The Rolling Stones are one of many bands that students will learn about in the class. Credit: Kevin Stankiewicz | Assistant Sports Editor
With the wide variety of classes that Ohio State has to offer its students, it is likely that there will be many different opinions as to what is the best course to take.
However, thanks to the results from the recent Best of OSU online poll, OSU students have picked the three-credit-hour class Music 2252, History of Rock ’N’ Roll, as the Best General Education Course at OSU. Every semester, students are able to enroll in Music 2252, which is taught by several professors and teaching assistants across different sections of the course.
Mark Ellis, professor emeritus of music and a professor of the course, describes the class as a music history course in which students listen critically to rock music and learn about the history of rock music, social settings, the people who influenced it and how to think about its cultural messages.
“The study of rock history naturally involves some strong sociological themes, including issues of race, and examining such topics within the context of the development of rock can be quite enlightening,” Ellis said in an email.
Ped Paul, a second-year in chemistry, said that he was challenged by the course and got a lot out of it.
“I really enjoyed the class. It was a fun class. It redefined the meaning of ‘rock ’n’ roll’ for a lot of students, including myself,” Paul said. “It is a difficult course that you have to work at, but it pays off. It widens your horizons to music and teaches you about the legends.”
Alison Furlong, a lecturer of the course, said it was “pretty awesome” that the course had been chosen best general education course at OSU.
“I like the fact that students seem to be responding to what we are teaching and that they are engaged with the class,” she said.
Furlong said that many of the students take this course and enjoy it so much because they have some interest in the genre of rock ’n’ roll or in music in general before enrolling.
“I don’t think I have ever had anyone in this class who didn’t know something about rock or pop music before,” Furlong said. “A few people said that they really liked (the class) because while taking it, or after they are done taking it, they can talk to their parents about their favorite bands or artists.”
Another student who took the class, Ana Dražetić, a second-year in economics, said she really enjoyed the layout and the material of the class.
“In the section I took of this class, I really loved the fact that we actually listened to music, and we had to know it and interpret it,” she said. “We weren’t just learning facts about the music; we were learning the music itself and what it meant.”
History of Rock ’N’ Roll is offered on OSU’s main and regional campuses and is also available online.
“Honestly, one of my favorite things about teaching this class has been having students come to me and say they need to find out more about this band or hear more from that band,” Furlong said. “It’s awesome when they find a new a band that they love.”
