Editor’s note: At Education on Air, Google’s free online conference tomorrow, December 3, we’ll be celebrating educators and exploring the future of education and technology.  During the event, Jennie Magiera will be moderating a live panel featuring educators who have pioneered technology at their schools, along with two students who have benefited from these teachers’ work. Register now to hear from the panelists live tomorrow, December 3.

“Too often, teachers are the last people to sing their own praises, even though they’re constantly inspiring their students, their colleagues and their students’ parents, ” says Jennie Magiera, chief technology officer at Des Plaines School District 62. “We’ve all had at least one teacher who inspired us to become who we are today.”

Tomorrow, December 3, Jennie will be moderating a live panel during Education on Air featuring educators who have pioneered technology at their schools, along with two students who have benefited from these teachers’ work. The panel will include:

• Kevin Brookhouser, teacher at York School
  
• Maria, Kevin’s student
  
• Rafranz Davis, executive director of professional and digital learning at Lufkin ISD
  
• Andrew, Rafranz’s student
  

Jennie shared a few questions with our panelists to learn more about the teachers who helped shape them into who they are today. To hear from the panelists live, join us for Education on Air tomorrow, December 3.

Jennie: Our theme for this panel is “It takes a teacher.” When you were a student, who inspired you and how?

Kevin: I took a video writing class in high school with Jim Talone, who is now retired.  For our final project he asked us to go into the community and find stories that we would then produce and distribute to a real-world audience. This was the first time a teacher gave me creative autonomy, allowing me to pursue what I thought was meaningful and share that project with a real audience. It motivated me to invest more time and work harder than I had ever worked. That experience has stuck with me.

Rafranz: I was inspired by Dr. Vanessa Huse, a professor of  math education for pre-service teaching (education provided to student teachers). She was an important mentor to me and is still part of my life now. She was one of the only people who understood the struggles that I’d face as a teacher of color, even though she doesn’t come from the same background that I do. She made sure I had mentors who were veteran teachers — people I could learn from and collaborate with. She even introduced me to Dr. Evelyn Boyd Granville, the second African American woman to hold a degree in math. She invited Dr. Granville  to speak to our class and share her story. In many ways, Dr. Huse knew what I needed before I did.

Jennie: We couldn’t invite every teacher that inspires us to be on this panel, though I’m sure you would agree that we wish we could. If you could have brought along one colleague, who would you have picked?

Kevin: There are so many teachers I’d pick. The first colleague who comes to mind is our high school art teacher, Logan Parsons.  She has all of her students create self-portraits. She guides the students to think about how they want to portray themselves, whether in an abstract way or something more realistic. The results are unique and reflective of each individual. I’m inspired by how much students seem to get out of this project and from working with Logan.  

Rafranz: It’s so hard to pick one teacher! One of our first and second-grade teachers, Jamie Mayhan, stands out to me because she has such a passion for her students and really thinks outside of the box. She overcomes every challenge in her way. For example, she personally took on the cause of creating better access to technology for her students. She started a BYOD [bring your own device] program in her classroom, which required working with parents to get students devices. To make sure every student had access, she even gathered extra devices on her own by helping students to borrow devices from parents and coordinating device loans from digital learning department.

Jennie: We’ll be talking a lot about what it takes a teacher to do, but what does it take a student to do? How have your students inspired you?

Kevin: My students inspire me with their ability to take risks and try new things before they know whether they’ll succeed. Their willingness to experiment, learn new skills, and participate in new activities motivates me to do the same. That bravery is how real learning happens. I’m also inspired by my students who have a deep desire to help others. They request to work on projects that will  positively impact on other people. Their optimism and generosity gives me a lot of hope for the future.

Rafranz: We put a lot of emphasis on teaching kids grit and resilience to help them overcome adversity, but if we listen, we might be surprised to find out how much strength they already have. I’m inspired by our students who have come from difficult backgrounds — whether they were raised in poverty or affluence — and have been able to rise above challenges and pursue their dreams. Even though they may grow up with circumstances they can’t control, they show up to school and work hard, learn new things and think creatively.

To hear more from Jennie, Kevin and Rafranz live, join us for Education on Air tomorrow, December 3.

We invite you to join this movement by sharing what teachers mean to you with #ItTakesATeacher and seeing your own and others’ stories re-shared at google.com/edu/teacher.

