Draft:Successive Approximation Model

What is SAM?

SAM is an acronym for the Successive Approximation Model which is an instructional design model that was developed by Michael Allen and Richard Sites in 2012 as an alternative to the ADDIE Model (Reilly, 2024).

SAM’s Predecessor ADDIE

ADDIE (Analyse Design Develop Implement Evaluate) is an instructional design framework which consists of five phases, namely, Analyse, Design, Develop, Implement, and Evaluate (Figure 1), this model was developed in 1975 by Florida State University for training purposes (Nagpal & Kumar, 2020).

Figure 1.

Diagram of the ADDIE Model which is use as a framework for instructional design.

Diagram of the ADDIE Model which is use as a framework for instructional design

SAM Compared to ADDIE

ADDIE is considered to be a linear model which may be rigid and slow to respond to changing user demands (Ali et al., 2021). When compared to ADDIE, SAM was found to be more reactive to the needs of users since it has faster, repetitive, and has more effective operations (Ali et al., 2021).

SAM has a simpler structure than ADDIE, this structure consists of three major phases, namely, the preparation, iterative design, and iterative development phases which are shown in Figure 2 (Allen Interactions Inc., 2021). The main way in which SAM differs from ADDIE is in its iterative process which facilitates rapid revisions to the design at all stages (Jung et al., 2019).

It must be noted that there are two variations of SAM: SAM1 and SAM2. SAM1 is “simple, fast, and productive,” and can be used for smaller projects. Whereas SAM2 is needed for larger projects which involve several people across different development teams. SAM2 further differs from SAM1 in that after the design iterations have been completed the project progresses to the development phase. Whereas in SAM1, the instructional product is complete at the end of the evaluate, design, and develop iterations (Allen Interactions Inc., 2015).

Stages of SAM

Preparation Stage

During the preparation stage, background information on the learners is collected. This information includes the strengths, weaknesses, and prior knowledge of the learners and may be collected with the use of surveys (Jung et al., 2019). At the end of the preparation stage, all the stakeholders meet to brainstorm to generate ideas about the design of training and the possible instructional modalities. During this period, instructional design prototypes are also developed. This meeting of the stakeholders is called the SAVY start. At the end of the SAVY start, potential designs for each content area would have been developed by the team (Jung et al., 2019).

Figure 2.

Diagram showing the phases of SAM (the Successive Approximations Model)

Iterative Design Phase

Following the SAVY start, the next phase of SAM is the iterative design phase. During this phase, a prototype of the instructional product is created, this product is then reviewed and evaluated by stakeholders (Jung et al., 2019). After the SAVY start a smaller team which consists primarily of subject matter experts and project designers and developers move forward the project into the iterative design phase. This team works out the budget, sets up project deadlines, and assigns tasks to team members. After project planning, the team engage in further designing using the initial design decisions made during SAVY. The prototypes produced during this phase are evaluated and alterations made to the design until the team members agree on the design (Allen Interactions Inc., 2015).

At this stage there may be many types of prototypes, namely, media, functional, integrated, and special-purpose prototypes. Media prototypes give an idea of the aesthetics of the instructional product, this would include the layout, colour, founts, and images used in the product. Functional and integrated prototypes are those that can be tested with learners, the feedback from learners give a sense of how interactive and usable the instructional product is. Special-purpose prototypes are made so that technical components can be finalized early in the process (Allen Interactions Inc., 2015).

Iterative Development Phase

The third and final stage of SAM is the iterative development phase, during this phase the product which was refined in the design stage is proofed, and the alpha, beta, and gold versions released (Allen Interactions Inc., 2015). The first version of the complete project is called the Alpha stage. In this version, all the major flaws have been corrected but minor flaws may remain to be discovered and fixed when the version is tested. The beta version is the upgraded alpha version which has been modified based on feedback from users. The beta version offers the final chances for changes to be made before the project is released for use. The final version is called the gold release (Allen Interactions Inc., 2015)

Uses of SAM

SAM has been utilized in the development of many E-learning programs. For example, SAM was used to develop an online self-guided program for the education of parents and caregivers of children who suffered from traumatic brain injury (Schmidt et al., 2020). SAM has also been used to develop blended learning programs such as a differential calculus course for students at the Universitas Negeri Surabaya (Wintarti, 2019). The face-to-face format of education has also benefited from SAM. An example of this can be seen in primary schools where SAM was used to design and develop physical mathematics manipulatives which included geometric solid shapes, clocks with and without numbers, and multiplication boards (Essel et al., 2016).

Disadvantages of SAM

Although SAM has many advantages, it also has a few disadvantages which must be noted. Due to the constant need for feedback to facilitate the many iterations, there is need for a high level of collaboration between all the stakeholders to achieve a cohesive product. The high input from multiple stakeholders can sometimes lead to an incohesive instructional product if the SAM process is not carefully monitored. Another disadvantage is that potential issues in a project may be overlooked because one of the assumptions of this model is that mistakes will happen (Allen and Sites, 2012, as cited in Essel et al., 2016).

SAM is a model used for the instructional design of e-Learning, blended, and face-to-face courses. While many have used it successfully, there is still room for more research on this model (Jung et al., 2019).