I have actually been using Google Docs for a while now. I found it helpful when creating documents from home that I want to use at school, or somewhere else. I have flash drives, but I seem to lose them! Since I can't lose the internet, I upload my docs there. I like that I have that option, but if I want to do special fonts or formats, I usually save special formatting till I get to school, so I don't waste my time initially. While I use Google Docs often, I'm ashamed to say I just used it to upload files I create in Word, and I have not created any documents or presentations in Google Docs.
I'm really excited about the forms part of Google Docs! I thought this would be a great assessment tool!! I could make it short and sweet and to the point. It can be used as a collaborative tool because a team can create a presentation on a specific topic so each person adds more to it. That's the great thing about Google Docs. It can be updated from anywhere by whoever has permission! This helps save work from one person, to being a team effort to create an awesome presentation! You can also use the Google Docs Spreadsheet as a collaborative tool- it can be used to keep track of class data, student data or even field trip information.
In the classroom, we can use Google Docs to create a class presentation. The teacher can create the outline and the students can "fill in" the blanks. I thought in my class we can create a "Never Ending Story" using presentation, where the student can continue with a story, add pictures, drawing and more!
I think that using Google Docs as an assessment tool is a very good idea. Creating a form is so easy, and students can answer using a computer or even an iPod touch if they are connected to the Internet. Also, keeping things organized for fields trips has always been a daunting task. I can see how Google Docs would make that so much easier.
ReplyDeleteMy husband introduced me to Google Docs sometime within the last year or so. It took em awhile to catch on but man isn't it awesome to type something in Google Docs (or upload it there) and have access to it ANYWHERE? And I agree with the flash drive comment- I can't tell you how many of those we've bought in this house and I also can't tell you where any of them are! haha. I love love love Google forms/spreadsheets, as how many times when I was teaching did I type up a questionnaire for whatever reason and then spend forever sorting through the data? Those forms do it all for you, and they look so professional! Yea, Google Docs!
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