Teachers readily admit that every student is different, yet most instructional activities require all learners to complete the same tasks. Resolving this disconnect requires that instruction be individualized to the needs of each student. The process of modifying activity in response to contextual requirements (in this case, an individual’s needs) is called adaptation. Adaptation requires that some type of assessment be performed, and that a change occur in response to that assessment. Sometimes, adaptation occurs without conscious thought or planning, as when a tutor senses that a learner did not understand a concept and explains it again in a different way. Yet most often when we speak of instructional adaptations, we refer to deliberate adjustments to the instructional design (instructional content, methods, or presentation) intended to optimize learning.
When considering...