Technology can help us do things in the classroom that were previously inconceivable. Here, we examine two activities through the lens of the SAMR model. (Flickr / US Department of Education)
When I first learned of the SAMR tech integration model, it was like fireworks went off in the background.
I was at a technology conference. I had been using technology in the classroom for a few years but had no framework for implementing it well.
SAMR opened my eyes to the meaningful, intentional use of technology. The concept, developed by Dr. Ruben Puentedura, allows teachers to identify their integration in four categories:
- Substitution: Tech acts as a direct tool substitute, with no functional change
- Augmentation: Tech acts as a direct tool substitute, with functional improvement
- Modification: Tech allows for significant task redesign
- Redefinition: Tech allows for the creation of new tasks, previously inconceivable
After seeing it, I wrote a post about what SAMR is, referring to it as a ladder. Later, I gave SAMR a second thought and realized it’s not as simple as climbing a ladder. My most recent post about SAMR offers 10 ways to reach SAMR’s redefinition level, where learning ideas are new, created by the unique abilities of the technology.
What’s hard about SAMR for many who learn about it is seeing an activity progress through all four levels. That process can help them see SAMR for what it is and help them own it to improve their own teaching.
With that in mind, Noah Geisel — the 2013 ACTFL National Language Teacher of the Year — and I chatted recently about SAMR. We took two classroom activities — a virtual cultural exchange and annotating articles online with Diigo — through all the SAMR steps.
You can see our Google Hangout conversation in the video below:
The idea was inspired by this great post, “Putting Activities Through the SAMR Exercise,” by Siliva Tolisano of the Langwitches blog.
The two classroom activities follow, but one takeaway that Noah and I both had is worth mentioning first. We’ve noticed that many teachers — ourselves included — have been nervous to talk about how and where we categorize activities on the SAMR framework. We’re just like our students — afraid to get the wrong answer and to be discovered in the wrong!
What SAMR is really about, though, is finding ways to make learning deeper and more relevant in the classroom. As Noah said, there’s room for subjectivity. There’s not always a single SAMR classification, and one person’s “modification” may be another person’s “redefinition.”
As with many things in education, the discussion process is key and can open your eyes and improve your instruction. (In fact, Noah opened my eyes to how one of my “redefinition” activities might only be at modification and how it could go deeper. It was a great learning experience for me!)
ACTIVITY 1 — Virtual cultural exchange
Summary: Students from different countries meet weekly on a video chat service like Skype or Google Hangouts. They take turns conversing in each other’s native languages, offering suggestions for improvement. Later, they write each other questions and answer them in the different languages.
Substitution: The basic idea of this activity is a conversation — exchanging ideas. That process, when done with a direct tech substitute with no functional improvement, could be a basic phone call (only voices) or traditional pen pals.
Augmentation: The simple exchanging of ideas could be augmented — a tech substitute with some functional improvement — by adding video chat. In this scenario, students can see each other’s facial expressions and unspoken cues, as well as interpret context clues. With pen pals, it could be improved with real-time communication in a shared Google Document.
Modification: To allow for significant task redesign, which the modification level requires, students could send questions back and forth to each other in a shared Google Document and discuss them in a video chat. That unique combination of suggestions and revisions in real time wouldn’t be possible by with sending letter or making a phone call. In this case, we have changed the task completely.
Redefinition: By adding a social media element — students becoming Facebook friends and staying in touch with each other frequently and long-term — the task becomes something that was previously inconceivable.
When discussing this virtual cultural exchange, Noah and I noted that the toughest jump in SAMR is from augmentation to modification. In substitution and augmentation, teachers are often plugging technology into activities they already do. Going to modification and redefinition often requires reinventing tasks completely, which is really hard.
ACTIVITY 2 — Diigo bookmarking
Summary: Students find and view articles online. Diigo allows them to make notes on the articles, highlight important passages and share commentary as if they were in a chat room, all from the article. They can share these articles and annotations with anyone online.
Substitution: The core idea of this task is highlighting and making notes on an article. Adding technology without changing the task would be to annotate on the article using a word processor. Students could simply add bookmarks using an online service like Diigo to reach substitution as well.
