Differentiation in education is a teaching approach that aims to cater to students’ diverse learning abilities, preferences, and needs. It can offer a tailored learning experience for the student, allowing them to explore and learn in ways that suit their needs. Examining the components that form and shape its implementation is important to understand differentiation. The three main components of differentiation are content, or what is being taught within the classroom or learning environment; process or how it is being taught in the classroom or learning environment; and product or how it is being assessed within the classroom or learning environment.
Content
The first component of differentiation is that of content. Content, as the name suggests, refers to the curriculum and what is being delivered, taught, and provided to students, or more simply put, it focuses on the knowledge, skills and understanding on offer and how it can and should be adjusted to meet student’s various academic abilities, needs, and interests.
The component of content acknowledges that some students need a curriculum that matches their interests and is appropriate for their level of ability and that a standardised or uniformed curriculum or content is not appropriate or supported to the development of knowledge, skills and understanding. However, with this said, it is important to note that the learning outcomes should nearly always remain the same for all students. What teachers should differentiate in terms of content is the format in which this information is presented, the complexity of the ideas, knowledge or skills or the language used in presenting them.
To differentiate content, teachers can consider the objective of a lesson and then provide students with flexible options about the content they are required to study to support them in meeting the objective.
TLDR: Content is what is taught and how it can be adapted to meet the needs of an individual
Process
The second component within differentiation is that of process. Within process, educators differentiate how students learn by using a variety of instructional strategies that match the preferences, needs and abilities of individuals or groups of students.
The component of processes focuses on the adaption of delivery, changing how information is provided to students to support their understanding of the content on offer. One of the ways that processes can be implemented is by supporting the students to see how it makes sense and realise how it is useful in the world outside the classroom.
Process takes into consideration the speeds at which students work, the type and level of support needed and their stage of current understanding around the knowledge, skill or understanding of the content. Then, using this information in selecting teaching and learning strategies to best meet these needs and abilities and support the students in gaining the required knowledge, skills and understanding based on the learning outcome.
TLDR: Process is how it is taught and how it can be adapted to meet the needs of an individual.
Product
The final component of differentiation is that of product. Product applies to the types of assignments students create, the information gathered, and the data collected during the assessment of content and process. Product is the aspect of differentiation when educators and teachers modify their assessment practice so that students are able to accurately, effectively and repeatedly demonstrate what knowledge, skills and understanding they have developed and if they have been able to meet the set learning outcomes.
TLDR: Product is how it is assessed and how it can be adapted to meet the needs of an individual.
Nottingham Education Network 