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Online Classes Are Having People Hit the Wrong Note WRITER: JEREMIAH ESTRADA PHOTOGRAPHER: COOPER BASKINS If you were a band kid, maybe you remember sitting in class and blowing into your instrument while watching the conductor direct the band. Over the past year, that’s been replaced with computer screens and a lagging internet connection. Music instructors and students have had to make a big transition and adjust to a virtual world which isn’t very rhythmic at times. When the pandemic first hit, the methods of instruction had an impact as everything moved online and music classes experienced significant changes. Oregon State University’s Native American Flute instructor, Jan Looking Wolf Reibach, was able to prepare for these changes in teaching. He said he had maximized his use of Canvas and the technical functions of the eBook he wrote in his course.
“Over the course of several years we worked to develop an eBook for the course that includes interactive hyperlinks, external hyperlinks and content formatted so it corresponds with the course curriculum which is based upon oral tradition, cultural diversity and musical self expression,” Reibach said. “The eBook is provided for free to our students.” A cultural diversity baccalaureate core course, Native American Flute course has been successful remotely during the pandemic and the students are thriving, according to Reibach. There are challenges he has faced with his instruction though, such as meeting the high demand of course registration and a general fear of the unknown from the pandemic. The university was able to support Reibach through this process by providing tools like instructor trainings, policy guidance, and technical assistance. “I have found that obtaining input from the students to develop class activities in remote modality can really help with the course,” Reibach said. Marin Monteith, a second-year student studying biochemistry and biophysics with a minor in chemistry and music performance, said they think music classes can be especially challenging in this online format.
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