I would like to discuss Google sites. My district recently went Google with our mail, in addition to opening Google docs, video and sites. This was a big transition for all of our teachers and staff. They are very used to doing things a certain way and the change was not easy. That being said, most are very enthusiastic about using Google as our mail provider. They find it convenient since it can be used from anywhere, and helpful because of it’s many useful features.
Since they have made the transition and are familiar with Google’s approach, I would like to eventually introduce the use of Google sites for use in the classroom. Wiki’s have proven to be an invaluable resource when it comes to collecting and sharing useful information, as well as sharing user created content, tools and ideas. I think that Google sites would be an excellent tool for teachers to use in order to implement personalized learning This tool would also allow me to personally tailor my instruction to teachers themselves.
I think that Google sites will provide a streamlined way for teachers to begin their content sharing journey because it will not require another user name and password in our district to use it. The teacher email accounts, Google doc accounts, Google video and sites are all linked to their user name and password. It seems like a small thing, but having one password and user name and being able to get to Google sites from inside their email windows is a big issue in our district. It can mean the difference between using a tool or not.
This tools works very much like a wiki in that it has an edit mode and a save mode. Content can be added by embedding it into a page or by simply linking it to other pages. Multimedia can be added as well as images, or audio.
Google sites can act as personal website for a teacher or as a collection place for user generated content, tools, ideas or anything that pertains to their purpose. This tool meets the requirements of presence, modification, user-generated content, and social participation. It is very present in my district, being a click away from their daily mail site. It’s entire purpose is for continual modification, and all of it’s content is user generated. Social participation is definitely the main function of this tool.
Lauren, I am conducting a staff development day in December on Google for our faculty. I think the applications with in google for teacher and students seem almost limitless. I never thought of using gmail as the email provider for the school. I will have that discussion with our tech director and see what he says, especially since they will have to have a Gmail account to access the other tools. If you have done any faculty development with your teachers, I would love to share ideas.
ReplyDeleteHi Lauren, my district in really on this move to using Web 2.0 tools and the 21st century classroom and what it looks like. The Google Sites website is a great tool for teachers to utilize and I believe that it is user friendly enough for those teachers who are so reluctant to participate. Within my district, we have a personal website within our district website but often times, the site is down. Google Sites would be a great tool to have in the advent of our district site being unavailable. After reading your blog, I have been thinking of ways teachers can collaborate and discuss classroom issues, share websites and techniques with one another. Since I am a computer teacher, the argument in my school is always what are elective teachers doing to enhance what is going on in core classrooms, with our argument being what is being taught is not being shared. Well with Google Sites, that could be eliminated. I recently presented my iGoogle to my students and they have all created gmail accounts and have set up their own iGoogle pages even though we have have Gaggle.net. They want them both. I am in the process of creating a presentation to present to my principal to share with other teachers in my school the tools used through Google and Google Sites will definitely be the tool I will use to present. With our school's push to go green and move to 21st century, Google Sites will be a great asset to our campus and our district. The social participation of Google Sites will also create an avenue for struggling students to communicate in confidence with their teachers on areas they are struggling in and a way to communicate after hours about an assignment they may not understand. In other words, educating our students goes beyond the classroom and having the necessary tools available to use for teachers and students alike offer a great way to students to learn not only their content but learn more about what the web has to offer instead of just entertainment.
ReplyDeleteHi Lauren,
ReplyDeleteMy district needs to adopt the Google website since they have problems sharing information on our server and management systems. Thanks for sharing such an immediately useful tool.