Augmentation: Augmentation adds some “functional improvement” and take the activity to the next level. In this bookmarking activity, students could move their word processor document to a Google Document and share it with others. When using Diigo, they could add tags to their articles to make finding them easier.
Modification: To create “significant task redesign,” students would go beyond just highlighting. They could engage in commentary within the article, creating a digital conversation they could never do before. They could also reach modification by accessing bookmarks from home while sick to stay with the conversation.
Redefinition: This task could be completely redefined by sharing these digital Diigo conversations with people all over the world. Students would be exposed to their unique cultural viewpoints and experiences, giving them a wider world view.
As I mentioned earlier, SAMR is just a tool to help teachers examine their technology usage. It’s not a multiple-choice test where there’s one right or wrong answer. I hope that you’ll use it as that — a conversation starter.
Question: What do you think of the SAMR classifications Noah and I did? On what points do you agree or disagree? How is your classification different? You can leave a comment by clicking here.
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Date | Event / Event Details | City / More Info | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
+ | 01/19/2015 | Western Wayne (Ind.) Schools | Pershing, IN | |
Full-day Seminar: | Ditch That Textbook: Why and How? | Private Event | ||
+ | 01/31/2015 9:00-12:00 p.m. | U. Indy's Power of Education Conference | Indianapolis, IN | |
Keynote: | Ditch That Textbook: My Journey | Public Event | ||
Sponsor: | University of Indianapolis Student Education Association | Register to attend | ||
Venue: | University of Indianapolis Schwitzer Hall Basement Indianapolis, IN | |||
+ | 02/03/2015 08:00-03:00 p.m. | World Languages Workshop @ Lafayette Jeff HS | Lafayette, IN | |
Venue: | Jefferson High School 1801 S. 18th St. Lafayette, IN 47905 765-772-4700 | Private Event | ||
+ | 02/26/2015 9:00-4:05 p.m. | Indiana Conference on Learning | Indianapolis, IN | |
Workshop: | Ditch That Textbook (et al) | Public Event | ||
Sponsor: | American Student Achievement Institute | Register to attend | ||
Venue: | Wyndham Indianapolis West Hotel 2544 Executive Drive Indianapolis, IN 46241 317-248-2481 | Get more information | ||
+ | 03/18/2015 08:00-04:00 p.m. | Fall Creek Intermediate School Workshop | Fishers, IN | |
Venue: | Fall Creek Intermediate School 12011 Olio Road Fishers, IN 46037 (317) 915-4220 | Private Event | ||
+ | 03/19/2015 7:30-3:00 p.m. | Hamilton Southeastern (Ind.) Schools | Fishers, IN | |
Full-day Seminar: | Ditch That Textbook | Private Event | ||
+ | 04/09/2015 04:00-06:00 p.m. | PVETI Social Media Workshop | Rockville, IN | |
Sponsor: | Parke-Vermillion Education and Training Interlocal (PVETI) | Private Event | ||
Venue: | Rockville High School 506 N. Beadle St. Rockville, IN 47872 765-569-5686 | |||
+ | 04/11/2015—04/12/2015 08:30-05:30 p.m. | Indiana Google Apps for Education Summit | Franklin, IN | |
Sponsor: | EdTech Team | Public Event | ||
Venue: | Franklin Community High School 2600 Cumberland Drive Franklin, IN 46131 317-346-8100 | Register to attend | ||
+ | 05/01/2015 09:00-03:00 p.m. | Ditch That Textbook workshop @ CIESC | Indianapolis, IN | |
Venue: | Central Indiana Educational Service Center 6036 Lakeside Blvd., Building A Indianapolis, IN 46278 317-759-5555 | Public Event | ||
