RUNNING HEAD: GOOGLE APPS FOR EDUCATION
Google Apps for Education
Maryellen Tissandier
EDUC 631
1
2
GOOGLE APPS FOR EDUCATION
Abstract
Educators are forced into using tools to help motivate the 21st century students
who are digital natives. The students today have lived their entire lives exposed to
current technology and teachers need to continue to learn how to integrate technology
into the classroom. Google Apps for Education has opened up the technology use in a
classroom. Google Apps has a lot to offer for education and only a few complications.
Google Apps is a cloud computing software product that allows students to work on
projects and assignments from home and at school. There are many different ways that a
teacher can use Google Apps in the classroom to enhance the learning environment.
Within Google Chrome, a teacher can use many different programs such as Google+,
Circles, Hangouts, Google Docs, and Google Drive to help their students learn in the
classroom using technology. All educators can benefit from Google Apps as well as all
students can benefit also. Not only can regular education teachers use Google Apps in
the classroom and for personal growth, but also all teachers and administrators can
benefit from this technology tool.
Keywords
Digital natives, education, Google, Google Apps, cloud computing, 21st Century
Learning
3
GOOGLE APPS FOR EDUCATION
Introduction
Google Apps for Education has had a positive impact on education and is moving
education into the 21st Century using different tools to accommodate students and
educators. Cassi Caputo, an education team member for Google, believes in the power of
the web to help people discover, connect, and learn. Google can be used in many
environments dealing with education. Students, teachers, administrators, specialists, and
higher education students can benefit from the many tools available through Google.
Advance Placement Language and Composition is one program that incorporates Web
2.0 tools into the classroom including Google Applications (Adams, 2008). All students
do not learn the same way and that is why teachers and school districts need to have a 1:1
ratio of laptops to student so that each child can have their needs met. Chromebooks is a
beneficial laptop that can be used along with Google apps to see improved student
achievement. Within Google, educators and students are able to use features such as
Google+, Google Chat, and Google Docs. Each of these three features has features within
them that can be helpful to education.
Google Docs
One collaborative learning tool that can be used in the classroom is Google Docs,
which is an online word processing application found within Google. Many teachers and
students lack the knowledge to be able to effectively use this technology tool. In one
study written by Wenyi Zhou, Elizabeth Simpson, and Denise Pinette Domizi, it was
found that Google Docs is a useful tool for group work, using Google Docs had no effect
on students’ paper grades, and half of the students reported they would like to use Google
4
GOOGLE APPS FOR EDUCATION
Docs in the future. Google Docs is very similar to Microsoft Office, but is web-based and
can be accessed anywhere that Wi-Fi or Internet is available.
Google Docs is a
collaborative tool that can be given access to other people to collaborate and work
together on assignments. When working in Google Docs, educators and students can
have access to documents, presentations, spreadsheets, forms, and drawing (Wenyi,
Simpson, and Domizi, 2012).
Google documents, a word processing application, allows for users to create and
edit documents online by more than one student. Teachers can share documents with
students to collaborate with each other on. Students can work together on assignments
from the ease of their home or laptop in the classroom. Students can not make excuses
for not completing an assignment because Google Docs automatically saves work every 3
seconds so an assignment can not get lost in space. Google Presentations is very similar
to Microsoft PowerPoint and allows students to make presentations where the whole
group can participate together at the same time.
Google Spreadsheets is another
commonly used resource for data sorting and calculating. Students can have access to a
teacher’s spreadsheet and can see dates and changes that are important to the classroom.
Another tool in Google Docs is Google Forms, which is a survey tool. Any individual
can create a form for others to fill out. After creating the form, they will email the form
for others to complete and click “submit”. After a person fills out the form, the responses
are automatically send to the developer and the responses are saved into a spreadsheet for
further use. Educators and students can benefit from this program. The last program
users can use in Google Docs is Drawing. The drawing program allows for users to
5
GOOGLE APPS FOR EDUCATION
create and collaborate to add images from the computer or Web and create shapes as well
(Weinstein, 2012).
Google+
Google not only has the software Google Docs, but also allows students, teachers,
and coworkers to use other types of Google software to help them collaborate.
Circles, communities, pages, and hangouts are four different tools that can be used with
Google+. Google Circles allow users to classify who they interact with in Google+. In
Google Circles, teachers are able to group students, parents, or even other educators. A
teacher can then send a specific reminder to certain groups and not to their entire list of
associates on Google+. Google Communities is a place where groups can communicate,
post, and share files similar to Facebook. Google Pages is also similar to Facebook
where users can create specific pages for classrooms or activities that happen in the
school. Users can interact by updating status updates and commenting on other’s pages.
