Tuesday, January 23, 2018

GSuite Course

During the 16-17 school year, I got thinking about how many Chromebooks we are putting into the district and our emphasis on Google as a learning, collaborating and creating platform.   I was thinking that offering a GSuite course to complement our Microsoft Office class would be a helpful way to help students become more proficient in all things Google.  Below are the components of the class.  I would love your feedback! 

Parent Letter

The class is asynchronous and self paced. That is important to me because I didn't want to frustrate anyone in class because the pace was too slow or too fast for them. I have students in here that are already into graphic design and others who are still figuring out how to login each day.  As you saw in the parent letter, the students have to choose their path through the class.  They choose which points to earn and when to earn them as they strive towards our quarterly point goal.  Most of the links below are hyperdocs I created with the skills they have to show.  Some are simply Google Docs with a couple skills because they are less intensive platforms (think Alerts vs. Slides).  To show that the students have mastered a platform, they choose how to show the evidence.  They can conference with me, they can create a tutorial, create a doc or slide deck with screenshots, etc. Each platform has an optional extension activity where they can address a societal need with that platform.  That could be for a teacher, a fundraiser, a community organization, etc.  The sky is the limit!  Each platform has a live rubric in Schoology where I will assess whether they have demonstrated the skills required for the platform.  I have only included a few of them for your reference. You will notice in all of them that they get extra points for teaching me something about the platform that I didn't previously know.

Disclaimer: I have been updating these as I go, but they may not reflect the latest changes in GSuite.  Please make sure you proofread each AND check that the skills it asks the students to show are still accurate. 

If you feel so inclined, my Venmo for coffee is @Rachel-Murat

Alerts
Blogger
Books
Calendar
Chrome
Docs
Draw
Drive   Drive Rubric
Earth   Earth Rubric
Expeditions
Explore
Forms
Gmail
Maps
My Maps
Photos
Scholar
Search
Sheets
Sites
Slides
YouTube  YouTube Rubric

As you can see towards the end of each of the Hyperdocs, they can earn extra points by creating an on topic meme or anchor chart.  Here is the rubric that they can access via Schoology. 

There are a couple extra adventures this semester.  We will have an app smack down each quarter where students teach the in class audience as well as the virtual Periscope audience about Chrome apps and extensions.  The rubric and a past example from my DigCit class are included.
App Smackdown Rubric
App Smackdown Former Student Example

We will also have a biweekly showcase where students can show the class something they learned that might be a hidden gem or a hack they figured out.

Each week students will be required to complete this Weekly Performance Assessment.  This will enable the student to monitor their progress in class and will act as a springboard for one on one conferences with me.

The students will submit their creations here.  You will notice that it includes a reflection of the product and process.  I am hoping that is instructive for them as they progress through the class.

Right now, I am planning to list badges on Padlet, but am exploring different badging platforms.

I would really love your feedback (the good, the bad and the ugly)! Suggestions, comments, etc.  I'm all ears!  Thank you!

8 comments:

  1. Terrific setup! Great way to differentiate and personalize learning. Best part, students can demonstrate learning regularly. Essential for growth mindset. You are leading the pack!

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  2. I like the idea of self pacing. Not all students can work at the same speed and this will be good for them. I like how it allows them the flexibility in choosing which things to do. Way to go!

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  3. Fantastic ideas here, thank you for sharing with all of us!

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  4. Thanks for sharing your blog, lots of great resources for your students in a blended fashion.

    Guessing your school has used Schoology for some time. Have you played with Classroom for document flow? I love being able to send out "template" docs in which each student gets a copy and that students can submit multiple example of their learning (that is how I collect assignments for my Digital Imaging and Video courses for example). I find it makes that aspect of assignment status much easier than my LMS features.

    Thanks again for sharing your blog.

    Cheers,
    Phil

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    Replies
    1. Hi! We have been using Schoology for 5 years and don't use Classroom at all, but I have used Google Forms for project submissions because I have the back end Sheets set up so they each have their own Sheet. For homework assignments in a synchronous environment I have them upload to Schoology. Having live rubrics in Schoology where I can simply click on the rubric and then it transfers to School Tool has worked well for me in the past, so I am hoping it works for this class as well.

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  5. I love this Rachel - it's fun, engaging, and challenging. Great as always!!

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