Editor’s Note: We’re often asked by educators, “what impact do you see with Google technology in schools?” Last year we engaged Evergreen Education Group on a journey around the world to answer that question. During Education on Air on Saturday December 3rd, we will share the findings in Impact Portraits. These portraits demonstrate success with Google for Education through the lens of teachers, students and administrators. To hear Linda Darling-Hammond lead a discussion on Impact Portraits, register now for Education On Air.

At Evergreen Education Group we’ve studied K-12 digital education for fourteen years. Among the most important developments we have seen is the proliferation of devices in the classroom, whether through bring-your-own-device, district-led one-to-one programs or other channels. Relatively little study to date has examined how devices are successfully deployed and what their impact has been.

We were therefore thrilled that Google was interested in learning the answers to these questions, and in particular that they understood the study required speaking directly with the district and school leaders, curriculum and instruction specialists, and teachers at the forefront of the use of technology. Particularly they wanted to understand the impact of Chromebooks and G Suite for Education across schools.

Over the course of 16 months we spoke with more than 100 district and school leaders in six countries representing more than 880,000 students, analyzed each school’s documents and data, conducted surveys of administrators, teachers and students, and reviewed surveys the schools conducted. Our goal at every step was to let educators tell their stories, be honest about the challenges and failures, and celebrate the successes in the vein of highlighting these wonderful schools and providing guidance as schools continue down the digital path.

Early in the project we were asked to complete the sentence “Technology in the classroom equals…what?” Our answer: when considered alone, technology equals nothing. Technology is a tool that can be used well, or it can be used poorly. But when technology was combined with four key factors, it could help the school flourish. What are these key factors? Planning, Professional learning, Patience, and Support.

Why are these factors necessary? Because supporting the teachers who are using technology and transforming classrooms takes time—time measured in years, not weeks or months.

What does success look like? It takes different forms. But one common factor is that when educators speak of their success, they rarely lead with technology. Instead they talk about personalization, student engagement, and the role of teachers—all of these supported by technology.

The findings reveal examples of accomplishment and achievement from schools in different geographic regions, of varied sizes, enrolling a diversity of students. We—and the educators that we interviewed—would never suggest that the use of technology is a silver bullet that will in itself improve student achievement. However, based on our review of these schools, we are confident in saying that technology, when well planned and implemented, can be a key component of a successful digital strategy that has a positive impact on student outcomes.

• Charlotte-Mecklenburg (US), the world’s largest Chromebook deployment, outperformed the state and other large North Carolina school districts in exceeding student growth expectations in 2015-2016 and saw a 20% increase in graduation rate.

• At McKinnon Secondary College (AU), students are actively driving learning and creating more than 1000 Google Docs each day. McKinnon was ranked 14th among all schools in Victoria and named one of the top 50 in Victoria based on Mathematics and English results in 2015.
  

• Maine Township 207 (US), an early adopter of G Suite for Education, created a supportive learning environment that helped maintained high ACT scores even as demographics shifted and the low-income student population grew. This shift in demographics typically puts pressure on test scores, but the support of 1:1 take home Chromebooks helped Maine keep the playing field level for all.

• Tring School (UK) saw 21% of students perform above their expected level in Science compared to the previous year and 20% more students reach average results in Science over the previous year.

• In Oshkosh (US) changes to English class instruction improved passing rates in two classes from 75% to 94% and from 82% to 97%. And Oshkosh high schools, which implemented Chromebooks and G Suite first, outperformed the elementary school on measures of collaboration, critical thinking and creativity.

• At St. Patrick’s College (NZ), Chromebooks enabled a flipped classroom for the Science department. Students receive more tailored feedback, and self-assessment is now seen as an essential step during assignments. Year 9 students saw a 97% pass rate on test designed for Year 12 students.

• Devonport Boys High School (UK) saw 60% increase in students accessing their accounts outside of school. Students led clubs, campaigns and trips using G Suite for Education tools to work together.

Along with the individual cases, we surveyed leaders from across these schools and our initial results from the US found that more than 80% of respondents believe that the use of technology had a strong impact on the district’s vision, culture and ability to deliver professional learning. Three in four respondents report that the use of Google tools had a positive impact on the district budget, and--in a surprise to us--63% said the technology had impacted curriculum.

For additional findings and examples of instructional impact, read the Impact Portraits released on a rolling basis at g.co/EduImpact. For ideas on successful implementation of technology, visit Google for Education’s Transformation Center. And stay tuned to the Google for Education blog for a deeper look into each portrait and more profiles from the US, UK, Sweden, Spain, New Zealand and Australia in the coming months.

