I have not used Google's calendar feature as much as I have used their GMail. However, I have been using it for about 3.5 years now. Once I upgraded to an Android smartphone I wanted to make sure that I was using it to its fullest even when my schedule of events did not necessarily require such precision. After scheduling my full semester of classes, assignments, and due dates I noticed a few things about Google's calendar that was incredibly helpful and definitely things that can be applied to having an organized life as a teacher. The biggest thing that the calendar does perfectly is share reminders with other Google users. It also syncs perfectly with Google's tasks feature and can turn each day into a properly scheduled agenda.
The first and most important feature of Google's calendar is the ability to share events and even whole calendars with one another. As a teacher this can be an incredible feature for both students and other teachers. Assignment reminders can be shared as well as meeting times or reminders of when grades are due. If Google does get integrated into the classroom setting I would imagine that schools would start giving out emails for each individual student that would be attached to the GMail setting. If this becomes the case then a syllabus could easily become a digital document and all of the students' assignments would be available to them on their own personal calendar from day one. Also, if an instructor were to change the date of an assignment it would be visible to the whole class. This feature can also be used in the administrative side to schedule and keep up to date with meetings, events, and other things that happen around the school.
When you are able to get two things done with one motion it always is beneficial to whatever it may be. Allowing your tasks to be shown across email, calendar, and just the tasks themselves really helps for each day to be organized properly and effectively. The calendar will take everything planned for the day in both calendar and tasks and combine them into one agenda for the day. This can really help for the start of a day and will ease stress when trying to make sure that nothing is forgotten. This simple one day agenda can be viewed online or even printed out to use as a checklist. Definitely a wonderful tool for keeping clutter down and operational efficiency up.
After watching the tutorial videos in the iTunes store about using Google's calendar feature as a way to lesson plan I realized that there was a feature to the events that I never noticed. While I can not see many uses out of it as a student or as someone that does not deal with paperwork all day long I can definitely see it as a wonderful organizational tool for the classroom. Instead of keeping individual files on a flash drive, cloud storage, or whatever other medium you choose to use, the calendar allows you to upload a file that is already inside of Google Drive or a file that you may have created with another program. It is not picky and does not limit you to any types of files. If Google recognizes it on your computer it will upload it. This means that any handouts, worksheets, videos, diagrams, etc. that you plan on using for class can be accessed just by looking at your calendar for the day. No more hunting through files or remembering to bring your flash drive. As long as there is access to Google you have everything you need.
Very Good!
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