GOOGLE IS BUILDING A WORLD OF ONLINE LEARNING

Google has a world-wide-web of learning tools for your students to explore, use and apply. The Mountain View company is building a robust digital teaching and learning environment for all to use.

This first post is a teaser — a small snippet — to help guide you to a few of the education-friendly solutions available at Google.

GOOGLE SEARCH: Naturally, every discussion of Google begins with search and research. However, most students limit themselves to simple keyword searches when there are powerful search options (such as dictionary and academic searches) that can pinpoint research queries like a laser beam.

But there is so much more:

WORD PROCESSING and SPREADSHEET Software: Do your students need free access to powerful word processing and spreadsheet software whenever and wherever they happen to be working? It’s available at DOCS.GOOGLE.COM. Students can save their work at Google's expense on their servers while maintaining backup copies on their own PCs. Then, they can access their documents on any DigiTool: desktop, laptop, tablet PC, ultra mobile PC, or smart phone.

GOOGLE EARTH: Just imagine what Google Earth can do for students in geography, history, geology, meteorology, and many other courses.

PAGES.GOOGLE.COM: Wish to have your students create powerful web pages and have them hosted free of charge? All of the templates available in Google's web page design editor make it a snap to create professional looking pages without buying any expensive Web design software.

ADSENSE and ADWORDS: Are you teaching a marketing or web design class? Explore with your students how money is made online. AdSense and AdWords are powerful new marketing and advertising tools that can help nearly anyone monetize a web site. Teach how this new soon-to-be-a-hundred-billion-dollar-a-year-online-advertising-industry is being created. It’s essential instruction as part of a complete DigiTools, web design, e-commerce, or marketing class.

MULTIMEDIA: Imagine how Picassa and Google's video site can enhance student multimedia, photography, or video production projects by allowing student work to be shared.

MAIL, MESSAGING and RSS: Google's Reader can give any student targeted RSS feeds so they can keep up on current events or the industries they are preparing to enter. As an instructor you can also keep up on current trends. Tools like instant messaging can enhance communications between study groups. And don't forget Gmail, a place to store a lifetimes worth of e-mail from fellow students, teachers, and colleagues.

And this list is just scratches the surface. Return to this site every month for concrete ideas on how Google can enhance teaching and learning. And like Google, all the advice posted here is absolutely free for you to take advantage of -- so take advantage and enjoy!

-Karl Barksdale