In a recent blog entry, Seth Godin touched on the important theme of “a meaningful specific”.

Both as a language educator and in my work as a tour operator, I’m coming to terms with this need to offer a meaningful specific that aligns with certain principles.

For example, in the ALG Thai program, we simply aren’t going to offer vocabulary lists and grammar tables. No matter how much students may demand this, our department stands for natural language acquisition through engaging experiences (comprehensible input). If we were to change that, we would no longer be offering a natural approach program.

Where do we draw the line between sticking to our meaningful specific and making reasonable accommodations based upon customer responses?