+ | 05/08/2015—05/09/2015 | Education On Air by Google for Education | ||
Sponsor: | Google for Education | Public Event | ||
+ | 05/08/2015 08:00-03:00 p.m. | Ditch That Textbook workshop (CIESC) | ||
Sponsor: | Central Indiana Educational Service Center | Register to attend | ||
+ | 05/11/2015—05/13/2015 | Ivy Tech Community College Tech Workshop | ||
Sponsor: | Ivy Tech Community College of Indiana | Private Event | ||
+ | 06/02/2015—06/03/2015 | PowerED Up Conference | Leopold, IN | |
Sponsor: | Indiana Department of Education Office of eLearning | Public Event | ||
Venue: | Perry Central Jr/Sr HS 18677 Old State Road 37 Leopold, IN 47551 812-843-5576 | |||
+ | 06/04/2015 08:00-03:00 p.m. | HSE Summer Learning Fair | Fishers, IN | |
Sponsor: | Hamilton Southeastern Schools | Private Event | ||
Venue: | Fishers High School 13000 Promise Road Fishers, IN 46038 (317) 915-4290 | |||
+ | 06/08/2015 | Greencastle EdTech Conference | Greencastle, IN | |
Sponsor: | Indiana Department of Education Office of eLearning | Public Event | ||
+ | 06/10/2015 08:00-04:00 p.m. | Connecting the 4 C's Conference @ Mt. Vernon (Ind.) | Mount Vernon, IN | |
Sponsor: | Indiana Department of Education Office of eLearning | Public Event | ||
Venue: | Mount Vernon High School 700 Harriett Street Mount Vernon, IN 47620 812-833-5136 | Register to attend | ||
+ | 06/11/2015—06/12/2015 8:00-3:00 p.m. | Yorktown WeLearn Conference | Yorktown, IN | |
Keynote: | Ditch That Textbook | Public Event | ||
Sponsor: | Indiana Department of Education Office of eLearning | Register to attend | ||
Venue: | Yorktown High School 1100 S. County Road 575 West Yorktown, IN 47396 (765) 759-2550 | Get more information | ||
+ | 06/15/2015—06/16/2015 08:00-03:00 p.m. | Summer Spark Symposium | Milwaukee, WI | |
Venue: | University School of Milwaukee 2100 West Fairy Chasm Road Milwaukee, WI 53217 414-352-6000 | Public Event | ||
+ | 06/17/2015 08:00-03:00 p.m. | eLEAD Madison County | Anderson, IN | |
Sponsor: | CAPE of Madison County | Public Event | ||
Venue: | Anderson University 1100 E. 5th St. Anderson, IN 46012 | |||
+ | 06/22/2015 08:00-03:00 p.m. | Seymour Schools Tech Workshop | Seymour, IN | |
Sponsor: | Seymour Community Schools | Public Event | ||
Venue: | Seymour High School 1350 W. 2nd St. Seymour, IN 47274 812-522-4384 | |||
+ | 06/23/2015—06/24/2015 | Digipalooza 2015 | Scottsburg, IN | |
Sponsor: | Indiana Department of Education Office of eLearning | Public Event | ||
Venue: | Scottsburg Middle School 425 S. 3rd St. Scottsburg, IN 47170 812-752-8926 | |||
+ | 06/25/2015—06/26/2015 08:00-03:00 p.m. | South Vermillion trAnSfoRM Conference | Clinton, IN | |
Sponsor: | Indiana Department of Education Office of eLearning | Public Event | ||
Venue: | South Vermillion High School 770 Wildcat Drive Clinton, IN 47842 765-832-3551 | |||
+ | 06/27/2015 09:00-03:00 p.m. | #ReadTL15 Conference | Reading, West Berkshire, UK | |
Sponsor: | Reading College (Reading, West Berkshire, United Kingdom) | Public Event | ||
Venue: | Reading College King's Road, Reading, West Berkshire RG1 4HJ Reading, West Berkshire, UK United Kingdom +44 800 371434 | Register to attend | ||
+ | 06/28/2015—07/01/2015 | ISTE Conference 2015 | Philadelphia, PA | |
Full-day Seminar: | Sharing Is Caring: Collaborative Google Apps Activities | Public Event | ||
Sponsor: | International Society for Technology in Education | Register to attend | ||
Venue: | Pennsylvania Convention Center 1101 Arch Street Philadelphia, PA 19107 800-428-9000 | Get more information | ||
