Covid-19 SAMR EduTech Framework

Gershom Aitchison, host · [00:38]I think that people engaging in this process has been very positive. There are a couple of things that I think we need to do better, just basic things, and I'd like to just quickly go through those. The first is, it's very important that we all punctual for the class, we are running a normal school day. The second thing is, I think that it's very important that we are focusing on the class as it's happening, not having other chats open and other windows on your computer and things like that. I think it's also very important to read the screen, make sure that you're doing the work for the right day. And I know that sounds like a very simple thing, but if you're having a conversation with a teacher about trinomials and you're actually doing statistics, then let's get on the same page very quickly. It's also very important in the communication with the teachers and with each other that we follow a certain etiquette and not badger, harass, spam teachers with comments. Rather, think about what you want to say and say it clearly so that we get in the right answers. And the last thing is, none of us are sitting in your home, and there are little individual problems and challenges that you have that we can't solve for you. Use your imagination, be creative, share how you solved your problems with everybody so that if someone else is having the same problem, that they can get it solved as well.

Jacqueline Aitchison, host · [02:20]I think what we can realistically expect is the honeymoon period perhaps wearing off, all this excitement will calm. We're going to go into a phase where we have to work on the motivation and maintaining the level of productivity that we've seen over the last few days doing the school from home. Another interesting thing that is coming up as we are moving into this new normal phase is that the children are starting to comment that they are missing their friends. So if I couple that with what we've seen, which is a huge uptick in emails to Gershom and myself to, WhatsApp's request for hangout meets, The children are starting to feel that sense of isolation, and I think that as we go into the maintenance of the, the motivation and the productivity, we have to really put quite a big focus on things like the, the hangouts chats, where kids can see each other, and they can see us, and we can have conversations to also try and just keep that social connectivity together. I think that's really important for our children.

Gershom Aitchison, host · [03:41]From the very beginning, our focus on EduTech has been about creating a framework in which creativity and opportunities can come. And I think the, the basic maxim that we've been working from is that Digital education is not just digitizing an analog process. And yes, there are certain elements where that happens, and we'll discuss that, but the framework that we've used is the SAMR model. And essentially what it means is substitution, augmentation, modification, and redefinition. And the augmentation and substitution are sitting in an enhancement phase where modification and redefinition are in the transformation phase. And we'd really, really like to be working in the transformation, in other words, doing things differently, using technology to enhance the learning experience, enhance the experience of what happens in the classroom or how people acquire knowledge, et cetera, and more importantly, how they demonstrate that knowledge and the skills that they've acquired. But in saying that, there are places where substitution and augmentation do have a place. And as an example, in the senior maths and physics, where being able to type a complex formula and answers is difficult, it is easier to write it down, take a photograph of it, and send it in so the teacher can see what's going on and vice versa. Augmentation might be where the younger students don't have that difficulty in terms of the The formula that they need to write down, so they are still doing the maths and similar kind of problems, but they're doing it in a digital platform. So it's slightly augmenting the way that we're doing things. Then modification, where we start seeing the transformation taking place is in the Google Classroom, where the entire class is happening in that space, the way we approach the tasks, how we deliver on the learning outcomes, and that is happening in a digital space. It's taking the classroom into a virtual reality. And the final thing is the redefinition and doing things totally different. It allows for us to radically look at how we teach, how we learn. And how we're seeing it right now is doing Udemy courses, for example. You want to learn how to do underwater photography. There's no way that you're going to find that in Joburg for one person, where you can do that online and have that experience, or you want to learn Japanese. The course is there for you to do that. And that's one of the, the things that we're really excited about is showing the students that, and the parents as well, that learning can happen in a very different way. And it's very exciting to be in that space too.

Unidentified speaker, intro voice or played clip · [06:04]So substitution is a lot like a bank emailing you a document, asking you to print it, sign it, and email it back to them. You've just substituted a paper document for an emailed paper document.

Jacqueline Aitchison, host · [06:13]Correct.

Unidentified speaker, intro voice or played clip · [06:13]Will you elaborate on redefinition for us? Just make that a little bit clearer.

Jacqueline Aitchison, host · [06:17]This is technology which allows for the creation of new tasks which were previously inconceivable. Now, it's inconceivable for a school like ours to be able to hire a Japanese teacher, for example, to come in and teach one child that language. But allowing the, the children to do the Udemy courses then makes that conceivable. We can have everything from Japanese, Russian, German, one child on each course. We can have coding, coding for gaming. We can have iPhone photography, underwater photography. We've even got a child learning how to have a better relationship with his dog. You know, these are not conceivable in a school space. In, using this platform and this forum, they have become conceivable, and our children's skills level is increasing.

Gershom Aitchison, host · [07:07]The first thing is be punctual. We have a schedule. Please be there for your class and announce yourself. Stay focused in the class on the task. Stay focused on what is happening and not be distracted by what's going on on other chats, et cetera. Please read the screen, read the instructions, follow the instructions carefully, and communicate effectively, with the teacher in terms of asking questions, don't badger, harass, etc. And on a final note, thanks to the parents for the support, getting the children into that virtual classroom space. Keep doing what you're doing, keep getting them to school so that we can do our job and teach them.

Jacqueline Aitchison, host · [07:41]From my side, just to say thank you to the parents for being so incredibly supportive at this time. We've had some fantastic messages through from Facebook and from emails where parents are actually messaging us to tell us, how happy they are with things and the way they are going, and that's very meaningful to us, especially when we were working so hard to make this a success.