Teachers open the door. You enter by yourself - Chinese proverb.

Tuesday 17 March 2015

Google Educator Certificate

I'm so excited to have finally finished my first Google Educator certificate!


What an interesting journey it has been! I have been working with apps for a long time but only in the last 2 years have I been dabbling in Google Drive and the last one year in Google Apps for Education. I have been helping other teachers learn how to navigate and use GAFE so I thought it was time to have a look at the Google Educator certificate.


In order to complete the Google Educator certificate you are required to sit five open book exams. There are four required exams that relate to Sites, Calendar, Gmail, Docs and Drive. To complete the five exams for the certificate you need to choose one elective exam. There are another three elective exams to chose from relating to Chrome Browser, Chrome books and Google Play for Education. Google provides information, lessons and resources and for a fee you can sit the exams to gain the certificate.


Google provide you with introductions, basics and advanced lessons that are packed full of information. Most of the lessons will give you an estimated time as well. Most of them range from 1-2.5 hours worth of reading to complete. I know that sounds like a lot but you can do it over several nights or just sit down and do it in a chunk. You are switching between videos, reading and interacting by doing things yourself so it isn't too yawn inducing. If you are active in GAFE and fairly confident then you can skim some of the lessons/activities like I did.  When you are ready you can register with the Google Testing Centre and purchase/sit your exams. Once purchased you must complete them all within a certain time frame though so be aware of that and make sure you have the time to complete them.


The exams, like the basics exam, are all multiple choice. You are given 60 questions and the time limit of 90 minutes. In the top left hand corner a countdown timer is displayed so you can glance how much time you have remaining at any point during the exam. You can mark questions for review if you want to come back to them or if you are unsure and want to go back later. When you reach question 60 you are given the option to review all your answers, including those skipped or marked, and are prompted twice more to check your work before you exit/finish the test. The screen then shows you your score in a percentage and displays either Pass/Fail. I completed all the exams in 25-45 minutes, I was worried I was a little quick but after looking at how Auckland Uni grade according to percentages I was pleased with my results: A+ for Sites, A for Calendar, A for Drive, A- for Chrome, and A- for Gmail.


If you have been active in GAFE and you have done the readings/lessons there is no reason you shouldn't pass the exam. Google considers anything over 70% (B) a pass. The downside is you don’t get a marked copy of your exam so you have no clue which questions you got correct and which you answered wrong. Some of the questions are a little nerve racking and make you question yourself but if you just mark them and go back to them later they often sort themselves out in your head. Be aware that there is the odd question that is a bit off topic (but still related) that might trip some not so savvy computer people up. E.g. ‘To close non-responsive processes or tabs in Google Chrome...’.

I learned so much from the Google Basics/Advanced lessons that I would recommend them to people who are just wanting to know more about Google Apps. There is so much good information in them. I found them so useful I created a document with all the links I thought might help people so I could recommend them to people if they were after more help on a specific Google App.


If I've in any way inspired you to have a go at your own Google Educator certificate pop on over to the Google training section and check out the basics exam.

Monday 16 March 2015

Allanah King Fun Day

A month ago I was lucky enough to participate in a day Allanah King prepared for the Tuawhitu o Akarana (Cluster 7) RTLBs. What a fantastic day it was. As always it was a pleasure to review and reflect on the mash up of old and new learning.


We started the day with the first block on iPads. We engaged in a game of Allanah bingo to get the ball rolling, I highly recommend checking out both her template for you to use with your students and also her iPad bingo which has all the weird and wonderful things you can do with iPads as well as the links to show you how to do them. It’s perfect for anyone wanting to learn how to use all the awesome features on their iPad or for people just wanting to refresh one or two things like me. I realised that although I knew I could do 95% of the things on the list, some I hadn't done for a while and couldn't remember where to find them. Guided Access is a classic example because I use it so rarely. It was great to have a refresher and it’s a fantastic chance for people who aren't so confident with their skills to show off something they can do.


I also, finally, learned a useful tablet term. For those not in the know, like me: Surface tablets are windows tablets (I thought they were Android tablets as well… useful (useless?!) information I did not know!). Android tablets are Google tablets and iPads are Apple tablets.


My Pic Collage example
We reviewed some awesome apps that I adore using and had a practice with some. Pic Collage, Book Creator, Write about this (NZ), Popplet and Drive. What caught my eye was Flick. I have used the now nonexistent app bump and I currently use dropbox/drive etc but Flick was new to me and it instantly snagged my attention. You don’t have to muck around with logging in and creating an account. Flick shares files using WiFi or Bluetooth. You can open it on your phone and desktop and then you just flick the file/photo/contact/game etc from your phone to the chosen device (i.e. your computer) and it will appear on it. You can set them to save after flick or self destruct etc. It’s quite ingenious! So simple that I instantly fell in love it!. It’s all about utilising the app/device for the right purpose.


Our middle block focused on the Virtual Learning Network. I highly recommend all New Zealand teachers at least create an account with the VLN, even if you just use it for lurking it will be well worth your while. We started the session with a video by Tessa Gray. I loved the description of the VLN as a big virtual staffroom because that’s exactly what it’s like. You can listen to conversations, start them, add to them. Allanah had us look at a variety of different VLN groups and we wrote down ones we thought we would join because they interested us. We all then spent time navigating around the VLN and personalising our pages.


My Google Drawing example
Our third and final block focused on Google. I learned that you can put a document into two different folders. This news was almost on par with when I found out about the new cell merges in docs late last year. If you use the folder icon in the document you can hold ctrl and you can select two folders to access the document from - Hallelujah! We practiced creating and sharing docs but my favorite part was a bit of a play with Google Drawing. I've used Google Drawings a fair bit but not for fun, was good to experiment with clear png’s and have a bit of fun. The highlight was going over some Chrome Extensions and Chrome Web Apps that Allanah recommended we have a look at. I’m hesitant to dabble in them because of the access to information you need to allow to third parties but my next step is to find some that interest me and give them a go.

All in all a fantastic day, with lots learned by many. I highly recommend Allanah King if you are lucky enough to acquire her, Teaching & Core Education commitments keep her fairly busy I’m sure. She has two fabulous sites Getting Good with Google and Initial iPad Setup but nothing beats a session with her in person.