Google Drive

GAIN

I briefly addressed Google Drive in the previous blog but will go into more detail here.  It is a document sharing application. 

One of the benefits to Google Drive is that your work can go with you anywhere.  Programs such as Word require the user to either work on the same computer or carry their work with them on a portable drive. With Google Drive, your work can follow you to any computer with an Internet connection due to cloud storage.  One document can be as long as 500 pages and there are no limits on the number of documents a user can create.  In comparison to other word processing applications, I found Google Documents to be user-friendly and have a number of features. 

Google Documents is also tied to the Common Core Standards in the following aspects. The common Core Standard for Writing, Anchor Standard 5, can be enhanced by Google Documents, as it has the ability for students and teachers to see a revision history of their work.  The work is saved every two seconds, creating a trail of revisions.  A student can even delete a paragraph during the writing stage but go back and find it later if they decide to add it back in.  

Anchor Standard 6 deals with collaborative work.  I have first hand experience with discussions regarding the effectiveness of this application.  This application is used in the academic world amongst researchers who are involved in collaborative research. The ability to collaborate is a large benefit of Google Drive.  Multiple users can work on a project without having multiple versions of the project, which can cause confusion in the editing process.  This standard will allow students to learn to work collaboratively and will allow teachers to see a student's progress and leave feedback.  Students can also publish their work on the Web or to other select people with just a click of a button when using Google Documents. 

Anchor Core 10 focuses on collecting research from the Internet by using copy and paste features for links, text or pictures. The material can be saved in Google Docs to be reviewed by other collaborators.

Anchor core standards for Production and Distribution and Writing state that students must produce writing using digital tools, meaning they will be required to begin exploring keyboarding skills as early as Kindergarten.  By fourth grade, students should be able to produce a one-page paper. Correcting mistakes is also part of this process and students will be introduced to features such as spell-check.  These are just a few of the writing standards associated with the Common Core Standards that can be made possible by the use of Google Documents. 

Lastly, for the contents of this blog, Common Core Standards also require collaborative note taking skills using Google Documents. Students can be instructed to type notes which later can be revised and saved for future use.  This feature can also be useful because students can see what others are typing and can enhance their learning experience. 

I think it will be interesting to see how Google Documents and other Google applications will be integrated into the classroom.  It is an exciting time in technology for schools and I am excited to be a part of it.