Google's suite of tools are known as Google Apps. Google Apps are freely available to everyone, but some schools participate in Google Apps for Education, which customizes Google's tools for school use. Google Apps are frequently updated with new features. Google's 2,668 (and counting) employees seem to thrive professionally in the Googleplex environment, if the amount of their product creations and upgrades are an indicator. On average, the Google Apps Blog posts new features, products or updates every other day. But only some of those new features for the 40+ Google Apps are useful for educators. Below is a brief review of some of what I think are the best new or upgraded qualities for the Google Apps in Education pack from the past six months.
A new editor in
Google Docs allows and enables:
- Uploading, storing and organizing of any type of file, and the file limit increased from 250MB to 1GB.
- Seeing other collaborators' changes in real-time as they type.
- Creating collaborative drawings (organizational charts, flow charts, design diagrams) from the Docs list rather than only from within a Google Doc.
- Copying content between documents, spreadsheets and presentations more easily and with improved accuracy with the new web clipboard.
- Easier movement and formatting of images in your documents. Ability to re-size images right inside the document. After you insert an image into a document, click on the image to bring up controls that let you scale the image’s size in any direction. Once you’re happy with the size, you can click the Fixed option to place the image at a fixed place, relative to your paragraph. When an image is fixed, any text you enter will flow around it.
- Increased speed in Docs, so you should be able to edit with up to 50 simultaneous users (rather than the actual 10 synchronous users that most of us have experienced).
- A ruler within your document for help with adjusting margins.
- A sidebar that lets you see who else is editing at the same time, and, if you click the sidebar, you can chat with collaborators right next to the document. And when other editors type, you can now see their edits as they happen character-by-character.
Are you gathering and sorting data for your Life Science class (or any other project)? Google Spreadsheets changes make it easier and more productive:
- Faster loading and scrolling of large spreadsheets
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You can now edit cells using the formula bar, which is ideal for working with complicated formulas.
- Cell auto fill makes duplicating an entry as easy as pressing Enter. Just type the first few characters and the rest will show up as you type.
- You can now move columns by dragging them with your mouse. Click and hold on the top cell of the column and drag it to the left or right. You can also sort a column with the drop-down menu on the column header. Click on the triangle drop down button
- At the bottom of the spreadsheet, the links to sheets are clearer and easier to use. Sheet titles are bigger and easier to click. And for those of you with a lot of sheets in one doc, a quick way to view a list of all your sheets.
New on your Google Docs home page:
- A new view option: Thumbnail view in the Docs List, which allows you to preview your Docs.
- Spelling correction when searching for a doc.
- New export features which allow you to select multiple documents, convert them into your chosen format and download them as a zip file.
- Indicators to show if a document has been viewed already or not.
- A 'New!' indicator that shows you when a new document has been shared with you.
How to access what's new in Docs:If your school or district does not subscribe to Google Apps in Education, select the Editing tab in the Google Docs Settings. Check the box next to “New version of Google documents,” and all new and uploaded documents will be created in the new editor.
If your school or district does subscribe to Google Apps in Education, administrators need to enable the checkbox 'Enable pre-release features' in 'Domain Settings'. Users can then select the 'New version of Google documents' option in the 'Documents settings' area of Google Docs.
Sites has updates for your Google-hosted website:
New design templates for background and content (many especially designed for teachers, schools, classes). Select one when you create a new Site.
- Control level of access for viewers and collaborators in site activity and revision history: When editing a site, select 'More actions' from the drop-down menu in the top right. Then select 'Manage site', then 'General' and in the 'Access Settings' section, select the level of access you want for collaborators or viewers for site activity and revision history.
Gmail, Google's free email, has these new features:
- Easily embed your Google documents while composing or reading emails.
- Drag and drop attachments: Instead of clicking on "Attach a file”, drag the file onto the compose window to attach the file. (For now, drag and drop attachments works for Google Chrome and Firefox 3.6 only.)
- Calendar invitation: Compose a new message and click on the new link “Insert: Invitation”. Click on that link and a small window appears that displays your availability as well as that of the people you're emailing provided you have permission to see their calendars. Click “Insert Invitation” and this adds a preview to your email message. Sending the message adds the event to your calendar and your friends’ calendars.
- Can have two email windows open at the same time (maybe to find an old message while composing an email). Click on the "new window" icon (in upper right corner) to pop compose area into its own window.
Calendar also has new highlights:
- Ability to subscribe to conference room/resource calendars via Interesting Calendars link: This feature provides an easy way for users such as office administrators to add conference room calendar information to their calendar.
- Schools and Districts with Google Apps for Education: Resource calendars - In Calendar Settings, go to the 'Calendars' tab, then 'Browse interesting calendars', then 'More' and you will see an option for the resources at your domain. Clicking on this allows you to either preview the calendar or subscribe to it easily.
Lesson Idea
If this seems like too many new things to learn in Google, consider creating a Scavenger Hunt type of game for your students. Challenge them to find as many new features in Google Docs, Sites, Calendar, or Gmail as they can. Make it a collaborative team project, where each team uses a Doc to record their findings. Depending on the grade level, either give them clues on where they can find the answers or let them do all the work. When finished have each team do a quick demo of one of the key features your class will be using (like the Drawing tool or a Sites template).
If you'd like to know a little more about the basics, see Tony Vincent's blog post Getting Started With
Google Docs.
Cherie Stafford is a Technology In Practice consultant, with experience as a classroom teacher, special education teacher, library media specialist, and adjunct university professor.
