2.1 Asynchronous

SAMR (Substitution, Augmentation, Modification, and Redefinition)

A popular framework for tech integration into education (introduced by Ruben Puentedura) that represents a laddered, four-level approach to help teachers evaluate how they incorporate technology into their teaching

(Enhance) Substitution→Augmentation→Modification→Redefinition (Transform)

Substitution

Tech acts as a direct tool substitute with no functional change

Ex. substituting a handwritten story for a typed story

Augmentation

Tech acts as a direct tool substitute, with functional improvement

Ex. Using features like spell check and formatting tools

Modification

Tech allows for significant task redesign

ex. Using google docs and share story with peers

Redefinition

Tech allows for the creation of new tasks, previously inconceivable

ex. what if students turned written stories into multimedia productions

Laws of Media

One of the analytic tools used by media ecologists developed by media ecologists Marshall McLuhan and his son Eric

• Enhance

• Reverse

• Retrieve

• Obsolesce

Marshall McLuhan

Canadian philosopher who established the movement “Media Ecology)

• created the Centre for Culture and Technology to study the psychic and social consequences of technologies and media

• “The medium is the message”

• “the Global Village”

McLuhan’s definition of “media”

Media is “any extension of ourselves”

ex. the bicycle is an extension of the foot, clothing is the extension of our skin

Enhance

Every new tech makes things better and improve situations

What human ability does the medium amplify?

ex. new media or tech enhances your voice

Reverse

“A blessing and a curse.” It will undo what it was supposed to enhance; inevitable and instantaneous

What happens when the medium is overused?

ex. you can now be contacted anywhere, any time, and you are expected to always respond

Retrieve

Every new tech borrows from an existing tech or behaviour

What pat medium or practice does it bring back

ex. The automobile retrieves the chariot

Obsolesce

Every time a new tech is embraced, something old is discarded

What previous medium or skill does it render obsolete?

ex. payphones are no longer necessary when people carry their own

What is AI and how does it work?

“Artificial Intelligence” is when we teach computers to do things that usually require human intelligence.

• It learns by analyzing lots of data

• Generative AI (learns from the internet); can sometimes make mistakes and can’t tell good from bad or fact from fiction (it picks up everything); be critical of its limitations and risks

What is Generative AI?

Trained to do more open ended tasks like generate text, images, audio, videos

• flexible

• accessible and easy to use

• Gen AI is still a computer model

The ELIZA Effect

Projecting human traits onto a computer system; can cause us to disengage our critical thinking skills

Potential risks of Generative AI

• Misinformation: sometimes the output can just be wrong; AI hallucinations (ALWAYS fact check)

• Generation of harmful content (text or image based)

Suggestions for mitigating harmful AI content

1. Experiment with AI before using it with your students.

2. Talk with students about using AI responsibly.

3. Introduce students to the idea of AI bias.

Privacy Consideration when using gen AI

• AI reviewers may access your activities

• AI companies may use your data to train new AIs

• Privacy concerns extend to biometric data (data related to someone’s unique human characteristics)

Usual biases of Gen AI

• Provide all students with the same quality of support or instruction?

• Have features that allow students with different intellectual and physical abilities to use it?

• Generate content that is accurate?

• Generate content reflective of my community's cultural and demographic diversity?

• Interact or respond well to prompts from students from different linguistic backgrounds or levels of mastery?

• Make assumptions or predictions about students based on their gender, race, ethnicity, or disability status?