My first experience with Google Docs came a few years ago when I was a co-maid of honor for my best friend's wedding. The other maid of honor established a few spreadsheets and documents to keep track of guest list information, reception ideas, etc. Every time she, the bride, or I would need to make a change, we didn't have to worry about finding the most recent version of the document, because Google Docs automatically saves any changes in real time, even if more than one person is working on the document simultaneously. The first time the bride and I were simultaneously working on a document and saw her making changes in real time on my computer screen, I was blown away! I had to call her to make sure I wasn't making it up in my head! Since then I have created and shared several Google Docs in different formats (spreadsheets, presentations, word documents, etc.) both for professional and personal purposes. I sometimes convert my documents to Google Docs simply to have access to them on two different computers, without having to keep emailing attachments to myself.
Although I am familiar with Google Docs, I have not yet used them with my students. One of the easiest and most useful ways to incorporate Google Docs with my classroom teaching is to create a form. I could design a form to act as an assessment, in which each student enters in his/her name and responses to various questions. The responses are then represented in a spreadsheet that generates results for the whole class. With 700+ students, this would make data analysis a much more efficient process. Another idea is to have students use Google Docs to collaborate on a report. I could create and share documents with small groups of students, assign each group a topic, e.g. different composers, and monitor their collaboration. This would be especially effective for out-of-classroom use, as we only have 45 minutes per week for Music class. If the students could collaborate on a music report outside of the classroom, we would be better equipped to maximize in-class instructional time. This report could be in the form of a word document or a presentation. I have created and embedded an example below.
Although I am familiar with Google Docs, I have not yet used them with my students. One of the easiest and most useful ways to incorporate Google Docs with my classroom teaching is to create a form. I could design a form to act as an assessment, in which each student enters in his/her name and responses to various questions. The responses are then represented in a spreadsheet that generates results for the whole class. With 700+ students, this would make data analysis a much more efficient process. Another idea is to have students use Google Docs to collaborate on a report. I could create and share documents with small groups of students, assign each group a topic, e.g. different composers, and monitor their collaboration. This would be especially effective for out-of-classroom use, as we only have 45 minutes per week for Music class. If the students could collaborate on a music report outside of the classroom, we would be better equipped to maximize in-class instructional time. This report could be in the form of a word document or a presentation. I have created and embedded an example below.
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