+ | 07/08/2015 08:00-03:00 p.m. | USD 242 Weskan Schools Staff Development | Weskan, KS | |
Venue: | Weskan Schools 219 Coyote Blvd. Weskan, KS 67762 785-943-5222 | Private Event | ||
+ | 07/22/2015 08:00-03:00 p.m. | Northeastern Middle School Workshop | Fountain City, IN | |
Venue: | Northeastern Middle School 7295 U.S. 27 North Fountain City, IN 47341 (765) 847-1331 | Private Event | ||
+ | 07/24/2015 08:00-3:00 p.m. | Greater Clark Connected Conference | Jeffersonville, IN | |
Sponsor: | Greater Clark County Schools | Public Event | ||
+ | 07/28/2015—07/29/2015 | Catching the Wave of eLearning | Lafayette, IN | |
Sponsor: | Indiana Department of Education Office of eLearning | Public Event | ||
+ | 07/30/2015 08:00-03:00 p.m. | Seymour Schools Tech Workshop | Seymour, IN | |
Sponsor: | Seymour Community Schools | Private Event | ||
Venue: | Seymour High School 1350 W. 2nd St. Seymour, IN 47274 812-522-4384 | |||
+ | 08/10/2015 08:00-03:00 p.m. | Idabel Public Schools | ||
Sponsor: | Idabel (OK) Public Schools | Private Event | ||
+ | 08/13/2015 08:00-03:00 p.m. | Palmer ISD (Texas) | Palmer, TX | |
Workshop: | Ditch That Textbook | Private Event | ||
Venue: | Palmer Independent School District Palmer, TX | |||
+ | 08/18/2015 08:00-03:00 p.m. | Brandywine Heights Area School District | Topton, PA | |
Workshop: | The Digital PIRATE | |||
Sponsor: | Brandywine Heights Area School District | |||
+ | 09/08/2015 08:00-03:00 p.m. | Cascade Middle School | Clayton, IN | |
Venue: | Cascade Middle School 6423 S. County Road 200 West Clayton, IN 46118 (317) 539-9285 | Private Event | ||
+ | 09/15/2015 08:00-03:00 p.m. | Ditch That Textbook workshop @ SIEC | Jasper, IN | |
Workshop: | Ditch That Textbook | Public Event | ||
Sponsor: | Southern Indiana Education Center | |||
+ | 09/23/2015 08:00-03:00 p.m. | Ditch That Textbook workshop @ WVEC | West Lafayette, IN | |
Workshop: | Ditch That Textbook | Public Event | ||
+ | 09/24/2015 08:00-03:00 p.m. | Ditch That Textbook workshop @ CIESC | Indianapolis, IN | |
Workshop: | DItch That Textbook | Public Event | ||
Sponsor: | Central Indiana Educational Service Center | |||
+ | 09/25/2015 08:00-03:00 p.m. | MSD of Steuben Co. (Ind.) | Angola, IN | |
Keynote: | Ditch That Textbook | Private Event | ||
Sponsor: | MSD of Steuben County | |||
Venue: | Angola High School 350 S. John McBride Ave. Angola, IN 46703 260-665-2186 | |||
+ | 10/03/2015—10/03/2015 | weLEAD Symposium | Islamabad, Pakistan | |
Venue: | Margalla Hotel Islamabad, Pakistan Pakistan | Public Event | ||
+ | 10/06/2015 08:00-03:00 p.m. | Anderson (Ind.) Schools | Anderson, Indiana | |
Workshop: | Ditch That Textbook | Private Event | ||
Sponsor: | Anderson Community Schools | |||
+ | 10/07/2015 08:00-03:00 p.m. | Ditch That Textbook workshop @ Region 8 ESC | Decatur, IN | |
Workshop: | Ditch That Textbook | Public Event | ||
Sponsor: | Region 8 Educational Service Center | |||
+ | 10/08/2015 08:00-03:00 p.m. | Ditch That Textbook workshop @ NIESC | Plymouth, IN | |
Workshop: | Ditch That Textbook | Public Event | ||
Sponsor: | Northern Indiana Educational Services Center | |||
Venue: | Christo's Banquet Center 830 Lincolnway E, Plymouth Plymouth, IN 46563 | |||
+ | 10/12/2015 08:00-03:00 p.m. | Tyler ISD | Tyler, TX | |
Sponsor: | Tyler Indpendent School District | Private Event | ||
+ | 10/15/2015—10/16/2015 08:00-03:00 p.m. | ICE Conference (Indiana) | Noblesville, IN | |
Sponsor: | Indiana Connected Educators Conference | Public Event | ||
Venue: | Noblesville High School 18111 Cumberland Noblesville, IN | Register to attend | ||
