Using Google Apps in the Classroom

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Jan Mars on July 12, 2010 at 6:49pm

If you setup an Google Apps for Education you can set up accounts for students in your school. I guess since the school is in "control" of them those accounts are exempt from that rule. (Guess on my part) Here are some ideas for you:
http://www.tammyworcester.com/Tips/Google_Tools/Entries/2020/1/1_St...

Permalink Reply by Bill Noomah on July 23, 2010 at 11:38pm

Does your school district have a comprehensive student internet policy. My guess is that it does. Read it. Every year! This is one thing you want to be the smartest geek in the room about.

Children under 13 can not sign themselves up for an email account. Our district's Internet policy which is renewed by the parent's each year, gives the district permission to provide a Google/Gmail account (as well as stating many other things: fair use and copyright, code of ethics, rights and responsibilities, due process, conditions that lead to revocation of internet use). Check with your district office.

Permalink Reply by Ben Paulson on July 25, 2010 at 1:20am

We use Google Docs and Spreadsheets to share information in science classes. We'll use Spreadsheets to collect data and then collaborative lab reports in Google Docs. Presentation is great too because individuals can edit one or two slides each for a larger group presentation. The huge benefit of all of these is real time collaboration, but also the ability to work collaboratively at home too (provided they've got internet).

I've also started using Wave and the kids have really taken to it. We use it as a Q&A forum sort of like a more interactive discussion board and we also use it in class as a review tool where multiple students can add info to the same question.

I also use Google Docs for written assignment submission to cut down on papers that I collect. These are just a few ideas off the top of my head. Hope that helps!

Ben

Permalink Reply by Paula Dillon on July 28, 2010 at 7:44pm

For students who have difficulty with deadlines and submitting work, teachers can share the account with the parent and the student. In this was parents can help meet deadlines at home by viewing the classroom calendar. When students need to submit their work, they can submit through Google Docs and parents and teachers will be notified of submission. There are no more home arguments about homework and their are no more lost assignment excuses. Through the history button, teachers and parents can monitor work being completed on long term assignments.

For students who are independent learners, there are opportunities for collaboration with peers and peer-editing documents and presentations.

Teachers can also set up groups for their classrooms. These groups look and act much like a wiki; however, they can be completely private, and therefore safe, for the classroom and the teachers. Only those invited can view or post, and different members can have different levels of access at no cost.

Professional learning communities within your school can also benefit from the use of these tools. For example, in creating the school improvement plan for our school we collaborated on the document using Google Docs. We were all able to contribute to the writing and editing of the plan. Co-advisers of activities in the school who are involved in fund-raising find the use of the shared excel spreadsheet as helpful. Both advisers can keep track of the accounting and the data is always up to date.

Of course the tools are also helpful for students who have Internet connectivity at home, but limited transportation.

Have you looked at http://www.googlelittrips.org/ .... there is also a version for younger students

Permalink Reply by Lori Lisai on August 6, 2010 at 7:35pm

I am wondering if there is a Google App for keeping track of what students are reading? Something akin to Nancie Atwell's Status of the Class binders, if you're familiar with her work. Basically, it's just a spreadsheet, but I can foresee some time saved if students could enter the information and I could communicate with them with notes posted about the books they're reading right on the spreadsheet. Perhaps they could even have conversations back and forth as they see what others are reading...Anyway, does anybody know if this kind of thing exists? Many thanks!

Permalink Reply by Derrick Waddell on August 6, 2010 at 9:51pm

I've use Google Apps in much the same ways as posted on this page, but I wanted to add a few things. Collaboration with Docs, Sites, and Calendar is the key offering, in my opinion. Collaborative student projects are great, but Apps has also increased collaboration among our faculty. We use Google Docs Forms for everything from posting announcements to discipline referrals, and I use Google Calendar to schedule the school's computer lab.

