We will continue our 5 week series on Dr. Ruben Puentedura's SAMR model with examining the Augmentation level of technology
Last week we talked about the substitution level of the SAMR model being the level of tech integration where the technology acts as direct substitute of what is already being done in the classroom. With the example being given that if we have students hand-writing papers in the classroom, using a word processor instead would act as substitution because the task of writing the paper has not changed.
As we focus on the Augmentation level, the technology still acts as a direct substitute but there is a functional change in the task. Let's take the word processing example a little further. The task is to write a paper, we use the word processor to type the paper. If we start to use the feature of the word processor, such as spell-check and grammar check, we start to see functional improvement. We could also use the word processor to change the formatting or add in different fonts that we wouldn't easily be able to do if we were writing by hand. So as you can see, the task of writing the paper stayed the same, but there is some functional improvement to using the word processor.
For most, using the functions of a word processor are a given when typing the paper, but the examples serves as a good illustration as to how the SAMR ladder works. Often times, we forget to tell our students why we are using the technology and how the technology will make the task easier or better. It is vital that we point out to our students the "why". Because if we don't, then some students may struggle to see a reasoning behind what we are doing. These are the ones that will typically say, "can I just do this with paper and pencil, because it's easier". These students have not been told or shown why the word processor makes the task better.
Next week we will look "above the line" and get into transformational practices of technology integration.
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