The Diffusion of Innovation model brings the innovator through the gamut of substitution through redefinition, with the "tipping point" being
" that magic love moment when an idea, trend, or social behavior crosses a threshold, tips, and spreads like wildfire. Just as a single sick person can start an epidemic of the flu, so too can a small but precisely targeted push cause a fashion trend, the popularity of a new product, or a drop in the crime rate. " http://gladwell.com/the-tipping-point/.
Applying this to education, the innovators and the first adopters are the ones who have the big, relevant, new ideas and get into the implementation right away, rather than waiting (or caring) to see if they are truly going to be mainstream. I feel that I am an innovator of curricula, but a first adopter of technology. I love being the first to try innovative tools and applying them to my teaching. By the same token,using the SAMR model, I love to take an ordinary concept (Substitution) like a tech idea of using Google Docs instead of hand written essay. Then applying a change (Augmentation) by using the comments and sharing abilities of Google Docs. Then going another step... (Modification)...using the Google Docs comments with Doctopus to come up with a spreadsheet for grading. After that, using the next step, which is (Redefinition)..taking it to the next possibility, which is turning the results for the class into a chart generated by the Doctopus results. This progression comes only with the desire to use and embrace change and innovation. It is not easy, but the results are worth it! Being a Laggard sounds so boring.