Before teaching online, I assumed that one of the most important parts of teaching — rapport — depended on sharing a physical space.
A classroom offers countless small signals: eye contact, body language, spontaneous questions, laughter and the energy of a discussion taking off.
Moving online changed those signals, but it didn’t necessarily remove the connection.
Some students who were quiet in a classroom became more comfortable participating through chat. Breakout rooms created smaller spaces for conversation. Digital tools offered different ways to ask questions, respond and contribute.
Online learning also introduced something the traditional classroom cannot always provide: flexibility. Distance, work schedules and other commitments became less of a barrier to participation.
But face-to-face teaching still offers something distinctive. There is an immediacy to sharing a room — the ability to notice confusion, enthusiasm or hesitation without anyone having to articulate it.
The medium changes. The principle doesn’t.
What both environments reveal is that rapport doesn’t come from a classroom or a platform.
It comes from presence.
A teacher needs to notice who is participating, who is withdrawing, who understands and who might need another way into the conversation.
The methods may change, but the underlying skill remains remarkably similar: paying attention to people.
Perhaps that is one of the most useful lessons digital teaching has given us.
Technology can change where learning happens and how people participate.
But connection still has to be created.