Google Classroom

"Change means that what was before was not perfect. People want things to be better." 

-Esther Dyson

I think it is important to stop and think about what we are doing in the profession of education. We are called to enact change. The biggest way to enact change is to embrace change in our lives. One of the harder things to do is to change our style of teaching and it is refreshing to be reminded that the goal of change is to Make Things Better.

So as I continue to look at the Learning Management Systems from previous posts I began to look at Google Classroom. This LMS makes a lot of sense if you or your school primarily uses Google. With different features like Google Forms, Google Docs, and Google Slides Google Classroom makes a pretty seamless transition for a management system. As I continue to try and find the best system moving forward. I feel overwhelmed by the similarities of the different systems and the fear that I am going to choose the wrong one and be stuck with it for an entire year. 

Side note: I have been told many times that "Variety is the spice of life". While I agree with the notion that variety and switching things up keeps me engaged and keeps things fresh, As I continue to search for things having so many options can almost be paralyzing. So if you are an administrator it really helps teachers for you to make a decision, stick with it, and support teachers to help them learn.

(Whew, sorry I had to get that off of my chest)

Google Classroom definitely has its flaws (Mostly because it is still relatively new). It is important to look at what Google has to offer in the learning management system game. As I mentioned earlier, most schools use Google Apps for Education (GAFE) in some capacity and having Google Classroom will help with that.

For a review of Google Classroom check out this link.

For some of the practical tips and tricks to use Google Classroom check out this link

After looking at the review if you want to create a Google Classroom here is a video tutorial that has been a lot of help for me.

If you are feeling overwhelmed or even anxious about making these changes in your classroom I would like to remind you to look at the quote at the top and take a deep breath. Enjoy the day and know that everything will work out. Not perfectly but the way it is supposed to work.