Every year, the Instructional Technology department looks at the services and applications we offer for students and teachers to determine if we will continue with what we have or move to a new service or application. This past year was no different. As E-Rate proposals came in, we began to look closely at a new service for student email. To remain in accordance with the Child Internet Protection Act (CIPA), all student email and online navigation must be filtered when using school equipment. We looked at numerous solutions, but continued to return back to Gaggle as the solution we would use beginning in the 2014-2015 school year.
Gaggle's solution not only included student email, but also included an online classroom environment, digital lockers linked with Google Docs, student and teacher blogs, classroom discussion boards, and Gaggle Tube as a venue for students to watch YouTube videos that teachers have assigned for lessons. With the one-to-one project being extended to all 7th-12th graders, the Gaggle solution gives teachers one area where communication, collaboration, and sharing can all take place in a safe and filtered environment.
Gaggle filters uses human monitoring. This means that a person looks at the email, blog post, or discussion post to determine if school administration needs to be notified on flagged posts. Not only are they looking for inappropriate language, but also for posts that are harassing, bullying, or contain thoughts of suicide. In any of these cases, the school administration is contacted immediately, even outside of school hours.
On July 22nd, a group of teachers participated in the first overview of Gaggle. Below, you will see their comments about how Gaggle will enhance their classrooms, how they intend to use Gaggle in their classroom to enhance the learning environment, and how the use of the discussion boards and student blogs can be utilized for students to share what they have learned.
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ReplyDeleteI love the idea of streamlining my digital classroom. In the past, there has not been a true clearinghouse of knowledge, because how the various Web 2.0 tools could not be properly integrated seamlessly. I can see my classroom flowing much simpler with how Google Drive documents can be effortlessly shared with my students. In the past, sharing documents, even using tools like Livebinders and Edmodo, has not been as simple as what the integration of Google Drive with Gaggle has made that process. I am so ready to start my digital classroom for the next school year, especially with how I will be able to use discussion forums that will be in the same place for multiple ways to check for understanding in the blended learning environment.
ReplyDeleteLisa Klaus.
ReplyDeleteI am so excited to link the filtering capabilities of Gaggle with Google Drive and Sites for student submission of work. For example: Today, I created a Google form that I can upload to my Gaggle classes for students to complete at the beginning of the school year.
Gaggle is a very extensive piece of new technology, however I think that it will become a vital piece of my classroom.
ReplyDeleteI would like to use the discussion board piece to allow my students to respond to classroom novels I would like us to read this year to increase our real world reading.
I plan to use the Gaggle blog feature to allow students to write summarizations of current events activities. The GaggleTube feature will also be a safe way to teach using YouTube.
ReplyDeleteChristopher Keefer
I'm excited about having a place where students can digitally turn in and receive feedback on assignments.
ReplyDeleteI'm also excited about the many ways we can use the discussion boards and the document sharing to collaborate and extend learning.
The Gaggletube is my favorite feature. There are many times I show a video in class but students who are absent miss them. Now they will be able to view them. I also feel this will help with flipping the classroom.
ReplyDeleteGaggle will help enhance the classroom by allowing the students to discuss topics presented throughout lessons. I could see using this as a readers' response or ticket out the door, and then watching the students collaborate with each other through continuous responses.
ReplyDeleteBecoming familiarized with gaggle today has been a wonderful learning experience. As a first year teacher, I am anxious to be the best teacher that I can possibly be. One way that I hope to excel as a teacher is in my ability to use time efficiently and effectively. I believe that using gaggle will help me accomplish this goal. Gaggle combines so many different tools, such as youtube, different types of documents, and discussion forums, which will be very beneficial to the classroom.
ReplyDeleteI am excited about implementing gaggle into my classroom. My thoughts on how to use gaggle in my classroom include the following: using the blog for compositions and peer editing, using the blog for students to reflect on daily learning, using gaggle's ability to let students work on the same document simultaneously, and showing videos which will enhance my lessons.
Gaggle will be a tremendous help in my classroom with notebooks. I will definitely use the You Tube and Blog apps. I will also us the it for websites in my flipped classroom lessons.
ReplyDelete