Yes, you read the title correctly. After my last post discussed many of the wonderful aspects of Google’s Classroom, namely being able to distribute documents to my students without having to run scripts, it may sound strange that there are at least two things I DO NOT like!
Before I begin, I must admit that I was almost expecting Classroom to drop down from the heavens in a nice, pretty package that promised to cure any possible problem I could have. Lofty expectations, I know…but come on, it is Google 😉
When I initially discovered Google Classroom on Teacher Appreciation Day, I expected it to totally replace the need for a Learning Management System, like Schoology or Edmodo…and I don’t know if it will.
I use Schoology in my classroom to…
- post announcements
- post readings
- create and assign discussion boards
- require students to respond to each other’s discussion board posts
- create, assign, and grade tests
- share documents and assignments
- collect, grade, and “return” assignments
In my exploration of Classroom, I have been able to…
- post assignments
- share documents and assignments
- post announcements
- ……..???
What are my two big complaint about Classroom?
First, in my 1:1 classroom, I definitely NEED my students to have the ability to “discuss” concepts and ideas through online discussion boards or forums. Yes, I could create a Google Doc, share that document with my students, and provide them with editing or commenting rights which could create some sort of discussion board environment. I could also create a Padlet wall and have students discuss a concept using this medium. However, I’d much rather have a discussion board feature added to Classroom…please, Google?
Second, my students take tests online…in the past using Edmodo or Schoology. They LOVE the fact that most if not all of their questions are graded immediately, and they don’t have to wait for me to plow through all of the tests before they at least have an idea of how they performed. Yes, I know I can create a Google Form, share the form with my students, and then use Flubaroo to provide them with feedback. (I tried UNSUCCESSFULLY to send a Google Form through Classroom..I suspect this is similar to attempting to send a Form through Doctopus) Wouldn’t it be easier to have this function in Classroom? Please, Google?
Maybe, just maybe, Google will be deploying these features soon? Hopefully? I’ll make sure I post these concerns to a suggestions page for the program.
What do you think? Do you need these features, too?
Thanks for reading 🙂
After playing with Google Classroom for a while I also have some concerns. One of the things I like best about Google Apps is that it is NOT an LMS. And, I never really thought of Classroom in that category of tools. It looked to me like a way to assist in the organization and communication between student Drives and their teachers' Drives. I believe that the feature list will increase as it rolls out and is scrutinized by teachers. However, that organization assistance is the very thing I kind of don't want. I like that my students learn to organize their Drives and share files. So, having it done automatically is a bit of a negative for me. My bigger concern is one that will affect classroom teachers ease of use for Google Classroom. That concern is whether it will be able to work in districts that have separate domains for teachers and students. It think it will be a hard sell to a classroom teacher if they must work in two different domains. Hopefully that will also be addressed by the Google Classroom team.
Rock On!
Charlie
Since Classroom didn't come out until recently and school had already started, I've not had the chance to play with it yet. I'm in my 2nd year using Schoology and haven't found anything it can't do. I've used Drive and most of the other Google apps for 4 years. Can you tell me if Classroom allows parent login via individual student codes like Schoology? Parents love that feature. Also, does Classroom expect you to use Forms as your only test/quiz engine? Does it support imports of anything else? How about HTML widgets?
Hello! As far as I know, Google Classroom doesn't provide a code for parents…yet. When I tried to send a Form through Classroom, students viewed the documents as an editor, even though I didn't give them editing rights through the assignment. (Similar to sending out Forms through Doctopus). HTML and widgets aren't available, either. Hopefully all of the characteristics of a Learning Management System are added to Classroom soon. Like you, I will be using Schoology for tests, discussions, and other LMS features.
Thanks for reading!
Concur with sticking with Schoology until Google fixes the Classroom shortfalls.