Student needs have always been the same. There have been times in history where progressive educators tried a more holistic approach to education, but for the most part educators have conducted courses that were instructor centered rather than student centered. We can be grateful that institutions have relinquished their ideology regarding the strict, severe, and aggressive methods in which courses are developed.
Educational psychologists recognize the different learning variables student’s bring to a classroom. Student’s are predisposed to learn in particular ways and have varying levels of familiarity with any given subject due to the vast amount of information that is now available through technology. Although, familiarity does not equate sympathetic engagement unless an instructor is able to assist a student in finding personal relevance in the course materials and learning events.