Differentiated learning refers to learning experiences in which the approach or method of learning is adjusted to meet the needs of individual students, focusing on the “how” of personalized learning. Differentiated learning is often used along with individualized or adaptive learning.
When we talk about differentiated learning, we should be careful not to confuse the concept with learning styles. This very popular, but unsupported, concept assumes that certain learners are predisposed to learning in certain ways. Although it is true that many learners have preferences for how they learn, we should not assume that because a student found a particular video helpful for learning a concept, the student is now a “video learner” and should be presented all concepts in video format. Learning is far more complex than that.