Building an Authentic Relationship with Your Students Online: Is it really possible to foster psychological safety with your students?

Keywords: online, safety, collaboration, modelling, pedagogy

Abstract: In this workshop, participants will develop a strategy for building authentic relationships with students through an online forum. Three professors with varying experiences in online delivery will discuss the key components of building healthy relationships with students, with emphasis on ensuring psychological safety at different times in the learning process. This will involve preparing for an authentic relationship (anticipating what they need to feel psychologically safe), delivering the material (ensuring they feel psychologically safe in the learning process) and follow up (ensuring they build confidence in their knowledge and leave with a positive experience). Participants will self-evaluate their own strengths and weaknesses in relation to online delivery and relationship building, and develop a plan to addressing the issues related to psychological safety in their classes. At the end of the session, participants will have developed a set of personal guidelines for creating a safe learning environment for their students online.