Exploring Google for Educators

Google has taken information gathering, sharing and collaboration to a new level with Google for Educators. The tools offered can be impactful in every classroom and it will be fascinating to see just where and how these applications will be used to facilitate the educational process as this first generation of user educators and students begin to flex the possibilities with creative minds looking for new opportunities.

With a brief exploration of this toolbox my first thoughts were just how can these tools effect a mathematics classroom? I mean we are not talking English literature, research papers and reflective journals, we are working in the realm of equations and problem solving … oh, that’s right, problem solving; now there is a possibility. Taking a little different mindset it became apparent that I could use at least three of the applications as we entered the new school year and over time, and with help from my students, we could discover a number of effective uses and opportunities in mathematics for Google for Educators.

The first of these tools is the Calendar, whereby using the public option I can share homework assignments, testing events, project deadlines and manage out of class interaction with students and parents alike. It also struck me that it was a great learning tool for students to begin to manage their own life in a moderately structured way. A second tool that caught my eye was Google Docs. The spreadsheet was of particular interest because of the ability to use it as an interactive tool integrated with the classroom SMART Board as well as the opportunity for collaboration on individual terminals at school or from home. But it was Google Sites that really enticed my imagination, not that I had some immediate brain child, but that with some thought we could really come up with a collaborative web site that has enormous possibilities for developing ideas and gaining knowledge about the role of mathematics in providing solutions for business, science, design, technology, medicine and a world of other applications. The possibility for collaboration on a web site goes beyond teacher, student and includes parents and community contributors. Now where could that lead us …