Here's my favorite student project that I've used with Apps (in place of a final exam):
https://docs.google.com/document/pub?id=13_Yi1Fcy1e-fQjA3qMJ7Tvw7Cx...

Permalink Reply by Garrison Daily on August 21, 2010 at 8:29pm

Jan,
I just finished having my 7th/8th graders write collaborative letters. It was beyond successful. I mixed them up so that nobody was sitting within earshot of a group member. They had to talk in the chat box. I kept all docs open on my computer and jumped between them. It worked so well! My comments made them feel that I was watching at every moment. I could recommend things that they weren't thinking of, too.

That's just one. I've used forms extensively for everything from surveys to quizzes. Easy grading within the spreadsheets (highlight booboos with pink). If appropriate, I create a copy without names for the class to review. Both surveys and tests translate automatically into easy pie charts for a summary of results.

There's just no end ....

Garrison

Permalink Reply by Denise Stewart on August 22, 2010 at 5:13pm

I am an English Language Instructional Coach at my site and have recommended google lit trips to the English department. Unfortunately, though most of the staff members are under 40, they shy away from technology. That being said, I did manage to convince one new teacher to take a look at it and I offered to team teach it with her when she was ready. Since she is a digital native, like her students, I think she will take to it like ducks to water:)

Denise

www.ellteacherpros.com
www.teachingsuccesseswithells.blogspot.com

Permalink Reply by Shawn Kibel on October 11, 2010 at 8:51am

Hi Joel! Hope you don't mind me jumping in with my two cents here. I see three major problems that make people shy away from technology.

1. Lack of proper training - We give teachers a wealth of technology to employ in the classroom and then give them minimal training on using it. We then expect them to engage a class confidently. The technologically challenged, even the brave ones, might try this once and have it go horribly wrong. They get a pretty bad taste in their mouth and shut down to future tech offerings.

2. Fear of change - Tech evolves so quickly. As soon as you learn some technology to use in the classroom, it becomes outdated or replaced by something else, the flavor of the week. A lot of teachers like to get in a rut where they can churn out the same reliable work, year after year. Tech forces them out of their comfort zone and disrupts what they've been doing for years. This leads right into #3.

3. Just plain laziness - Some teachers just are not interested in putting in any effort to ensure they and their technique evolve. They are clock punchers that just want to do the minimum required to get by.

The first two can be addressed by good training and communication. We have a district technology team which then filters down to campus technology teams, all comprised of teachers with the true tech geeks acting in an advisory role only. We went with this model because our small district could not afford employing a full time technology integration specialist. It has worked to great effect. When teachers receive new technology and training from their peers, they are much more likely to buy in and see the value.

As for the teachers that fall into the 3rd category, they are becoming more and more of a minority. We have seen some turn around and actually have a fire for teaching reignited due to using technology in the classroom. Others, just refuse to participate, or at most, do the minimum to get by. The fact of the matter is, as long as we base everything on how well kids take tests, some of these teachers will always be around.

Permalink Reply by Garrison Daily on October 12, 2010 at 9:33am

Shawn,

Love your response, but I just have to take issue with the laziness part. Our teachers work extremely hard. They're just so busy trying to keep their chins above water, they don't have time to invent a new life raft.

Permalink Reply by Garrison Daily on October 12, 2010 at 8:26pm

Precisely my point. You and I know that the technology that's out there can make their lives easier, but in truth, they would have to go through a sort of modification of how they do things and/or learning curve. That does take time, time that I'm willing to spend because my curriculum isn't written by someone "downtown" and because I love it all. "Regular" teachers have so many ridiculous hoops that need to be jumped through, they just don't have time or energy to take on another project.

Sad, isn't it, that teachers' lives are becoming so scripted that they have no time to be creative?

Permalink Reply by Garrison Daily on October 12, 2010 at 10:23pm

Thank you, cprofitt.

• ‹ Previous
• 1
• 2
• 3
• Next ›
• Page