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Teach Music Online ’ s
Carly Walton on Pivoting to Remote Teaching
BY MANUS HOPKINS
Online learning is a much more normal concept now than it was even just a few years ago . When the pandemic forced the world at large and nearly every industry , including ours , to rethink nearly everything about how we run our businesses . Some of arguably the biggest adjustments of all were made in the education field , and we ’ ve all heard stories from parents and teachers about how chaotic it could be to teach a class of kids under 10 via video call — but when it comes to music lessons , according to Carly Walton , founder of Teach Music Online , there are ways educators can leverage the use of online resources to create just as enriching a musical learning experience as an in-person lesson . Walton , originally from Mesa , AZ , currently lives near Salt Lake City , UT , with her husband and three daughters . Though she has a home base now , Walton has travelled throughout her life and career , often to the point that it made more sense to work remotely as a music teacher . In 2018 , Walton began developing business and tech courses for instrumental music teachers to help them build a global online music studio . Since then , she has created several courses focusing on digital marketing , website building , and online course creation . Her courses have been used by teachers worldwide and her online community has grown to over 10,000 teachers .
Walton studied piano at Berklee College of Music in Boston . After finishing her degree , she opened a piano studio in Arizona and taught choral music in local charter schools . In 2013 , after some of her piano students moved out of state , she decided to experiment with teaching piano lessons online . Walton shifted her studio exclusively online in 2017 which allowed her to travel to 15 different countries with her husband and baby , all while still teaching .
Pivoting to teaching music lessons online rather than in person can be a challenge but doesn ’ t have to be . Here , Walton shares with Canadian Music Trade her tips for music teachers looking to shift to an online lesson style and weighs in on the benefits of doing so .
This interview has been edited for length and clarity .
Shift Gradually
Walton : I would say mentally , the first thing you want to do is decide that future inquiries should be online . So don ’ t tell yourself all your current students need to be shifted online immediately , because that can feel really overwhelming . But if you tell yourself future students can be taught online , that allows you some time to get set up . Making the pivot and making the change happens by getting your tech and getting organized . One of the biggest things is making yourself present online . That doesn ’ t mean you need to join every social network , but you need at least one . The top one I recommend is a Facebook business page , because it ’ s free , and you can set it up in an afternoon , you can put a couple of pieces of content up there , maybe a little video demo of your studio , and show people what you have to offer . If you don ’ t have an online presence and you want to start getting online students , it ’ s going to be really hard to attract anyone , because they don ’ t have anything to go by . They have no way of getting to know you , versus when you ’ re in person and you ’ re getting a lot of referrals . People trust referrals immediately , and they ’ ll just give you a call . So , for online , making sure you ’ re present so that people can get to know you better is a great starting point .
Make Use of Visual Learning
Walton : [ A great online lesson ] is really so similar to an in-person lesson . You just need to add a few more tools to show the student visually what they ’ re learning . So , a top-down camera for piano is great . A side view camera for a guitar is great , so that you can toggle between cameras . I think anyone who taught during the pandemic probably saw that that ’ s very , very effective . Getting yourself organized online so that you have your curriculum or your sheet music that you can quickly screen share . Having good audio is a discussion that ’ s still going on . And there are so many fantastic platforms , the one I ’ m recommending most is Forte , because it ’ s free , and the audio is just really good . But honestly , a lot of teachers still use Zoom . And I think Zoom has made a lot of changes to their audio . So , you can get the student to have a better sound from their end . There are platforms like forte where they don ’ t have to adjust any settings at all . So that ’ s kind of helpful as well . So good sound materials , maybe two cameras can be helpful . I think the organization aspect of it is just really important , because you don ’ t want to be like , ‘ oh , where ’ s that book ?’ Or ‘ what is next for the student ?’ Get some lesson plans ready in advance .
32 CANADIAN MUSIC TRADE