Below are some of the exciting updates Google has released for Classroom.
Classroom mobile app for Android and iOS devices
A native Classroom mobile app for Android and iOS devices is now available for both teachers and students with Google Apps for Education accounts. At the moment, the mobile app works better for students than for teachers. For those using tablets in their classes or for schools implementing BYOD system, this is a perfect add-on to your arsenal of student productivity apps.
Pros:
- Both students and teachers can view their classes (announcements, homeworks, etc.) and communicate in real time.
- Students can open their assignments and work on them right from their phone or tablet given they’ve also installed Google Drive, Docs, and Slides apps.
- Teachers can keep track of who has turned in work on the go.
- Easily snap a photo and as an attachment to a homework.
- Students can also easily attach images, PDFs, and web pages from other apps to their homeworks.
- Offline access is enabled so students and teachers can get information about their assignments in the mobile app.
Cons:
- A teacher can only create announcements and view status of assignments submitted. Cannot access submissions, enter grades, or create assignments at this time.
Just in case you didn’t know, there is also a Chrome Extension available.
Teacher Assignments Page and Class Archiving on Classroom for Desktops
Teachers can now easily keep track of all the activities and assignments they’ve assigned to their various classes through the Teacher “Assignments” page. In here, teachers will have quick access to any assignment, view how many students have turned-in their work, and how many items need reviewing. The Assignments page, however, does not provide information on who has turned in on time and who has turned in late.
Teachers also now have the ability to archive a class. Archiving a class will remove it from the Classroom homepage so you won’t have to scroll through past classes just to get to the current ones. Both teachers and students can still view information on archived classes, but lose the ability to edit as the class in now read only.
For educators who are yet to try Google Classroom, are still unsure whether or not to use this product in their class or simply want to learn more, +Allison Mollica recently hosted a Hangout on Air session together with +Andrew Stillman, Top Contributor of Innovation and Tools to the Google Community, +Jennifer Scheffer and students from Burlington High School, +Dan Taylor, original creator of Course Director and now AppsEvents, and +Ben Rouse from Glyn Schools UK – education leader, Google Certified Teacher and Trainer.
This HOA session discuss what you can ‘do’ with Google Classroom, who benefits, and what are the unique ways to take advantage of this easy to use interface to interact with and engage your students!
Make sure also to check out our comprehensive online course on Google Classroom by Google in Education guru +Allison Mollica. The course will help you get up to speed with ‘Google Classroom’ and features video lessons with an online quiz after each video chapter to test your knowledge. Get access here: http://goo.gl/ddspKc
About the Contributor
Jane Vestil | Google Certified Trainer
Co-Manager, Google Business Group Cebu
Jane advocates the creative use of web technologies for personal, business, and education purposes. She actively participates in Cebu-based Google supported communities (GBG/GDG/GEG) and loves to blog during her free time.
Connect with +Jane Vestil on Google+ or Twitter.