+ | 10/22/2015 08:00-03:00 p.m. | Mt. Vernon CSC (Indiana) | Fortville, IN | |
Workshop: | Ditch That Textbook | Private Event | ||
Sponsor: | Mt. Vernon Community School Corporation | |||
+ | 11/10/2015 08:00-03:00 p.m. | Cascade Middle School | Clayton, IN | |
Venue: | Cascade Middle School 6423 S. County Road 200 West Clayton, IN 46118 (317) 539-9285 | Private Event | ||
+ | 11/11/2015 08:00-03:00 p.m. | Hamilton Southeastern Schools (Indiana) | Fishers/Noblesville, Indiana | |
Full-day Seminar: | Ditch That Textbook | Private Event | ||
Sponsor: | Hamilton Southeastern Schools | |||
+ | 11/14/2015 09:00-02:30 p.m. | Northeast Literacy Retreat | Fort Wayne, IN | |
Public Event | ||||
+ | 11/17/2015 08:00-03:00 p.m. | Ditch That Textbook workshop @ ECESC | Connersville, IN | |
Workshop: | Ditch That Textbook | Public Event | ||
Sponsor: | East Central Educational Service Center | |||
+ | 11/18/2015 08:00-03:00 p.m. | Ditch That Textbook @ WCIESC | Greencastle, Indiana | |
Workshop: | Ditch That Textbook | Public Event | ||
Sponsor: | West Central Indiana Educational Service Center | |||
+ | 11/19/2015 08:00-03:00 p.m. | Elgin Local Schools (Ohio) | Elgin, OH | |
Sponsor: | Elgin Local Schools | Private Event | ||
+ | 01/13/2016 8:00am-3:00pm | Madison eLearning | Madison, IN | |
Private Event | ||||
+ | 01/18/2016 08:00-03:00 p.m. | Hudson ISD (Texas) | Lufkin, TX | |
Venue: | Hudson Indpendent School District 6735 Ted Trout Drive Lufkin, TX 75904 936-875-3351 | Private Event | ||
+ | 01/26/2016 08:00-03:00 p.m. | South Putnam | Greencastle, IN | |
Sponsor: | South Putnam Schools | Private Event | ||
+ | 02/03/2016 08:00-03:00 p.m. | Sheridan MS/HS | Sheridan, IN | |
Sponsor: | Sheridan Community Schools | Private Event | ||
+ | 02/09/2016 08:00-03:00 p.m. | Southern Indiana Education Center | Jasper, IN | |
Sponsor: | Southern Indiana Education Center | Public Event | ||
Venue: | Southern Indiana Education Center 1102 Tree Lane Drive Jasper, IN 47546 812-482-6641 | Register to attend | ||
+ | 02/15/2016 08:00-03:00 p.m. | Educational Service Unit #13 | Scottsbluff, NE | |
Workshop: | The Digital PIRATE | Public Event | ||
Sponsor: | Educational Service Unit #13 | |||
+ | 02/16/2016 08:00-03:00 p.m. | Rockford Public Schools | Rockford, MI | |
Keynote: | Ditch That Textbook! | Private Event | ||
Sponsor: | Rockford Public Schools | |||
+ | 02/24/2016—02/25/2016 08:00-03:00 p.m. | ICE Conference | St. Charles, IL | |
Sponsor: | Illinois Computing Educators | Public Event | ||
Venue: | Pheasant Run Resort and Conference Center 4051 E. Main St. St. Charles, IL 60174 (630) 584-6300 | Register to attend | ||
+ | 02/25/2016—02/26/2016 08:00-03:00 p.m. | ICE Conference (Illinois) | St. Charles, IL | |
Sponsor: | Illinois Computing Educators | Public Event | ||
+ | 03/07/2016 01:15-03:30 p.m. | Mandan Public Schools | Mandan, ND | |
Sponsor: | Mandan Public School District | Private Event | ||
+ | 03/09/2016—03/11/2016 | MACUL Conference | Grand Rapids, MI | |
Sponsor: | Michigan Association for Computer Users in Learning | Public Event | ||
Venue: | DeVos Place 303 Monroe Ave NW Grand Rapids, MI 49503 (616) 742-6500 | Register to attend | ||
+ | 03/14/2016 08:00-03:00 p.m. | Concordia Lutheran HS | Fort Wayne, IN | |
Sponsor: | Concordia Lutheran High School | Private Event | ||
+ | 03/23/2016 08:00-03:00 p.m. | Westwood Community School District | Sloan, IA | |
Sponsor: | Westwood Community School District | Private Event | ||
+ | 04/13/2016 08:00-03:00 p.m. | Wabash Valley Education Center | West Lafayette, IN | |
