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Establishing rapport can arguably be one of the most important things a teacher can do when setting up a successful classroom. A successful classroom includes; empathy, trust, participation, motivation, and respect. No matter the age, students want to know that the teacher is there for the right reasons. And to do that the teacher needs to set up a rapport between them and the students, and between the students themselves. The students need to feel connected with their teacher, and the environment around them. Feeling a connection with someone provides the notion of being understood, and feeling understood when trying to learn something new can make a huge difference. The students will soon start to trust their teacher because they will know that their teacher is there to help make things easier, not harder. The student needs to know that it is okay to make mistakes, and that they will not be criticized for being wrong. The students will then be more apt to participate in class after trust between teacher and student is established. That being said, it is also very important to let the students get to know each other as well. Students can have a huge influence on other students, and learning a new language puts them in a vulnerable state. It is normal for students to feel intimidated and timorous, so it is important that the teacher helps the students feel comfortable in their learning environment. In the TEFL course under unit 4, the authors talk about the four things that students need to do in order to learn a new language. Those four things are; Be exposed to it, understand it’s meaning, understand how it is constructed, and be able to practice and produce it. When students are practicing and producing a new language, their productive skills are really at work during this time. Being in a hostile environment makes it hard to put those skills into action. When students first arrive to the class for the first time they are full of motivation, but once the course goes on they can slowly start to forget why they are there in the first place. Everything becomes a routine, they are now coming to class only because they have to. But if a teacher builds a rapport with the students and encourages them to get along with each other; they will naturally create a great learning environment, the motivation will stay, and the students will want to participate. Participation is crucial in a classroom. Especially participation in group work. Although in group activities students are aloud to decide their level of participation, a good rapport encourages friendly behavior amongst the students, ergo boosting student talk time. If they are more comfortable with their peers they will be more open to making mistakes as they continue to learn. It reminds them that they are all there to do the same thing, and that no judgements should be made. Establishing rapport with students proves to them that their teacher is as much there emotionally, as they are physically. The students can tell whether or not the teacher wants to be there. And if their teacher does not care to be there, why should the students? The students will respect the teacher on a greater degree if the teacher shows interest in wanting to be there with them. A good rapport creates open communication, trust, fun, and the foundation of a successful classroom.
