Frameworks

How do you teach with tech? This week’s blog muses on this query. We'll have a gander at two different models, SAMR, and TPACK (not to be confused with the musician, RIP). We'll explore the framework of both, and think about how they can be used in practice. I'll then attempt to reflect on which one suits my philosophy best, and how this can be implemented as part of my school leadership approach.

SAMR can be described as an acronym if you pronounce it “Sammer”; if you pronounce it “S-A-M-R”, then it’s an abbreviation. Anyway, in short, it's a framework to enable teachers to provide learners with ever more sophisticated and profound tech learning experiences. It stands for substitution-augmentation-modification-redefinition, and it was pioneered by Ruben Puentedura. The definitions of each part are summarised thus in Puentedura’s video:

You can possibly see some similarities here with Bloom’s Taxonomy, at least in the way that applications are arranged in a hierarchical model, with the most sophisticated at the top (though SAMR isn't supposed to provide a linear progression; rather, it’s a tool to assess and implement more complex tech learning opportunities). You'll also notice that the applications are split into two groups: transformation and enhancement. I had a look at Hilton’s case study into applications of the two models in an 8th grade social studies class; in this, Kirkland is cited thus: enhancement means to leverage tech to replace and/or improve existing tools, where transformation means to provide new opportunities for learning that are not easily possible without the technology.

More on the practical applications later.

TPACK can be described as an acronym if you pronounce it “Tee-pak”; if you pronounce it “T-P-A-C-K”, then it’s an abbreviation. Anyway, in short, it's a framework to allow teachers to develop as more holistically outstanding educational rockstars for the 21st Century. I kind of consider TPACK less as a way of doing great things in the classroom (which I consider SAMR to be), and more of a way to educate educators to be the best professionals they can be in the 21st Century.

TPACK stands for technological-pedagogical-and-content-knowledge. In a nutshell, Matthew Kohler and Poonam Mishra argue that using tech knowledge as well as, and in synchronicity with, pedagogical and content knowledge leads to deep and lasting learning. Hilton’s case study gives us a great graphic:

Tech knowledge= how to use tech best, in the context suited to your school.

Content knowledge= knowing what students need to learn, and not teaching them the wrong stuff.

Pedagogical knowledge= the best way to teach the stuff to your particular students in your particular school.

Mishra and Koehler developed this model, and proclaim that developing good content requires a thoughtful interweaving of all three key sources of knowledge: technology, pedagogy, and content.

So, to reflect on which one suits me, I say both. I really like the design of the SAMR model, with its opportunities for differentiation and enrichment. I also like the holistic nature of the TPACK model. However, as we’re in the business of expounding on classroom applications for the best benefit of our students, I’m going to lean towards SAMR. The social studies teachers, in Hilton’s research, described SAMR as perhaps being a bit more student-focused, while TPACK was seen as a little more teacher-focused. This observation resonates with me.

Perhaps the most useful aspect of my research into these models over the last week is the discovery of guiding questions posed by Puentedura, and cited in Hilton's work. These are fantastic tools for self-assessment of your tech practice. Examples include how is the new task uniquely made possible by the new technology? How does it contribute to my design? as points for reflection on the implementation of tech experiences involving redefinition.

As a practitioner in an MYP English classroom I have, for example, given 8th grade students the opportunity to create movies using iMovie, aimed at promoting awareness of World Toilet Day. The students embraced this task, and uploaded the films to YouTube where they ended up being viewed globally. This hit the mark for our unit on film and advertising techniques, and now, on reflection, I think I did a bit of modification and/or redefinition there.

As a school leader, I would work with our 21st Century learning Coordinator on an implementation plan. Each department could self-assess their integration of the SAMR domains in their unit plans and practice, and work with the coordinator to create richer tech opportunities using SAMR.

I should add that aspects of Mishra and Koehler’s learning by design model resonate with me as I am a dedicated proponent of student-centred learning. As a school leader I advocate for collaborative, open-ended activities, providing means for socially constructivist learning at higher levels of thinking to take place.

I end with a question for you to ponder: as a school leader, how would you use the SAMR and/or TPACK models to facilitate change?