Workshop: | Ditch That Textbook! | Public Event | ||
Sponsor: | Wabash Valley Education Center | Register to attend | ||
Venue: | Wabash Valley Education Center 3061 Benton Street West Lafayette, IN 47906 (765) 463-1589 | |||
+ | 04/18/2016 08:00-03:00 p.m. | Monroe #1 BOCES (New York) | Fairport, N.Y. | |
Full-day Seminar: | The Digital PIRATE | Public Event | ||
Sponsor: | Monroe #1 BOCES | |||
+ | 04/26/2016 08:00-03:00 p.m. | Caesar Rodney School District | Camden, DE | |
Keynote: | Ditch That Textbook | Private Event | ||
Venue: | Caesar Rodney High School 239 Old North Road Camden, DE 19934 | |||
+ | 05/03/2016 | Paoli Community School Corporation | Paoli, IN | |
Venue: | To be determined Paoli, IN | Private Event | ||
+ | 05/25/2016 09:00-09:45 a.m. | Pacific Northwest Apprenticeship Education Conference | Portland, OR | |
Sponsor: | The Bureau of Labor and Industries, Oregon Building Congress and Oregon Tradeswomen Inc. | Public Event | ||
Venue: | DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel and Conference Center 1000 NE Multnomah Street Portland, OR | Register to attend | ||
+ | 05/31/2016 10:30-12:00pm | West Central Career Cooperative | Crawfordsville, IN | |
Venue: | Crawfordsville Country Club Crawfordsville, IN | Private Event | ||
+ | 06/06/2016 08:00-03:00 p.m. | PowerED Up Conference | Leopold, IN | |
Venue: | Perry Central Schools 18677 Old State Road 37 Leopold, IN 47551 (812) 843-5576 | Public Event | ||
+ | 06/07/2016 08:00-03:00 p.m. | Making a Splash with Digital Learning Conference | Batesville, IN | |
Venue: | Batesville Community School Corporation 626 N. Huntersville Road Batesville, IN 47006 (812) 934-2194 | Public Event | ||
+ | 06/08/2016—06/09/2016 08:00-03:00 p.m. | Ignite Your Superpower | Lafayette, IN | |
Venue: | Sunnyside Intermediate School 530 N 26th St Lafayette, IN 47904 (765) 771-6100 | Public Event | ||
+ | 06/13/2016—06/14/2015 08:00-03:00 p.m. | Summer Spark (Wisconsin) | Milwaukee, WI | |
Sponsor: | University School of Milwaukee | Public Event | ||
+ | 06/15/2016 08:00-03:00 p.m. | REMAST Conference (South Dakota) | Brookings, S.D. | |
Sponsor: | South Dakota State Noyce Scholarship Program | Public Event | ||
+ | 06/20/2016 | Indianapolis Sister Cities Int'l Conference | Indianapolis, IN | |
Keynote: | Connecting Your Classroom to the World | Public Event | ||
Sponsor: | Indianapolis Sister Cities International | Register to attend | ||
Venue: | Covenant Christian High School 7525 W. 21st St. Indianapolis, IN 46214 | |||
+ | 06/22/2016 08:00-03:00 p.m. | Western North Dakota ESA | Dickinson, ND | |
Workshop: | The Digital PIRATE | Public Event | ||
+ | 06/26/2016—06/29/2016 | ISTE Conference | Denver, CO | |
Venue: | Colorado Convention Center 700 14th St. Denver, CO 80202 | Public Event | ||
+ | 07/12/2016 08:00-03:00 p.m. | MSD of Martinsville | Martinsville, IN | |
Sponsor: | MSD of Martinsville | Private Event | ||
+ | 07/13/2016—07/14/2016 08:00-03:00 p.m. | Pulaski County Special School District | Little Rock, AR | |
Sponsor: | Pulaski County Special School District | Private Event | ||
+ | 07/18/2016 08:00-03:00 p.m. | Sheridan/Hamilton Heights | Sheridan, IN | |
Public Event | ||||
+ | 07/19/2016 08:00-03:00 p.m. | Launching INquiry | Fishers, IN | |
Venue: | Fishers High School College & Career Academy 13000 Promise Rd Fishers, IN 46038 | Public Event | ||
+ | 07/20/2016 08:00-03:00 p.m. | Blended Learning Summit | Salina, KS | |
Sponsor: | Smoky Hill Education Service Center | Public Event | ||
