has been helpful for other music teachers. Then take part of your day each day to experiment with a new tool. You don’t need to use it with your students, necessarily. Just explore and see if something could be useful. It may not even be right now – a tool you find and discard now may be exactly what you need in a year or two.
Journal!
I am a huge fan of journaling. I know not everyone is, but there is one amazing benefit that I believe makes it worth your time. You will learn lessons during this time. If you write them down, you can continue to learn and benefit from them in the future. If you don’t, you will most likely forget. Allow your present self to teach your future self. Take the time to write down what you’ve learned.
I am passionate about learning to teach. I consider every day of my teaching career a precious opportunity to get better than I was yesterday. No, teaching music online is not ideal. The hardest part of this whole shutdown for me is not being able to work with my students in person. They are my joy and my purpose. I intend to make the best use of this time so that my students and I come out of this better for having done it.