Savannah Bynum | Educator + Guest Contributor
As educators, we are always looking for fun and creative ways to engage our students. We attempt to inspire and ignite a spark of interest in each student for our topic and, more importantly, create lifelong learners. In today’s technologically fast-moving world, we need to look for ways to engage students by using technology. Google Chrome and Suites products offer teachers and students a collection of resources at our fingertips.
Though funding is sometimes not available, there are options for affordable Chromebooks and a reliable way to introduce technology into the classroom. Schools with technology like Chromebooks close the barrier between students with access to technology and students without.
If one prefers tablets to computers, they should not worry, Google Chromebooks come in tablet form as well! Tablets, a preferred method of technology for students, open a huge window of opportunity for applications and websites to connect with your technology-age learners and help them learn in ways that they normally cannot. From an educator's perspective, tablets are interactive and have apps for easy access to games, activities, and other resources that prove helpful to the classroom.
One of my favorite learning applications is Google Expeditions. In this app, you can send your students on “field trips” to a variety of different places both current and of the past. This application works wonders on a tablet or smartphone. Students can hold up their devices, take tours, and read about different sights. As a Spanish teacher, this app is great for exploring ruins, markets, and other cultural aspects of language. Students love getting up and “touring” the new place. It makes learning fun and immersive. Google Expeditions also has destinations for math, science, social studies, English, and almost any subject you can think of! This is a fabulous option to get your students to learn in a new way and explore the world outside of the classroom while staying in the classroom!
In short, Google offers a wide variety of applications and products that will help educators connect and captivate their students by using technology to bring the outside world into the classroom and to inspire lifelong learners. Using Google products like Google Chromebooks and Google Chromebook Tablets can help even the playing field for students in the classroom and make learning and assignments accessible to all. As educators, we should push to keep up with the needs of our students. For better or worse, technology is now a part of education and can make learning intriguing and inspiring.
By Savannah Bynum | Educator + Guest Contributor
Savannah Bynum is a full-time educator in a high school. She loves using technology to engage her students in every class she teaches! In her free time, Savannah is a freelance writer/editor and loves to hang out with her dog, Reba.
