Breanna Savage & Olivia Roberts

Reflective Statement 3
Google For Education

Google for Education encompasses a wide range of tools that can be useful in a variety of
ways. For the purpose of this project, we made three different sample products using multiple
Google resources. Doing this allowed us to see that there are many ways to utilize simple Google
tools to make everyday life simpler. We created a quiz, an online snack sign-up sheet, and an
album of pictures that can be viewed by anyone. Google products offer a way for teachers to take
elements they have always used, like a quiz for example, and turn it into something more
engaging.
The International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) standard that aligns with
our Google for Education ideas is standard 3a, demonstrate fluency in technology systems and
the transfer of current knowledge to new technologies and situations (ISTE, 2008, p. 1). We
have taken ideas that have been used by teachers for decades and given them a more modern
edge using technology. GAFE stands for Google Apps for Education, and is a free set of
collaborative apps by Google. Teachers should use GAFE because it is an easy way to link
students and classrooms together in a way that builds community. GAFE can be meaningfully
integrated into the classroom in many ways. Some of these ways are through Google Docs where
students can easily do peer edits. Students can also use Google Slides to make a group
powerpoint presentation without having to be in the same place at the same time. Instead of
having to give your students time in lab to finish group projects or creating a hassle for their
parents, they can just log onto a computer and work together. The NMC Horizon Report: 2015

K-12 Edition, is an article that discusses the growth of technology and impact of the technology
on teaching children within the schools. This article brings out that when students have the
chance to make their own projects, portfolios and products they are able to develop some life
skills that will follow them throughout their lives. Some of these learning skills include, criticalthinking, reflection, and problem-solving(2015). Using GAFE will open teachers up to a whole
new world of collaborative efforts within teaching.

Using Google tools within the classroom is a very modern and innovative way to involve
parents and children within the classroom. Teachers need to reject functional fixedness and
develop skills to look beyond most common uses for technologies, reconfiguring them for
customized pedagogical purposes (Koehler & Mishra, 2009) Instead of seeing these basic
applications used for business and entertainment purposes teachers can use them for their benefit.
For instance, we created a Google Sheet snack sign-up for parents to be able to access on their
own time at home. Instead of having to take extra time in their day to come to school or even
email the teacher, they simply can go to the Google Sheet, save it, and their choice will be shown
with all parents. Also there is a section on the sheet that parents can list allergies and that way
parents have a clear description of what snacks they cannot provide. Google tools are also very
simple and teachers can teach their children, and then children can then use them within their
own lives.
The Partnership of the 21st Century Learning is designed to incorporate skills into the
teaching of the key academic subjects. Also they have set a framework to highlight the skills,
knowledge, and expertise that students need to excel in life. Within the Information, Media and
Technology Skills category they explain how children should be taught media literacy. Included

in that section is, Create Media Products and when doing that they are coming to an
understanding and utilizing media tools to create and develop within the technological world.
(2009) So within the classroom having children learn to use these Google tools it will better
equip them for the future.

References
Google Apps for Education. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://edtechteacher.org/gafe/
ISTE Standards. (2008). International Society for Technology in Education. Retrieved
from http://www.iste.org/standards/iste-standards
Johnson, L., Adams Becker, S., Estrada, V. & Freeman, A. (2015). NMC Horizon Report: 2015
K-12 Edition. Austin, TX: NMC. Retrieved from
http://cdn.nmc.org/media/2015-nmc-horizon-report-k12-EN.pdf (2016 edition will be
published in Setempter 2016).
Koehler, M. J., & Mishra, P. (2009). What is technological pedagogical content knowledge?
Contemporary Issues in Technology and Teacher Education, 9(1), 60-70
Partnership for 21st Century Skills. (2009). P21 framework definitions: Retrieved from
http://www.p21.org/our-work/p21-framework