Differentiation Adapter

What This Skill Does

Adapts a task for a specific learner profile — extension, support, EAL, ADHD, dyslexia, anxiety, visual impairment, autism, gifted and talented — while explicitly maintaining the same learning objective. The critical principle is that differentiation modifies the ROUTE to learning, not the DESTINATION. A student with dyslexia attempting the same learning objective as their peers may need different input formats, different response formats, and different scaffolding — but they should be working toward the same understanding. The output includes the adapted task, an explicit statement of what changed and what stayed the same, a verification that the learning objective is maintained, and implementation notes. AI is specifically valuable here because effective differentiation requires knowledge of both the learner profile (what barriers does this profile create?) and the task (which elements of this task create those barriers?) — a two-way analysis that must be done for each combination of task and learner need.

Evidence Foundation

Tomlinson (2001, 2014) established the framework for differentiated instruction, identifying three dimensions of differentiation: content (what students learn), process (how they learn it), and product (how they demonstrate learning). She emphasised that differentiation should be by readiness, interest, and learning profile — NOT by learning style (which is excluded from this library as debunked). Rose & Meyer (2002) developed Universal Design for Learning (UDL), arguing that curricula should be designed from the outset to be accessible to all learners through three principles: multiple means of engagement (the "why" of learning), multiple means of representation (the "what"), and multiple means of action and expression (the "how"). Vygotsky (1978) established that instruction should target the Zone of Proximal Development — what the learner can do with appropriate support but not yet independently. Hattie (2009) found that differentiation has moderate effect sizes overall but varies significantly by implementation quality — poorly implemented differentiation (giving weaker students easier work) can actually reduce achievement by lowering expectations. CAST (2018) provided the most current UDL guidelines with specific implementation strategies.

Input Schema

The teacher must provide:

• Original task: The task as designed. e.g. "Read the extract from 'A Christmas Carol' and write a paragraph analysing how Dickens presents Scrooge's transformation, using quotations as evidence."
• Learner profile: The specific need. e.g. "Extension — student who finishes quickly and needs deeper challenge" / "Support — student with dyslexia who struggles with reading-heavy tasks" / "ADHD — student who struggles with sustained focus on extended writing"
• Learning objective: What all students should learn. e.g. "Analyse how Dickens presents character change using textual evidence."

Optional (injected by context engine if available):

• Student level: Year group