Adaptive teaching: Conceptual reflections

Abstract

The present paper deals with the German concept “Individuelle Förderung”, which has been widely used in both policy and practice in recent years and may best be translated into “adaptive teaching” or “individualized instruction”. The paper first addresses the contexts and ways in which the term has been used. Several related concepts used in educational research and findings from research on learning and instruction are presented. Using these insights, the author proposes to conceptualize “Individuelle Förderung” as an overarching teaching concept in which teachers adapt their instruction to each student’s needs and aim to increase students’ responsibility for their own learning process. The paper closes with implications of this conceptualization for practice and research.