ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses the natural evolution of Dick Snow's research, embodied in adaptive e-learning environments. Snow approached his research with the combined perspectives of a differential psychologist, experimental psychologist, personality psychologist, and cognitive scientist. Of particular interest to Snow was the match between individual differences and learning environments and how variation in learning environments elicited or suited different patterns of aptitudes. Individuals come to any new learning task with differences in prior knowledge and skill, learning style, motivation, and cultural background. These qualities affect what is learned in an instructional setting. The goal of adaptive e-learning is aligned with exemplary instruction: delivering the right content, to the right person, at the proper time, in the most appropriate way—any time, any place, any path, any pace. The requirements for any content model fall into two categories: requirements of the delivery system and requirements of the learning content that is to be delivered.
