Google+Docs+&+Google+Apps

Google Docs []

//**Description:**// There are essential two ways to access Google Docs. One is through Google Apps, which is more or less a "corporate" environment. In the Ottawa-Carleton district School Board, any employee with a @ocdsb.ca email account can access Google Docs through this corporate entity. Go to [] to sign in. The other way to access Google Docs is via your Google account, such as if you have gmail or use another Google product like Google Reader or your iGoogle home page.

Google Docs comprises a number of online software tools that you would normally find in a Office Suite, such as Microsoft Office. The tools in Google's product include a word processor, a slide presenter (like PowerPoint) and a spreadsheet like Excel. Google Docs also offers calendaring, forms/surveys that can be very useful. When you completed the survey for this three day workshop, it was done with Google Docs.

So why use Google Docs? Because it offers a shared environment where participants from around the world or around the classroom can work on the same document simultaneously. Teachers can use it to hand out material to students, to follow student progress and encourage group work. Boards of Education and universities alike are already looking at using Google Docs in place of Microsoft Office or even OpenOffice.



//**Pros and Cons of Google Docs**// __Pros__ -offers a free collaborative environment for staff and students -great for group work -great organizational tools within the environment -can monitor user/student progress -saves automatically

__Cons__ -can be slow during the day -does not include all the options of a full office suite -can be confusing to work on same document at same time

__Using Google Docs in Elementary School__ -we recommend limiting the use to Grades 7 and 8 -good for working on a presentation from separate locations -could be used for a student who is absent __Using Google Docs in Secondary School__ -useful across the curriculum -use anywhere where looking for collaboration and communication -super site with lots of resources from Jennifer Carrie Dorman... also a good example of use of a wiki
 * //Pedagogy//**

-Overview of [|Google Docs] -Description of [|Google Docs] -Help Centre for [|Google Docs] - a good pdf handout on Google Docs from the above author [|GoogleDocsTutorial.pdf] -a good starter [|video for GD] -a great tutorial on [|Google Sites]
 * //Other Resources//**