SAMR vs TPACK

As a teacher, slight technology skeptic and linear thinker, I find the SAMR model to be most compelling. 
To me it provides the scaffolding I need to begin to integrate and incorporate technology into my 
classroom. I believe that when I use technology in my classroom, I am mostly in the substitution phase, 
replacing pen and paper with google docs for typing up published pieces of writing or providing resources 
for students to access at home through our online learning platform as part of a flipped classroom 
strategy.

I wonder if using Brainpop, Scholastic Study Jams and other similar websites for video content to add 
a visual component to the learning, puts me in the augmentation phase. For a refugee unit, the 
technology specialist and I created a shared google doc for pairs of students to use as a reflection too. 
They each watched a video, read a linked article and followed a virtual reality piece on refugees 
and then reflected on these three resources. They then read their partner’s reflections and responded 
to them. I wonder if this also counts as augmentation.

The phases of substitution and augmentation are considered enhancement and the second two phases 
of modification and redefinition are considered transformation.  For now, I have only ventured into the 
enhancement phase, using technology as a way to build on the elementary skills of creating and editing 
documents, adding pictures, accessing internet resources and beginning to assess websites for credibility 
and validity. I do not yet have the technological skill to move into the transformation phase but I can see it 
as a goal that I can work on, with the help of my technology specialist, and probably more importantly, my 
students.

I can appreciate Dr. Puentedura’s evidence that when teachers and students have moved into the 
modification and redefinition phase, students are more likely to be engaged with technology in productive 
ways and take charge of their education because they are creating their own path and seeking answers to
questions that have emerged through their journey. While in the substitution and modification phases, 
students might be working with technology in a more independent manner, the higher phases bring 
students together as peer mentors because they are interacting with each other through technology.

Teachers that see the big picture might better appreciate the TPACK model. I admit that in my teacher 
role, it makes me overwhelmed because I don’t quite understand how to look at my teaching through 
these three lenses and determine whether I have achieved the sweet spot in the middle of the triple 
Venn diagram.

As a soon-to-be administrator, however, I can see how viewing the use of technology through the TPACK 
model makes sense because an administrator needs a more global perspective. The TPACK model 
brings together three critical components of effective teaching - content knowledge, pedagogical 
knowledge and knowledge of technology, all of which are needed to prepare our learners for the future. 
An administrator might look to see what the teachers are teaching (content), how they are delivering the 
content and managing their classrooms (pedagogy) and what technological tools are they using to 
enhance their practice. Data collected from these observations might be used to design professional 
development or training in any areas that individual teachers or the staff as a whole needs more 
support in. 

Both of these models provide a useful framework for integrating technology thoughtfully and strategically 
into the curriculum. Support from administrators is critical but more importantly, schools need to have 
technology specialists that integrate, collaborate and co-teach with the homeroom teacher to maximize 
the expertise of both for the benefit of the students. In my two previous schools, which were PYP, the 
integration of technology was much better than in my current school where technology class happens 
once a week without me fully understanding what my students are doing. As collaborative planning is not
a feature at my current school it is more difficult to shift the tide and find the time to meet regularly with
the technology specialist to make sure we are supporting our students in a way that combines the 
learning in tech class with what is happening in my class.

For those of you who prefer the TPACK model, what does implementation of the three components 
look like in your classrooms?