Editor’s Note: We’re often asked by educators, “what impact do you see with Google technology in schools?” Last year we engaged Evergreen Education Group on a journey around the world to answer that question. During Education on Air on Saturday December 3rd, we will share the findings in Impact Portraits. These portraits demonstrate success with Google for Education through the lens of teachers, students and administrators. To hear Linda Darling-Hammond lead a discussion on Impact Portraits, register now for Education On Air.

At Evergreen Education Group we’ve studied K-12 digital education for fourteen years. Among the most important developments we have seen is the proliferation of devices in the classroom, whether through bring-your-own-device, district-led one-to-one programs or other channels. Relatively little study to date has examined how devices are successfully deployed and what their impact has been.

We were therefore thrilled that Google was interested in learning the answers to these questions, and in particular that they understood the study required speaking directly with the district and school leaders, curriculum and instruction specialists, and teachers at the forefront of the use of technology. Particularly they wanted to understand the impact of Chromebooks and G Suite for Education across schools.

Over the course of 16 months we spoke with more than 100 district and school leaders in six countries representing more than 880,000 students, analyzed each school’s documents and data, conducted surveys of administrators, teachers and students, and reviewed surveys the schools conducted. Our goal at every step was to let educators tell their stories, be honest about the challenges and failures, and celebrate the successes in the vein of highlighting these wonderful schools and providing guidance as schools continue down the digital path.

Early in the project we were asked to complete the sentence “Technology in the classroom equals…what?” Our answer: when considered alone, technology equals nothing. Technology is a tool that can be used well, or it can be used poorly. But when technology was combined with four key factors, it could help the school flourish. What are these key factors? Planning, Professional learning, Patience, and Support.

Why are these factors necessary? Because supporting the teachers who are using technology and transforming classrooms takes time—time measured in years, not weeks or months.

What does success look like? It takes different forms. But one common factor is that when educators speak of their success, they rarely lead with technology. Instead they talk about personalization, student engagement, and the role of teachers—all of these supported by technology.

The findings reveal examples of accomplishment and achievement from schools in different geographic regions, of varied sizes, enrolling a diversity of students. We—and the educators that we interviewed—would never suggest that the use of technology is a silver bullet that will in itself improve student achievement. However, based on our review of these schools, we are confident in saying that technology, when well planned and implemented, can be a key component of a successful digital strategy that has a positive impact on student outcomes.

• Charlotte-Mecklenburg (US), the world’s largest Chromebook deployment, outperformed the state and other large North Carolina school districts in exceeding student growth expectations in 2015-2016 and saw a 20% increase in graduation rate.

• At McKinnon Secondary College (AU), students are actively driving learning and creating more than 1000 Google Docs each day. McKinnon was ranked 14th among all schools in Victoria and named one of the top 50 in Victoria based on Mathematics and English results in 2015.
  

• Maine Township 207 (US), an early adopter of G Suite for Education, created a supportive learning environment that helped maintained high ACT scores even as demographics shifted and the low-income student population grew. This shift in demographics typically puts pressure on test scores, but the support of 1:1 take home Chromebooks helped Maine keep the playing field level for all.

• Tring School (UK) saw 21% of students perform above their expected level in Science compared to the previous year and 20% more students reach average results in Science over the previous year.

• In Oshkosh (US) changes to English class instruction improved passing rates in two classes from 75% to 94% and from 82% to 97%. And Oshkosh high schools, which implemented Chromebooks and G Suite first, outperformed the elementary school on measures of collaboration, critical thinking and creativity.

• At St. Patrick’s College (NZ), Chromebooks enabled a flipped classroom for the Science department. Students receive more tailored feedback, and self-assessment is now seen as an essential step during assignments. Year 9 students saw a 97% pass rate on test designed for Year 12 students.

• Devonport Boys High School (UK) saw 60% increase in students accessing their accounts outside of school. Students led clubs, campaigns and trips using G Suite for Education tools to work together.

Along with the individual cases, we surveyed leaders from across these schools and our initial results from the US found that more than 80% of respondents believe that the use of technology had a strong impact on the district’s vision, culture and ability to deliver professional learning. Three in four respondents report that the use of Google tools had a positive impact on the district budget, and--in a surprise to us--63% said the technology had impacted curriculum.

