If we are not in the classroom for the learners then we shouldn’t be in there at all. Obvious right? And yet, what does it mean to be fully present and engaged for the learner? From my POV it means that you need to adapt your curriculum according to the uniqueness that each learner brings to the situation. I’m not exactly sure why we would think any other way really. Each learner brings with them a set of knowledge that is unique, a specialty perhaps, a way of learning, a way of collaborating with others, a communication style or pattern. If you design your courses with a one-way information highway style, then there is no dialogue. Without dialogue, then you’ll never know anything about your learners, except that they are just as eager to be present as they are to be acknowledged. The challenge is, how do you design learning for multiple learners while considering the needs of individuals as well? One solution is to ask learners at the onset of deploying your design that knowing what they think they course is, what do they want to get out of it? This can also be asked prior to the first class. The goal after that is to uncover new ideas, extract common themes and allow them to influence your design.