How Google + Can Change The Education Landscape

Using Google + to connect teachers and students

Google recently introduced their newest product, a social networking site called Google +. Currently it is in the beta stage and is available by invitation only. However, many people in the education industry are predicting that once the site opens to everyone, it will have some amazing applications for the classroom.

Over the past few years, teachers and students have been able to connect through other social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter, however, neither of those sites have the adaptability that the Google site offers.In fact, the functionality of the site has the potential to be a powerful tool in the classroom.

Here's why:

Currently, there is no age limit for people who set up accounts (this could change, however). With Facebook, children under the age of 13 aren't allowed to have accounts, so the site is only beneficial to high school and college students. Google + would allow teachers to connect with younger students effectively.

Google + offers Circles, which allows a user to create different circles of contacts and post information to specific groups. This would allow teachers to post to students without worry that it would be a nuisance to their professional contacts, their families or their friends. In addition, teachers can feel safe being friends with their students without having to keep their private, personal lives under wraps. This works for students as well. Many college professors are hesitant to interact with their students on sites like Facebook because it can feel too personal for both the teacher and the student.

Because the user can create whatever Circles they like, it lends itself to collaborative group projects. Students can work together on a project without new posts clogging up the news feed from their other contacts. Also, they wouldn't have to worry that other students would be able to see what they were working on.

All posts are archived by time and the Circle it was posted to. This makes it easy to keep track of a conversation that spans a long period of time. With sites like Twitter, posts can easily end up being buried in the Twitter stream. As an added bonus, the archival and search features of Google + would allow the conversation or project to be accessed months later.

Google + has a feature called Huddle, which lets users create a Huddle with some of their contacts, then when they chat to each other, everyone in the Huddle receives a text message. This allows for real time communication within the group and is an easy way to get information to everyone quickly.

With Google + there is even the option of creating a Hangout, where one user can create a chat room and invite only certain people or certain circle. The chat room comes complete with a Video Chat option as well as text chat capabilities. This lends itself perfectly for homework help, study groups and even lectures.

Google + has so many options that can make it easier than ever to connect your classroom. Of course, until the service becomes open to everyone, we won't really be able to see what sort of difference this type of tool could have.



Right now, Google + is available by invitation only. If you would like to receive an invitation, please leave your contact information and I would be happy to send you one.



By Melissa Kennedy- Melissa is a 9 year blog veteran and a freelance writer for EducationJobsiteBlog. Along with helping others find the job of their dreams, she enjoys computer geekery, raising a teenager, supporting her local library, writing about herself in the third person and working on her next novel.