Venue: | Smoky Hill Education Service Center 605 E. Crawford Salina, KS 67401 785-825-9185 | |||
+ | 07/21/2016 08:30-04:00 p.m. | iPadpaloozaEastTX | Longview, TX | |
Keynote: | Ditch That Textbook! | Public Event | ||
Sponsor: | Region 7 Education Service Center | Register to attend | ||
Venue: | Pine Tree High School 900 Northwest Drive Longview, TX 75604 (903) 295-5031 | Get more information | ||
+ | 07/22/2016 08:00-03:00 p.m. | Tyler ISD | Tyler, TX | |
Sponsor: | Tyler ISD | |||
+ | 07/25/2016—07/26/2016 | E3 Technology Conference | Warsaw, IN | |
Venue: | Warsaw High School 1 Tiger Lane Warsaw, IN 46580 (574) 371-5098 | Public Event | ||
+ | 08/01/2016 08:00-03:00 p.m. | Catholic High School | New Iberia, LA | |
Sponsor: | Catholic High School | Private Event | ||
Venue: | Catholic High School 1301 de La Salle Drive New Iberia, LA 70560 | |||
+ | 08/05/2016 08:00-03:00 p.m. | Fort Wayne Lutheran Schools Partnership | Fort Wayne, IN | |
Sponsor: | Fort Wayne Lutheran Schools Partnership | Private Event | ||
+ | 08/09/2016 | Southwest School Corporation | Sullivan, IN | |
Venue: | Southwest School Corporation 110 North Main Street Sullivan, IN 47882 (812) 268-6311 | Private Event | ||
+ | 08/11/2016 | Groesbeck ISD Tech Conference | Groesbeck, TX | |
Keynote: | Ditch That Textbook! | Private Event | ||
Venue: | Groesbeck Independent School District 1202 N. Ellis Groesbeck, TX 76642 (254) 729-4100 | |||
+ | 08/15/2016 | Beggs Public Schools | Beggs, OK | |
Venue: | Beggs Public Schools 1201 West 9th Beggs, OK 74421 (918) 267-3628 | Private Event | ||
+ | 08/16/2016 08:00-03:00 p.m. | Etoile ISD | Etoile, TX | |
Sponsor: | Etoile ISD | Private Event | ||
+ | 08/17/2016 8:00-3:00 pm | Tech Academy | ||
Private Event | ||||
+ | 08/22/2016—08/23/2016 | West Central School District | Hartford, SD | |
Venue: | West Central School District 705 E. 2nd St. Hartford, SD 57033 (605) 528-3217 | Private Event | ||
+ | 08/24/2016 8:00am-3:00pm | Walled Lake Consolidated School District | ||
Public Event | ||||
+ | 08/25/2016 08:00-03:00 p.m. | Hillsboro School District | Hillsboro, OR | |
Sponsor: | Hillsboro School District | Private Event | ||
+ | 08/29/2016 8:00am-3:00pm | Service Learning School District | Detroit, MI | |
Sponsor: | Service Learning School District | |||
+ | 09/16/2016 | New Prairie High School | New Carlisle, IN | |
Venue: | New Praire High School New Carlisle, IN | Private Event | ||
+ | 09/19/2016 | Big Walnut Local Schools | Sunbury, OH | |
Workshop: | The Digital PIRATE: Tech Like a PIRATE | Private Event | ||
Venue: | Big Walnut Local Schools 36 Harrison St Sunbury, OH 43074 (740) 965-3205 | |||
+ | 09/20/2016 08:00-03:00 p.m. | NH Best Practices in Curriculum, Assessment and Assessment Conference | Concord, NH | |
Sponsor: | New Hampshire School Administrators Association | Public Event | ||
Venue: | Grappone Conference Center Concord, NH | |||
+ | 10/12/2016—10/13/2016 | Mississippi Bend Area Education Agency | Betterdorf, IA | |
Sponsor: | Mississippi Area Bend Education Agency | Private Event |
Because out focus or goal is effective student learning, technology should indeed support that goal (as contrasted with seeking to utilize technology as a goal itself). I see the substitution-augmentation pair as seeking to add technology to change the sharing or saving mode; it is worth something to add different options for sharing (mostly speeding the transfer) as well to have different saving options (e.g., with the electronic copies with both submitted material and teacher feedback included).
