Blog Post 2: Google Classroom

    https://edu.google.com/

    This blog entry is about Google Classroom, a tool from Dr. Wang's PPT about previous T3PP results. It is one of my technologies from the Google vs. Microsoft Technologies slide. Google Classroom is an online classroom tool that educators can use to share instruction and assignments, live video chat, and connect with students virtually. It works in conjunction with other Google tools like Google Drive, Docs, and Meet. Educators and schools have the ability to create classrooms that only their students can join. In this classroom, educators can share resources and create assignments that students can see. The students can then complete the assignments and submit them to be graded through Google Classroom. It is a completely free and simple way for teachers to connect and work with students virtually, as well as digitally assign and grade work. 

        The ease of use is quite high when it comes to Google Classroom. On both student and teacher dashboards, you select your class and are taken to a "Stream" page that contains any announcements and upcoming assignments, which makes the most pertinent information the first you see. You can then easily navigate to your assigned classwork, the people in the class, and your grades. In addition to this, you can easily access other Google tools like your drive with just a few clicks from your classroom page. This makes it simple to post links, assignments, quizzes, and more. I have included an example of a teacher's Stream page to show how easily viewable and accessible everything is. Everything is very streamlined and easy to find, which makes it usable for pretty much any age of student.

        Versatility is pretty high as well with Google Classroom. It does everything an online classroom should do by having means of communication with students, assigning capabilities, automatic and non-automatic grading tools, and more. In addition, it gives students access to all the other Google tools they might need like Meet to have live video calls, Docs to create documents and do assignments, Calendar to see any upcoming assignments or events and Drive to store files. Because it is compatible with all these tools, it gives students the ability to do many things within the classroom. This week we have been learning about TLC which is the collaboration of Teaching, Learning, and Communication with technology. I think Google Classroom gives you the ability to teach and for students to learn through it. Communication with students through this platform is strong with the ability to make announcements. The only thing I'd say it's lacking for an online classroom is parent communication. Though it does work with Gmail, there is no direct way for the teacher to communicate with parents through the Classroom interface, as well as no way for parents to access the Classroom than through their child's account. This is not a major flaw since there are other ways of communicating with parents, but I do think it's something that Google Classroom lacks in the TLC framework. 

        When it comes to the overall likelihood of me using this in my classroom, I'd say I will almost definitely use something within the Google Classroom tool. It might just be a place where I digitally input due dates so students can keep track of assignments, or I use it as the main platform for assigning and grading work. It is also a great tool to have in the modern day when things can easily be moved to needing to be virtual with COVID-19. It is a strong resource for classroom management and organization for both students and teachers, and it provides lots of tools that students will need to use throughout their educational journey. When considering a place to house assignments and grades, I will strongly consider Google Classroom.