478811799Frameworks for Technology Integration

There are multiple models and frameworks out there regarding classroom technology integration.  We like the SAMR Model and TPACK Framework.  Both can be useful in thinking about how and why to use technology in the classroom.  Regardless of which framework or model you use to structure your thinking about technology integration, the important thing is that you employ one.

Tech tools can be incredibly useful in advancing student thinking, reading, and writing.  But they can also get in the way of learning or merely act as a distraction. Sometimes a pencil and a piece of lined paper are the best technology for a given learning situation. Carefully considered choices about technology are key to ensuring successful integration that transforms learning.  

SAMR Model – Substitution, Augmentation, Modification, Redefinition

The SAMR model provides a clear and concise set of categories that define the nature of technology use in a learning situation.  There is a clear progression from technology used to enhance learning to digital tools used to transform learning.  The model does not assume that redefinition is always better than substitution or augmentation–this all depends on the learning goals.  Though in a truly 21st century classroom, technology use should span this progression, living predominantly in transformation zone of the SAMR model.

SAMR Model

SAMR Model

 

TPACK Framework – Technological, Pedagogical, and Content Knowledge

TPACK is a framework developed by Punya Mishra and Matthew Koehler of Michigan State University that defines the three types of knowledge teachers draw on as they design learning situations: technological, pedagogical, and content knowledge.  The framework illustrates how these three knowledge areas interact and overlap when we plan student learning.  When technology integration is most successful, educators design tasks that engage students in a deep exploration of content and/or skills using effective pedagogy and a well-chosen digital tool–the sweet spot of the TPACK framework.

TPACK 2