Get Your Students Hired
Quetittia,
Well said. When you have rapport with your students you and they get to enjoy a higher level of engagement and joy in terms of learning and the resulting benefits. Respect and rapport are the rewards of being a learning leader.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
Rapport is what trust is built off of! If you do not try to create rapport with your students then they will not trust you and will not learn as much as they could if they felt like you were an instructor that they trusted and thought cared about them and their successes or failures.
Developing a great rapport with the students are very important . I feel that each student need to gather a good rapport with their instructors. They need to feel that they in a warm and comfortable environment..
Jenaro,
Thank you for these comments on how to establish rapport with students. Earning their respect and developing rapport with them are two of the most important elements of being a learning leader. I know this information will be valuable to other instructors, especially those just starting their teaching careers and looking for suggestions on how to be successful with students.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
The development of an excellent rapport with students is critical to their learning. The students must have faith and confidence in their instructor. This can be accomplished in several ways.
One method is to demonstrate to the student that you honestly care about them as students and as human beings. You must show them respect, and this will result in respect being given to you and the other students.
As an instructor you can be friendly with the students, but ensure that they understand that ultimately you are the instructor and they are the students.
This provides for an excellent exchange of ideas and mutual respect which will increase the communication between you and the students. They will be willing to listen to you, you to them, and that is what we really want.
Nick,
Based upon your previous career and life experiences I can tell you understand both discipline and leadership. Your comments about rapport building are valuable to other instructors, especially those just starting their teaching careers. They need to see what earning student respect and developing rapport will make their job easier and much more rewarding.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
I do the same thing, usually starting with a student that has been there for a while to break the ice. I also have the new students fill out a file card with their name and a short explanation why they decided to be there. This also helps to refocus by showing it to them later on when they get discouraged and need to be inspired again.
As instructor we are mentors, we cannot accomplish this without building rapport. By build rapport with our student we can gain knowledge of where they are coming from and where they want to get. Then I can show them how they can succeed in their career field. As a leader within an organization If you fail to build rapport with your subordinates you have a hard time leading them. The same can be said for an instructor the better your student trust and respect you the easier it is to train them.
Nick (Retired US Army First Sergeant)
ALLAN,
Well said and something to remember as respect is being earned by the students while developing rapport with them.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
Rapport can be considered familiarity. If a student and instructor share a rapport with one another, it can be said that they are familiar...we are all much more comfortable and perform a lot better in familiar surroundings...we aren't carrying that extra stress that goes along with the unfamiliar...much more conducive to learning.
Greg,
Start with a private talk with that individual and see if you can identify what the problem is in relation to quiz performance. It may be the students does not have the background or experience needed or needs to acquire some additional knowledge in order to be successful. It may be that he or she is lazy or not motivated to do well which requires a different approach. For some students it will take failing the course to get their attention. With this group I try to sell them on the idea that I know they don't like the course and what I am teaching but do they really want to take it again. If they try they will pass the course and move on in their education. If they don't they will be back with me and sit through the course they don't like once more.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
how does one handle the type of student that starts out great but when the first real test comes they want to blame all but the true problem, the student?
Gary,
Respect and rapport are the two essentials needed for teaching and learning success. Respect is earned and needs to be two way between the instructor and the students. The end result will be the development of rapport and positive interaction for everyone.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
Respect respect respect!!!!! If they do not respect you you will get nowhere. You see it all the time with a teacher that has absolutely no respect from his students and they just steam role right over him every day. The respect between you and the student has to be from day one and can never get "out of bounds" so to speak.
In adult education which is career focused the development of rapport by the teacher with the students is essential in creating a positive learning environment. When an instructor is open, honest, and genuinely cares about the students it places the students at ease and makes them more open to the learning environment. As this rapport is built students realize they are not just there to learn but are actually a part of a dynamic learning environment in which their participation and input is vital to the overall course objectives. This type of rapport takes time to build and can be quickly lost by the instructor if they are not careful and mindful of their actions and reactions toward the students.
It's important, because now the student knows that you are concerned about how and what they are learning. That will motivcate them to learn even more.
Jacqueline Coleman
Matt,
Great point. I explain to my students that I am going to work to earn their respect just as they have to work to earn mine. Once we respect each other we have the foundation for the development of rapport and this is when the real connection begins in terms of the learning opportunities and student growth.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
How could someone reach a student in a meaningful way without some sort of rapport? It's imperative that the students fell comfortable with their instructor. They need the understanding that the instructor knows them and identifies with them, otherwise they might be uncomfortable addresses problems or questions.
Andrea,
Your last sentence says it all. Rapport is what holds the class together and helps everyone move forward with their learning. Respect and rapport needs to be two way and recognized by everyone.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
I think that it opens channels of communication, and helps them build confidence. Especially if they are returning to the eduction world