# data[].attributes.body
I think one of the most decisive factors of how students learn is the home-school relationship. While teachers are setting expectations for their students, not all families agree with and nor support the teacher's teaching philosophy. It can be difficult to document experiential learning. Not all students will create a product when learning. Young learners may lack appropriate oral skills to accurately translate their experience with adults. Educators have to be mindful of how to communicate with families so that learning tasks and expectations remains transparent.

# data[].attributes.body
As primarily a secondary school electives teacher, student motivation remains one of my greatest challenges. Although the vast majority of students are in my class because the want to be, there are always a significant number who have been placed with me due to other issues: a lack of space in their desired course; a lack of pre-requisites for other courses; and even a general disinterest in school so it is decided not to place them in an in-demand academic course. This leads to some extra challenges, as electives are often seen as being “not a real class”, removing any vestigial pressure to academically perform well for some of these students. While there is always a hope that they might develop a passion for my subject area (it is digital media and design after all :), I have often brought in elements of gamification to try and develop greater motivation, while also ensuring all the necessary supports are in place to ensure student success once they are engaged.  However, I have perhaps had the most success by trying to connect with students on an individual basis. I have often found that once students feel you have invested in them that motivation follows. As such, my class design incorporates opportunities for one-to-one discussions or interviews with students, as means of assessment, providing necessary learning supports and ensuring that they know someone cares about them and their success.

# data[].attributes.body
Motivation is a challenge as I develop capacity building opportunities for a team of professional learners - most are assigned to the team by their Managers and some volunteer to take part based on their interest. Range of Users also plays a role as the learners' knowledge on the topic varies greatly due to professional experience, all are based in different continents so application of learning in their in-country context is an important consideration, language and comfort with the use of technology.

Charisse

# data[].attributes.headline
Range of users and adaptations/modifications.

# data[].attributes.subject
Range of users and adaptations/modifications.

# data[].attributes.body
A big challenge is the range of users and learning levels in a group of students, and the considerations of design going into modified programs. Is the adaptations/modification too much change, or not enough change? Is the adaptation actually on-point with learning objectives? I've often struggled with this, thinking that, no matter how well-intentioned a design consideration is, it will have its flaws. I do like Julia's comment - have many different options. I have found that having many activity and assessment options work well. However, sometimes too many choices can confuse some students.

- Paul P.

# data[].attributes.body
In a tech classroom, having students be able to remember multiple steps required for projects used to be an issue. Students have a narrower retention window than what would allow for an entire project procedure list. Breaking the process into many smaller how-tos supported with mobile friendly videos that are easily accessed have contributed to a much better work flow, drastically reduced repetition of demonstrations, and more time for one-to-one assistance.
Ed

# data[].attributes.body
Motivation used to be an issue in my environment, as many boys join the military because they do not have other options, are not sure what to do with their lives, or are not academically inclined to begin with. That put a lot of pressures on instructors to keep students motivated. However, many of those issues have been managed, and I would say that my biggest challenge now is teaching to multiple levels of ability.

As much as students are streamed in learning environments, there are always limitations and practical considerations impacting student placement. Teaching to a range of levels, not to mention different learning styles, requires a lot of thought to be put into learning design. When I design experiences, I establish the objectives and try to provide plenty of options for learners to address their own needs, moving up or down as required, and providing support where needed. I also try to identify strong learners as leaders and enlist them as peer tutors, as this can reinforce their learning.

Julia

# data[].attributes.body
Largest difficulty I had with my student is getting them to retain the knowledge, specifically grammar, I taught. Many students simply forget about the grammar I have taught even the day after. It has been a struggle to teach English in a non-English environment. I have tried to incorporate a lot of activities which involve the learned grammar (writing and speaking discussions which requires the use of past tense for example). However, to the students, it is still a rule that they always forget to follow instead as part of the English language.

Edrick

# data[].attributes.body
The largest obstacle for my students is accessibility, which seems to fit under range of users. I think there is a huge divide between what the Western world believes is accessible and what the reality is in other parts of the world. My students will go abroad, but they cannot legally access many resources used in online learning environments, putting them at a disadvantage when they finally attend foreign universities. So, it is important to provide opportunities that prepare them to use the wide range of resources that will be available to them, while also respecting and following local restrictions. An example that occurred at my school was when an award program developed an online platform. It was meant to make managing the program easier. However, platforms use of Google Analytics and Google translate meant that it could not be accessed by my students. So, range of users, to me, does not just extend to age and ability, but also to what is accessible in a geographic location. There is a need to consider the needs of all learners that may interact with a learning environment, not just what will benefit the majority.
-Meghan

# data[].attributes.body
Great suggestions, Elske. Designing these components to be integrated into a course can help support interaction and motivation early on. I especially like the idea of personal learning goals (is this something that's shared with instructors?) and a reflection on learning progress--there are so many ways to do this! A reflection doesn't necessarily have to be a written statement anymore, it could be an ePortfolio or audio commentary. Thanks, Paige

# data[].attributes.body
This is always the most challenging aspect for me. I want to assess authentic learning, and it is difficult for me to emphasize process and learning the whole way through a learning experience, only to turn around a give it a summative assessment. The issue is not the summative assessment because I know my students recognize and can reflect on their own achievements pretty well, but it is that this number/grade is then used externally. ie. My students' marks 'count' towards their university applications.
-Joyce

# data[].attributes.body
I have very good experiences in online courses with the following strategies:
Motivation through badges, visual progress indicators and timely feedback.
Discussion forums to help students engage in discussions and learn from each other in multiprofessional student groups.
Include definition of personal learning goals (at the beginning) and a personal reflection on the individual learning progress (at the end) as mandator in each course.
- Elske

# data[].attributes.headline
although I would love more human interaction in my courses (corporate) it is not always resource wise feasible. Getting time from a subject matter expert is very difficult!!

# data[].attributes.subject
although I would love more human interaction in my courses (corporate) it is not always resource wise feasible. Getting time from a subject matter expert is very difficult!!

# data[].attributes.body
online comment boxes promoting peer assessment is a great way to get students comfortable with how to rate their peers work but can be a challenge if they are not anonymous I found

# data[].attributes.body
My students' English abilities have a huge range. This is where great design provides something for everyone and using technology can really benefitbut it's difficult to actually execute. -Robert Rem