Michael, So how do you approach this? There are certainly times when students just choose to disconnect from the course and it is not the instructor's fault. It would not be healthy to blame yourself. As long as you did everything in your power to connect with the students, you should not feel this way. I do understand your statement though, because I feel the same way at times. We internalize student failure as our failure - in a way this can be a good thing. It means we want to do better! We want to be reflective practitioners and learn through each course what worked, what didn't, and continually improve ourselves. That is a great thing! Herbert Brown III