For additional findings and examples of instructional impact, read the Impact Portraits released on a rolling basis at g.co/EduImpact. For ideas on successful implementation of technology, visit Google for Education’s Transformation Center. And stay tuned to the Google for Education blog for a deeper look into each portrait and more profiles from the US, UK, Sweden, Spain, New Zealand and Australia in the coming months.

Editor’s note: As part of the ExploreEDU event series, schools are working with Google for Education Premier Partners to throw open their doors and invite neighboring educators to learn from their firsthand experience using Google tools to innovate and improve. To see if there is an event near you, visit the ExploreEDU site. For those who can’t join in person, we’ve asked the host schools to share their experiences and tips in a blog post. Today’s guest author is Robert Dillon, Director of Innovation Learning at University City School District in the St. Louis area. They will host an ExploreEDU event on Dec. 6 with Tierney Brothers.

All students deserve an excellent, engaging education. A big part of our mission at University City School District is to bring rich learning experiences and digital resources to all of our kids, 70 percent of whom are affected by poverty daily. I want to share a few of the ways we’re designing a more equitable learning environment for our students.

1. Igniting positive risk-taking

Taking a new approach to learning requires shifting the mentality of teachers and administrators from compliance and fear to risk and innovation. This starts with senior leadership setting an example, creating a sense of urgency and communicating openly. Our superintendent and principals acknowledge there’s no single formula for creating change, and no one has all the answers; so we need to be willing to fail and to iterate. This culture of experimentation and transparency liberates teachers to try new things, and encourages the team to solve hard problems together. We’ve used Google Classroom as a platform for innovative teachers to gather across buildings to discuss ideas, provide feedback to our education technology solution partners, and decrease any sense of isolation in the district.

Sharing information is key to building trust and energy in the system.  We’re constantly talking with other districts, and bringing people together at events like ExploreEDU to break down the walls between educators in our region. We’re also meeting with all of our principals to talk about their moonshot ideas and the resources they might need to realize these changes.

2. Expanding capacity through the community

The district leadership team also harnesses the power of our community by enlisting parents to share their expertise with us. For instance, one student’s parent who previously led a nonprofit organization is helping my team coordinate parent focus groups to test new ideas surrounding learning academies, competency-based learning, and building a greater sense of belonging in our schools.

Other parents get involved by leading student groups: one parent who sees the learning power with teaching robotics leads our middle school robotics club. Other parents who are active in the arts connect us to community organizations and build relationships with their leaders so we make the most of our partnership. This extends our network of teachers and mentors, giving students access to a breadth of knowledge and experience.

3. Improving learning through technology

We’re able to try new approaches to learning because we have the tools to support it; we also recognize that learning comes first. We selected our technology platform to meet specific goals: increasing collaboration and teaching real-world skills.  Those goals drove us to choose Google for Education which we’ve used for over six years now to help students, teachers and administrators create and share information. In our fifth grade classes that are learning through robotics class, students use Google Docs to write stories about their experiences building robots. They now have the ability to share their stories with fifth graders across the region who are working on similar projects. The power of storytelling, and its application in the real world, is amplified when students have the tools to reach an audience beyond their class and teacher.

4. Encouraging student choice

A challenge to equity is giving students the flexibility to learn about topics they’re passionate about, in ways that work best for them. In social studies and elective classes in particular, teachers are introducing opportunities for students to choose projects that have local impact. For example, many families in our district live in food deserts, which means they have limited access to affordable, healthy food. One middle school class discussed this problem in the context of race and poverty. They proposed solutions: What if schools served as farmer’s markets, or donated surplus cafeteria food to families in need? It’s inspiring to see students learn by solving problems that are relevant to our community.

Achieving greater equity in learning starts with giving our kids everyday opportunities to close the experience gap. A lot of that has to do with having the attitude, partners, tools and autonomy to make these opportunities real.

Editor’s note: As part of the ExploreEDU event series, schools are working with Google for Education Premier Partners to throw open their doors and invite neighboring educators to learn from their firsthand experience using Google tools to innovate and improve. To see if there is an event near you, visit the ExploreEDU site. For those who can’t join in person, we’ve asked the host schools to share their experiences and tips in a blog post. Today’s guest author is Robert Dillon, Director of Innovation Learning at University City School District in the St. Louis area. They will host an ExploreEDU event on Dec. 6 with Tierney Brothers.

All students deserve an excellent, engaging education. A big part of our mission at University City School District is to bring rich learning experiences and digital resources to all of our kids, 70 percent of whom are affected by poverty daily. I want to share a few of the ways we’re designing a more equitable learning environment for our students.

