Research has shown us that students’ relationshipswith faculty have a direct and significant effect on their scholarly engagement

A study by Glazier (2016) of 465 studentsover six years compared one course that used built-in rapport-buildingstrategies, such as humanized instruction features like video, extensivepersonalized feedback on assignments, and personalized emails, to anonline course with none of the above rapport-building strategies. The studyexamined rapport through course grades and an anonymous studentsurvey. Both qualitative and quantitative data show that rapport buildingby the instructor can improve student success as measured by coursegrades and retention rates (Glazier, 2016)

posit that without specialconsideration, the typical asynchronous discussion format of many onlinecourses aligns poorly with constructivist theory and the nature of learningcomplex course material, such as that which is found in most MAEdcourses.