A comparative study of SAM and ADDIE models in simulating STEM instruction

The study compared exhaustively the Successive Approximation Model (SAM) and Analyze, Design,
Develop, Implement and Evaluate (ADDIE) model on the teaching and learning of Science, Technology,
Engineering and Mathematics subjects in Ghana. We selected a sample of 30 student-teachers who
offered Mathematics and Science in the distance mode of the University of Education, Winneba, Ghana in
the 2018/2019 academic year. The first stage of the analysis compared the models separately within the
Vygotskian framework using pre-post experiemtal design. The second stage made comparisons between
and within the two models. The results of both stages showed that student-teachers preferred mostly SAM
to ADDIE instructional models. There were not only consistently higher mean gains in the latter model, but
the group averages of student-teachers in the post-treatment results also demonstrated clear
improvements. Again, student-teachers showed tremendous improvements in the conceptual
understanding of both models. However, the Successive Approximation Model recorded much more
improvements in both pre-treatment and post-treatment results. It was therefore imperative to conclude that
the Successive Approximation Model was more properly situated in the context of teaching and learning
Mathematics and Science. We, therefore, recommended experimental explorations of SAM for STEM.
Keywords: Comparative study, SAM, ADDIE, simulating STEM, Vygotskian theory.