1. Igniting positive risk-taking

Taking a new approach to learning requires shifting the mentality of teachers and administrators from compliance and fear to risk and innovation. This starts with senior leadership setting an example, creating a sense of urgency and communicating openly. Our superintendent and principals acknowledge there’s no single formula for creating change, and no one has all the answers; so we need to be willing to fail and to iterate. This culture of experimentation and transparency liberates teachers to try new things, and encourages the team to solve hard problems together. We’ve used Google Classroom as a platform for innovative teachers to gather across buildings to discuss ideas, provide feedback to our education technology solution partners, and decrease any sense of isolation in the district.

Sharing information is key to building trust and energy in the system.  We’re constantly talking with other districts, and bringing people together at events like ExploreEDU to break down the walls between educators in our region. We’re also meeting with all of our principals to talk about their moonshot ideas and the resources they might need to realize these changes.

2. Expanding capacity through the community

The district leadership team also harnesses the power of our community by enlisting parents to share their expertise with us. For instance, one student’s parent who previously led a nonprofit organization is helping my team coordinate parent focus groups to test new ideas surrounding learning academies, competency-based learning, and building a greater sense of belonging in our schools.

Other parents get involved by leading student groups: one parent who sees the learning power with teaching robotics leads our middle school robotics club. Other parents who are active in the arts connect us to community organizations and build relationships with their leaders so we make the most of our partnership. This extends our network of teachers and mentors, giving students access to a breadth of knowledge and experience.

3. Improving learning through technology

We’re able to try new approaches to learning because we have the tools to support it; we also recognize that learning comes first. We selected our technology platform to meet specific goals: increasing collaboration and teaching real-world skills.  Those goals drove us to choose Google for Education which we’ve used for over six years now to help students, teachers and administrators create and share information. In our fifth grade classes that are learning through robotics class, students use Google Docs to write stories about their experiences building robots. They now have the ability to share their stories with fifth graders across the region who are working on similar projects. The power of storytelling, and its application in the real world, is amplified when students have the tools to reach an audience beyond their class and teacher.

4. Encouraging student choice

A challenge to equity is giving students the flexibility to learn about topics they’re passionate about, in ways that work best for them. In social studies and elective classes in particular, teachers are introducing opportunities for students to choose projects that have local impact. For example, many families in our district live in food deserts, which means they have limited access to affordable, healthy food. One middle school class discussed this problem in the context of race and poverty. They proposed solutions: What if schools served as farmer’s markets, or donated surplus cafeteria food to families in need? It’s inspiring to see students learn by solving problems that are relevant to our community.

Achieving greater equity in learning starts with giving our kids everyday opportunities to close the experience gap. A lot of that has to do with having the attitude, partners, tools and autonomy to make these opportunities real.

Editor’s note: As part of the ExploreEDU event series, schools are working with Google for Education Premier Partners to throw open their doors and invite neighboring educators to learn from their firsthand experience using Google tools to innovate and improve. To see if there is an event near you, visit the ExploreEDU site. For those that can’t join in person, we’ve asked the host schools to share their experiences and tips in a blog post. Today’s guest authors are Colleen Coleman and Anne Staum, teachers at Burnsville High School in the greater Minneapolis/St. Paul area. The district is hosting an event on December 1 and 2 with Best Buy for Education.

No matter the path our students take, the ability to guide their own learning will be an important part of their lives. At Burnsville High School, we’ve put students at the center of their education by transitioning from a lesson-based approach to a project-based one, introducing more personalized instruction and engaging students as active participants in their education.

We see technology as an essential tool in this evolution. Earlier this year, we introduced a 1:1 program schoolwide, which means all of our 2,700 students use Google Chromebooks in class and at home. We’re using tools like Chromebooks and G Suite for Education to ensure graduates are future-ready: comfortable with computing and online research, experienced in giving and receiving feedback, and confident creating content.

Here are a few ways we’re inspiring project-based learning in the classroom:

Boosting engagement with student-led content

We believe students learn best when they’re engaged as content creators. In our social studies classes, students use Chromebooks to research concepts like civic engagement and share their findings with the class. Teachers can gamify these lessons by offering extra credit to students who post the correct answer on Google Classroom, a tool that allows educators to communicate directly with students as well as manage assignments.

Our high schoolers are also using Chromebooks to work on in-depth projects and participate in learning experiences of their choice. A group of 12th graders produced a video about the founding fathers for American Government, while two juniors enrolled in a money management class recently placed second in a competitive stock market simulation, in which they virtual invested $100,000. Interdisciplinary projects like these immerse students in real-world topics while helping them develop critical skills, such as teamwork and planning.

