Accommodation, Modification, and Differentiation: Key Differences

Accommodation refers to changes made to how a student learns, without altering the core content or learning objectives. Accommodations aim to provide equitable access to the curriculum for all learners by addressing their individual needs. Examples include providing preferential seating, allowing extended time for tasks, offering materials in alternative formats (e.g., large print, audio), or using assistive technology. The learning goals remain the same, but the methods of instruction and assessment are adjusted.

Modification, on the other hand, involves changes to what a student is expected to learn. Modifications alter the curriculum, learning objectives, or performance expectations. This might involve reducing the complexity of a task, assigning fewer items, providing different grading criteria, or adapting the content to a student’s individual skill level. Modifications are typically used for students with more significant learning needs where the standard curriculum is not accessible even with accommodations.

Differentiation is a broader instructional approach that involves tailoring teaching and learning to meet individual students’ diverse needs. It focuses on providing varied learning experiences based on students’ readiness, interests, and learning profiles. Differentiation can occur in several areas: content (what is taught), process (how it is taught), product (how students demonstrate learning), and learning environment (the context of learning). Unlike accommodations and modifications which often target specific students with identified needs, differentiation benefits all learners in a classroom by offering multiple pathways to learning.

Types of Data to Determine Appropriate Strategies

Educators use various types of data to inform decisions about accommodations, modifications, and differentiation:

• Formal Assessments: Standardized tests, diagnostic assessments, and curriculum-based measures provide quantitative data on a student’s overall achievement and specific skill deficits or strengths.
• Informal Assessments: Observations, anecdotal records, work samples, checklists, and teacher-created quizzes offer qualitative and quantitative insights into a student’s learning processes, understanding, and engagement.
• Student Records: Individualized Education Programs (IEPs), 504 plans, and past academic performance data provide crucial information about a student’s diagnosed needs, required supports, and learning history.
• Student Self-Assessment and Feedback: Asking students about their learning preferences, challenges, and what helps them learn best offers valuable qualitative data.
• Parent/Guardian Input: Communication with parents and guardians provides important perspectives on a child’s learning at home, their strengths, weaknesses, and any relevant developmental or medical history.
• Developmental Screenings: For younger children, developmental screenings assess progress across various domains and can identify areas where a child may need additional support or enrichment.

A comprehensive approach that considers multiple data points provides a more holistic understanding of a student’s needs and ensures that the chosen strategies are appropriate and effective.

Examples for the 4-5 Year Age Range

For a 4-5 year old, here are examples of accommodation, modification, and differentiation in a literacy activity where the goal is to recognize and match uppercase letters:

• Accommodation: A child who has difficulty with fine motor skills might be provided with larger letter cards to manipulate or allowed to point to matching letters instead of physically placing them. The task of recognizing and matching uppercase letters remains the same, but the way the child interacts with the materials is adjusted.

• Modification: A child who is significantly behind in letter recognition might be asked to match only a smaller set of highly familiar letters (e.g., the letters in their name) instead of the entire alphabet. The learning objective is modified to focus on a more manageable task based on the child’s current skill level.

• Differentiation: For the same letter recognition activity, the teacher could offer different options based on readiness and interest:

  • For children ready for a challenge: They could match uppercase to lowercase letters or sort letters by their features (straight lines, curved lines).
  • For children needing more support: They could work in a small group with the teacher, using tactile materials like sandpaper letters to trace and match.
  • For children who learn best through movement: They could participate in a letter scavenger hunt, finding and matching letters around the classroom.

In this differentiated approach, all children are working on letter recognition, but the complexity of the task, the level of support, and the mode of engagement are varied to meet their individual needs and learning styles.