7.4 Google Apps

• Reflect on the use of Google Apps in schools with students as well as professional development with other educators. Also reflect upon your experience using Google Apps with your classmates in this course.

There are numerous benefits with using Google Apps the main being that you can access them from any computer with internet access.  Students often do not use the same technological devices in their homes as are provided for them in the classroom.  If teachers rely solely on machine based software then students are required to either use the same machine every time.  Under this system files must be stored on flash drives which are easily misplaced or destroyed.  By utilising Google Apps’ auto-saving feature student work is secured online and easily shareable and collaborative.  

Google Apps enable students to create and share information in a variety of formats, they are as adept at helping students research data as they are processing it and creating products of student learning.  From the Google search, which can be customised through Google Custom Search, to the Research tool in Drive Google brings information to students at amazing speed.  Maps enable learners to do so much more than just use GPS from their phones.  The My Places tool in Google maps can be used by teachers and students to teach and demonstrate mathematical problems, to demonstrate the travels of a character in a novel in an English class and a host of other possibilities.    

Google Drive is a students mobile office suite.  All of a students projects and papers, notes and images once stored in Drive are available at the touch of a mouse.  Drive opens with a basic set of tools: Docs, Slides, Spreadsheets, Forms, and Draw.  If a student opens these Apps with the Create button he has access to a wide range of additional applications in order to create a fully customizable digital office. Additional programs can be added to either the teachers or the students toolkit from the Chrome Web Store.  If a student has an idea for a project there is probably a google app that can handle the job.

Modern teaching requires collaboration from at many levels. Professional development, once only conducted in grade level meetings and on teacher workdays is now the product of real time digital communication.  Teachers build lesson plans and track student data through shared documents and spreadsheets.  Teachers gain additional degrees while communicating through Google’s Blogger platform and use it to share their ideas with the world.  Digital Application such as Google Apps, and Zoho’s digital suite give transparency to classroom walls.  Students and teachers create knowledge with instant access a world full of information.

Solomon, G. and Schrum, L. (2010).  Web 2.0 how-to for educators:  the indispensable companion to web 2.0:  new tools, new schools.  Washington, D.C.:  ISTE

5-5 Social Networking

• In your Blogger blog, outline the pros and cons associated with allowing social networking in schools.

Social networking is an ever growing element in the digital world.  People from all walks of life are “tapped” into some form of technology and most likely communicating as well.  It really is not a question of whether our students of today could handle an assignment utilizing social networking or whether they understand the concept but rather how much better could they learn and collaborate utilizing what they already know - the digital realm?  Questions that may need to be considered in addition are how do we make the broadened community safe and free of conflict and what is the best way to implement such measures?  These are questions that are always being pondered and steps are continually being taken to improve educational conditions for our students.  Solomon and Schrum state that “the point of communicating with others is to learn, develop, and expand all that we know; to share ideas and information; or just to enjoy social interactions” (2010) and that my friends it precisely what we should do -  allow our students to share, develop and communicate their ideas on a global level.

Unfortunately there are cons to every great opportunity.  There are digital creepers that prey on our youth and we must be very aware of all that can penetrate the sites that they use.  There is also a trend of utilizing social media for bullying and taunting.  However, good teaching and instruction and the proper use of social media will allow it to be greatly beneficial to student learning.

Resources:

Solomon, G. and Schrum, L. (2010).  Web 2.0 how-to for educators:  the indispensable companion to web 2.0:  new tools, new schools.  Washington, D.C.:  ISTE