Fostering civic inquiry

Chromebooks have helped our students better understand the world around them. Studying current events in our American government class, such as the presidential election, has encouraged students to question and critically examine their civic institutions. In a recent project, students researched competitive congressional races with their Chromebooks and organized their findings in Google Drive before presenting their findings to their classmates with Google Slides. We also used Slides to share the results of our school-wide presidential election. Without the easy-to-use tools in G Suite, it would have been much more difficult to conduct and share the results of our election simulation. These projects not only prepare students with practical knowledge that can inspire a budding passion, but also develop the analytical and presentation skills they will need to succeed as professionals.

Shortening feedback loops

Students tend to learn just as much from feedback as they do from completing an assignment.

In language arts class, for example, students need constant feedback to develop their writing. Teachers can give feedback while students are working on problems at home by collaborating in the same Google Doc. These fast feedback loops help students respond to input from teachers while it’s still fresh in their minds and fosters collaboration, another crucial real-world skill.

Today, project-based learning is inspiring our students’ curiosity and helping them identify topics they’re passionate about. We know it’s not easy to change ingrained approaches to teaching and learning, but it’s possible. It starts with encouraging students to imagine their path and direct their learning.

Editor’s note: As part of the ExploreEDU event series, schools are working with Google for Education Premier Partners to throw open their doors and invite neighboring educators to learn from their firsthand experience using Google tools to innovate and improve. To see if there is an event near you, visit the ExploreEDU site. For those that can’t join in person, we’ve asked the host schools to share their experiences and tips in a blog post. Today’s guest authors are Colleen Coleman and Anne Staum, teachers at Burnsville High School in the greater Minneapolis/St. Paul area. The district is hosting an event on December 1 and 2 with Best Buy for Education.

No matter the path our students take, the ability to guide their own learning will be an important part of their lives. At Burnsville High School, we’ve put students at the center of their education by transitioning from a lesson-based approach to a project-based one, introducing more personalized instruction and engaging students as active participants in their education.

We see technology as an essential tool in this evolution. Earlier this year, we introduced a 1:1 program schoolwide, which means all of our 2,700 students use Google Chromebooks in class and at home. We’re using tools like Chromebooks and G Suite for Education to ensure graduates are future-ready: comfortable with computing and online research, experienced in giving and receiving feedback, and confident creating content.

Here are a few ways we’re inspiring project-based learning in the classroom:

Boosting engagement with student-led content

We believe students learn best when they’re engaged as content creators. In our social studies classes, students use Chromebooks to research concepts like civic engagement and share their findings with the class. Teachers can gamify these lessons by offering extra credit to students who post the correct answer on Google Classroom, a tool that allows educators to communicate directly with students as well as manage assignments.

Our high schoolers are also using Chromebooks to work on in-depth projects and participate in learning experiences of their choice. A group of 12th graders produced a video about the founding fathers for American Government, while two juniors enrolled in a money management class recently placed second in a competitive stock market simulation, in which they virtual invested $100,000. Interdisciplinary projects like these immerse students in real-world topics while helping them develop critical skills, such as teamwork and planning.

Fostering civic inquiry

Chromebooks have helped our students better understand the world around them. Studying current events in our American government class, such as the presidential election, has encouraged students to question and critically examine their civic institutions. In a recent project, students researched competitive congressional races with their Chromebooks and organized their findings in Google Drive before presenting their findings to their classmates with Google Slides. We also used Slides to share the results of our school-wide presidential election. Without the easy-to-use tools in G Suite, it would have been much more difficult to conduct and share the results of our election simulation. These projects not only prepare students with practical knowledge that can inspire a budding passion, but also develop the analytical and presentation skills they will need to succeed as professionals.

Shortening feedback loops

Students tend to learn just as much from feedback as they do from completing an assignment.

In language arts class, for example, students need constant feedback to develop their writing. Teachers can give feedback while students are working on problems at home by collaborating in the same Google Doc. These fast feedback loops help students respond to input from teachers while it’s still fresh in their minds and fosters collaboration, another crucial real-world skill.

Today, project-based learning is inspiring our students’ curiosity and helping them identify topics they’re passionate about. We know it’s not easy to change ingrained approaches to teaching and learning, but it’s possible. It starts with encouraging students to imagine their path and direct their learning.