The modification-redefinition pair as the ultimate goal, enabling the activity to be changed. As many of us seek to get rid of textbooks, get rid of grades, indeed to change the dynamic to one that’s student-controlled, it seems to me this pair gains truly meaningful value. The creative uses explored by students as they address our driving questions truly raises the effective learning to higher levels.
[…] A SAMR deep dive: Deconstructing SAMR with examples | Ditch That Textbook @jmattmiller ditchthattextbook.com/2015/04/30/a-s… […]
Matt,
Nice post. In the past I reviewed SAMR and enjoyed it as much as you. Since then I have discovered RAT (Replace, Amplify and Transform), which I like more. In my mind, within the SAMR model, Augmentationa an Modification can be difficult to distinguish between. RAT makes the process a little more clearer.
Since then I have been moving my organization into the blended environment. I, like you, find the model to be very helpful. I have been able to diagnose a teachers blended skill (diagnostic assessment) to determine where they fall regarding the three phases of RAT and digital tool literacy. I am then able to provide PD that will move them across the RAT framework while supplying multiple tools for each stage of the framework.
Also, I think it is important to note that for this process I have also developed a lesson plan template that will allow teachers to plan:
1) which 21st century skill
2) content
3) appropriate blended tool
4) cognitive challenge
I believe each lesson should proved students a chance to learn and master the content, 21st century skills and be cognitively challenged all while using the appropriate blended tool(s).
This is the first year of beginning to implement the SAMR model with a small group of teachers in our district. Next year we are rolling it out to quite a few more through PLCs. I’ve found it a simple way for teachers to view and assess their integration of technology and the feedback I’ve received from the teachers has been overwhelmingly positive. They appreciate the simplicity of the model and how easy it is to use in their lesson planning.
Unlike a previous comment, my teachers have had more trouble distinguishing between modification and redefinition levels than augmentation and modification. However, they’ve struggled a bit in reaching the modification level, as the move from mostly substitution to augmentation was much easier.
I think it is important to remember that not all activities and lessons should be at redefinition, as some lessons it is more appropriate to use technology at a substitituion level. There is a video on YouTube (“The SAMR Model Explained by Students” by Rich Colosi Media https://youtu.be/OBce25r8vto ) that describes SAMR as a pool rather than a ladder. I’ve found this analogy to be very helpful- that sometimes you swim in the shallow end (below the line) and sometimes you are in the deep end (above the line). I like this view rather than as a ladder where it seems that redefinition is the ultimate level to reach and stay.
I would love for you to come to Michigan, specifically the Detroit metro area. I’m sure there are other teachers who would love to hear more about your methods!
[…] Deconstructing SAMR with Examples […]
[…] A SAMR deep dive: Deconstructing SAMR with examples […]
[…] Examples using the SAMR Model: Sam Miller, “Ditch that Textbook” […]
[…] Here are some resources that I have found helpful in thinking about the benefits of SAMR: Ditch that Textbook […]