Google Hangouts is a video conferencing application where users can have face-to-face
communication from a distance. When using Google Hangouts, participants can also
collaborate on a Google Doc while discussing it through video. Users can also show you
tube videos and share their screen with the other users in the hangout. There are many
benefits to using Google Hangouts (Haebig & Lawrence, 2013). . Teachers and students
can also “hangout” with other classrooms or even authors around the country or world.
As discussed above, Google Groups is a tool that can be used within Google+ and
Google Apps. One disadvantage to being a physical education teacher or another
specialty area teacher is the lack of collaboration they have within their school (Martin &
GOOGLE APPS FOR EDUCATION
6
Browning, 2012). Google Groups can be used for discussing classroom management
issues, lesson ideas, and activities. It can also be used for providing an avenue for sharing
their thoughts and feelings with colleagues who face similar day-to-day challenges.
Dialogues and collaboration among teachers are important factors that encourage
knowledge sharing and can improve productivity.
Impact of Google Apps on Teaching
Google Apps can have such a positive impact on teaching and learning in the
classroom. Collaborative tasks can be maximized by using Google apps and can push
students to the next level. Collaborative tasks can be assigned through Google Docs,
where students can maximize their learning inside and outside of the classroom by
allowing them to go beyond what they would have learned if they were working
independently. When using Google Apps, teachers are forced to allow their students to
work collaboratively on projects. Collaboration is also desirable for the development of
problem solving and decision making skills, which will enhance student’s learning. In
the classroom, teachers can use Google Apps with any part of their lesson and it can be
used independently or collaboratively, but it is a tool that will encourage collaboration.
When given an assignment, students can begin an assignment in class and then it will
allow them to work on a common task without restrictions when they go to their own
homes. Google Apps will make the work easier for students and especially for students.
Since collaboration is a key part to Google Apps, teachers are able to work together to
make lesson plans, instead of one teacher completing all of the work by himself or
GOOGLE APPS FOR EDUCATION
7
herself. Also, overall enthusiasm for learning will increase due to the knowledge of using
Google Apps and collaborating positively between one another (Adams, 2008).
Benefits of learning using Google Apps
Roger Nevin, discusses the pros and cons of using Google Apps in the classroom.
One benefit of using Google Apps is that students cannot make excuses when using the
program because anything that they work on at home is automatically saved and they
have access to the material anywhere that they go. Another advantage that Nevin
discusses is that the software is available for free and it does not have to be installed to
the computers that the students or teachers are using it on. Google Apps also has the
opportunity to improve assessment and help students earn the best grade they can with
feedback given throughout the assignment rather than at the end of an assignment.
Students and teachers can also upload videos to Google Apps similar to YouTube. There
are many advantages to using Google Apps in the classroom and it is a tool that can help
students and teachers use technology more effectively (Nevin, 2009). Chromebooks is a
secure laptop system that works with Google Apps for Education that can allow for
teacher control and student use when used 1:1. This security feature is beneficial to
control what websites and activities students participate in depending on their age. When
using this device there are many ways that it can assist in the classroom. Chromebooks
can assist with intervention classes, principal leadership, online collaboration, core
subjects, virtual field trips, and principal training.
Like stated above, collaboration is a huge aspect of Google Docs and not
only changes the learning environment but allows for benefits on learning and mastering
GOOGLE APPS FOR EDUCATION
8
tasks. Additionally, Google Docs was able to change the ways students collaborated on a
day-to-day basis. Instead of talking in the classroom and editing each other’s papers on a
writing assignment, students are able to use Google Docs and change the paper in real
time. By increasing collaborative structures, this will allow students to increase their
knowledge advancement. Google Apps not only benefits the students, but also benefits
teachers and educators. Teachers can use Google Apps to share documents with one
another. A common spreadsheet can also be created to share information between a
common student instead of emailing or handing a document to each other. The
spreadsheet or document can be completed and saved automatically using Google Apps.
Google Forms is also beneficial to educators and students as they can create a form and
gain access to real time data. Once a person fills out the form the data is automatically
placed into a spreadsheet for use on how to improve. In every school, there are many
different activities happening at once. One way to manage all of these activities would be
to have a master calendar on Google Apps that all teachers and staff could have access to.
The school that moves their master calendar from paper and pencil to Google Calendar is
enhancing their technology abilities and moving into the 21st century.
