8 Ways to Build Rapport with Students in Online Classrooms

Everyone takes time to adapt to a new environment and instructors are no exception. During the challenging months of the pandemic, instructors have coped with a lot of changes and are continuing to experiment with how to best engage and build a positive rapport with their students in the online classroom.

Fostering a sense of community plays a crucial role towards students’ success in higher education. Therefore, building a strong relationship is an inevitable part of this process. Research has indicated that creating connection with your students will increase the likelihood of your course being remembered and prioritized by your students.

Building rapport with your students in an online classroom is a whole new ball game. Connecting with learners without meeting in-person takes more than smiling, making eye contact, and promoting office hours. It seems like a completely different skill as you can’t see your students’ reactions as easily or understand their needs by interacting with them in the classroom as formerly.

Did you know that you can unfold many of your existing teaching skills that can be adapted and applied to the online environment? This will not only help you build strong relationships with your students but also save you time and effort in acquiring new skills. Below are some of the many ways that you can utilise to elevate your relationship with your students in an online classroom.

1. Be Present

You always encourage your students to attend and participate in the class and likewise learners expect the same level of engagement from their instructors. When your students notice that you’re consistently energised and motivated, they tend to mirror that behaviour. Your presence and voice in the virtual classroom have a profound effect on student engagement. You can demonstrate your own commitment towards the course by taking regular video classes, responding to questions in real-time, and being present on video during guest lectures’ presentation. All these efforts will help you maintain a steady engagement with your students.  

2. Be Positive

Simple yet effective — your positive and friendly attitude will offer your students the comfort to share with you, trust you, and build strong connections with your digital classroom. You should also promote in-class comments and respond to them in a positive way. Similarly, the use of uplifting language when providing feedback on assignments will help nurture your students’ confidence. You can’t avoid corrections, but you can present in a way that fosters students’ motivation to improve and to come to you with questions. Your approach can encourage students to put in more effort and participate in class more frequently.

3. Share Your Enthusiasm

Being enthusiastic is naturally contagious. Don’t hold back your passion! Your joy for your work will seep through the virtual walls and inspire your students to, if not find their own interest in the course, then at least more enjoyment of it. Think about how listening to a passionate speaker brings a smile to your face and try your best to do the same for your students.

4. Open Up

Many times, instructors are considered aloof from the student experience. By sharing an anecdote about your family or an experience, you can change the way students think of you — as not just their instructor but as a person who has experiences relatable to their own. If you prefer to refrain from sharing personal stories, you can open up in other ways. Include interesting elements to your course by posting a YouTube video you found fascinating or worth sharing. You can also share a ‘what I’m reading’ update with a link or two to articles you enjoyed. You may then elaborate a bit about why you found that content interesting and encourage students to comment or reach out with their own thoughts. Students will consider you more approachable and feel more comfortable in sharing their experiences.

5. Send Personalized Emails

It’s not always easy for the instructors to send a personalised note to the whole class, especially when many students are taking that course. But if you’re teaching a more manageable class, then sending a couple of personalised emails to your students will go a long way. Its very effective to personally check with the students about their individual challenges and experiences during the semester. This targeted outreach will not only encourage a lot of responses but also help you gather insights that will improve your course.

You may also consider emailing students during breaks or holidays, without expecting the same response rate. This type of simple, kind communication will show that you care about your students. Such act of support and empathy is extremely valuable, especially for the students who can’t meet their loved ones for holidays.

6. Comment Often

Some of the best ways to engage with your students are by providing feedback on assignments, discussion boards, or journal entries. You can focus on what the student is doing well, what they should reconsider in the next assignment, what they should discuss further with you, and even your own thoughts on a topic. Comments open the dialogue and act as a great catalyst for increased class participation, discussion, and rapport building with your students.

7. Provide Video Updates

If you consider all the information or updates that you and your students receive regularly: emails, assignments, announcements, and newsfeeds are in text form. Posting a couple of videos every other week will be a welcome relief for many students. Videos are perceived as a more accessible style of communication. It will also give you a chance to make your presence felt. You can use videos to remind students of upcoming deadlines, share the week’s plan, and even offer your own opinion or perspective on a current event. By sharing videos, you will come across as a more approachable instructor to your students.

8. Be Consistent

Lastly, it’s imperative to understand that consistency is very effective and crucial. If you wish to nurture rapport with your students using certain communication tactics, then you need to ensure that they’re delivered consistently. A good approach is to build yourself a schedule of when and how you will engage your students and adhere to it. The likelihood of your students engaging with your course will higher and that too, more frequently.