Negative impact on learning using Google Apps
One disadvantage to Google Apps for Education is that some teachers or students
may not feel comfortable with using this feature. Teachers and students will have to be
shown how to log on to Google and how to access all of the features that Google has to
offer. The range of features could be confusing at first because there are so many
amazing features that can be used in the classroom. In one study conducted by Wnyi
9
GOOGLE APPS FOR EDUCATION
Zhou, Elizabeth Simpson, and Denise Pinette Domizi, the researchers found that there
was not a significant effect of using Google Docs on students’ learning, as measured by
assessments. Even though Google Docs may not have had an effect on their overall
grade, the students may have been influenced to collaborate with their peers more than
they would in a normal face-to-face classroom. Sometimes with a lot of collaboration,
teachers must consider that it might be difficult to keep track of each group members’
contributions to an assignment. If an assignment uses Google Docs, the teacher may not
be able to see which member of the group added information and which did not.
Formatting was also noted as a problem when using Google Drive and Docs. When
using Microsoft office, students have access to many formatting changes and tools. If
students are completing the same assignment using Google Docs, they may have less
tools and formatting options that could hinder the assignment. Following directions has
been another piece that can have a negative impact on using Google Apps for Education.
Students will be given an assignment and will not follow the direction on using the
Internet and Google Apps (Zhou, Simpson, Domizi, 2012).
Conclusion
Educators should acknowledge that the students of the 21st century are group
oriented and have been around technology their whole life. By including Google Apps for
Education in the classroom, educators can bring their class to the next level and allow for
students to collaborate with one another and to develop more meaningful products. In
order to fully engage students, teachers must incorporate technology into their daily
lessons, and Google can help achieve this. If teachers use Google Apps for Education,
GOOGLE APPS FOR EDUCATION
10
the perceived digital and tech-literacy divides can be significantly narrowed to help our
students excel. Google Apps for Education will require students to showcase their
enriched learning experiences compared to the traditional classroom assignment.
Students will be able to make their assignment their own and meet their needs when
using Google Apps for Education.
GOOGLE APPS FOR EDUCATION
11
References
Adams, D. C. (2008). Gaga for google in the twenty-first century advanced placement
language classroom. The Clearing House,82(2), 96-100. Retrieved from
http://search.proquest.com/docview/196881980?accountid=12085
Haebig, C., & Lawrence, D. (2013, December). 'Hangout' with your students using
Google. Learning & Leading with Technology, 41(4), 26+. Retrieved from
http://go.galegroup.com.ezproxy.liberty.edu:2048/ps/i.do?id=GALE%7CA35261
4976&v=2.1&u=vic_liberty&it=r&p=AONE&sw=w&asid=4f806a13ac4b7fccda
b331de56a106a9
Martin, M., & Browning-Johnson, R. (2012). Google Groups. JOPERD—The
Journal of Physical Education, Recreation & Dance, 83(7), 55+. Retrieved from
http://go.galegroup.com.ezproxy.liberty.edu:2048/ps/i.do?id=GALE%7CA30335
2200&v=2.1&u=vic_liberty&it=r&p=AONE&sw=w&asid=4c676f62052d0d488a
5f299203bdc760
Nevin, R. (2009). Supporting 21st century learning through Google Apps. Teacher
Librarian, 37(2), 35+. Retrieved from
http://go.galegroup.com.ezproxy.liberty.edu:2048/ps/i.do?id=GALE%7CA21578
7788&v=2.1&u=vic_liberty&it=r&p=AONE&sw=w&asid=b8283cfdcb585623ae
b77319efb6d6fb
The benefits of Google Chromebooks and apps for education. (2013, July). District
Administration, 49(7), 40+. Retrieved from
http://go.galegroup.com.ezproxy.liberty.edu:2048/ps/i.do?id=GALE%7CA33718
GOOGLE APPS FOR EDUCATION
12
4814&v=2.1&u=vic_liberty&it=r&p=AONE&sw=w&asid=4e6f8b9207394f9fb2
9cacadcf132635
Weinstein, P. K., & Wink, D. M. (2012). Beyond google docs. Nurse Educator, 37(2),
45-47. doi: 10.1097/NNE.0b013e3182461c2f
Wenyi, Z., Simpson, E., & Domizi, D. (2012). Google Docs in an Out-of-Class
Collaborative Writing Activity. International Journal of Teaching & Learning in
Higher Education, 24(3), 359-375