Tag Archives: G Suite

Use the Google Assistant with your G Suite account in beta

This announcement was made at Google Cloud Next ‘19 UK. Check out Next OnAir to tune into the livestream or watch session recordings following the event.

What’s changing

We’re opening a beta program to allow G Suite users to accomplish more on-the-go with the Google Assistant when logged in with a G Suite account. The Google Assistant will respond to voice commands for certain Google Calendar and Gmail functions and:

  • Let you know when your next meeting is
  • Create, cancel or reschedule a Calendar event
  • Send a note to event attendees via email
  • Send an email
  • Dial into a meeting


Who’s impacted

Admins and end users

Why you’d use it

By using the Google Assistant with your G Suite account, you can easily accomplish work-related tasks while on the go.

How to get started


  • Admins: Apply to be part of the beta program using this form.
  • End users: No action required.

Additional details

To use this functionality in the Google Assistant, you must be logged in to your G Suite account. Additionally, if you have both a personal and a G Suite account, please note that the Assistant can only answer questions for one account at a time. You must switch between those accounts if you’d like to ask a question about your other account.

This beta functionality is only available in English.

Availability

G Suite editions
  • All G Suite editions are invited to apply to the beta program.
On/off by default?
  • These features will be OFF by default. Admins can apply to the beta program using this form.
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Exchange In-Place Archive support available for G Suite Migrate Beta

What’s changing

We’re adding support for migrating Microsoft Exchange In-Place Archives to the G Suite Migrate beta. Admins can use this new functionality to migrate the content of their user’s Exchange In-Place Archives to G Suite. Additionally, admins can:

  • Make migrated archive mail only visible in Google Vault (not Gmail).
  • Make attachments of archived mail uploaded to Google Drive only visible in Google Vault. If you turn on this setting, large email attachments will be visible in Vault (not Drive).
  • Choose how to apply labels to archive folders in Gmail.

Who’s impacted

Admins only

Why it’s important

Previously, it wasn’t possible to migrate archived email from Exchange to Gmail. This feature makes it easy for admins to migrate both active and archived email to G Suite.

How to get started

Helpful links

Availability

Rollout details
G Suite editions
  • Available to G Suite Business, G Suite Enterprise, G Suite Enterprise for Education, and Drive for Enterprise
  • Not available to G Suite Basic, G Suite for Education, and G Suite for Nonprofits

On/off by default?

Stay up to date with G Suite launches

Can mindfulness actually help you work smarter?

Mindfulness isn’t just sitting on the floor, legs crossed, and chanting mantras. It’s a tool that, when used wisely, can boost your experience at work, your relationships with others and even your overall well-being. Mindfulness is maintaining a moment-to-moment awareness of your thoughts, feelings and emotions, while having an attitude of kindness and curiosity.

That's the idea behind Google's mindfulness programs, which include seminars called Search Inside Yourself and Fundamentals of Mindfulness, and an internal program called gPause that promotes meditation and mindfulness practices. These initiatives have been created over the last 10 years in 64 offices around the world with more than 350 volunteers that host guided meditation practices, events and workshops. Through these programs Googlers have an opportunity to develop emotional intelligence, enhance well-being, improve team effectiveness and support a culture of respect and inclusion. 

So how can this practice actually have an impact in our jobs? To answer this question we sat with Ruchika Sikri, Well-Being Learning Strategy Lead at Google, who shared some tips we can start using in our everyday routine.

Let your thoughts settle.

Ruchika shares the analogy that our mind is like a snowglobe. We’re constantly shaking it with information overload, distractions and task switching. This results in reduced clarity of our priorities and a lack of focus. By practicing a brief meditation (as short as five minutes!)—we can let the “snow'' settle and see things more clearly and vividly. Clarity of mind can help us prioritize what’s important, solve problems better, figure out new strategies or uncover issues we may have ignored.

Be mindful of what you say. 

Mindfulness has a direct impact on our work culture and team effectiveness, Ruchika says. It helps you stay aware of what you say and what impact your words might have. It can help when you’re having difficult conversations, because you’re more present and therefore able to take your own and another party’s perspective more actively, and respond instead of react to external or internal stimuli. She cites a study done at Google, which found that most high functioning teams have psychological safety as a key element of their work environments, which means that team members feel safe to take risks and be vulnerable in front of each other. Being mindful of that sense of safety can help boost everyone around you at work. “The teams that feel safe and trust each other actually feel more accomplished and do more,” she says.

Commit to a routine.  

Ruchika says a mindfulness practice starts with making a mental commitment to it. It’s certainly helpful to take a workshop, but you can simply start the practice with an app like Headspace. The app provides bite-sized guided meditations for busy schedules. You can start the practice at home or during your commute if you use public transportation.

Have the right expectations. 

Mindfulness is not a panacea, though. Instead, it’s an important tool that can raise self-awareness and help you identify personal needs more clearly. Ruchika recommends building an intention for your practice before jumping in. What is it that you want to improve? It could be better focus and clarity at work, healthier relationships, managing stress more effectively or adopting a healthier lifestyle. Then, practice makes it perfect. To actually feel the benefits of mindfulness, you have to make it a regular practice.

Step away from your screen. 

Every 90 minutes, our mind and body need a break to rest and recover, Ruchika says. To remain alert and attentive towards what you’re doing, step away from your screen and go for a nice walk, have a glass of water or simply do something different, and really savor the moment. You may notice that you have fresh perspectives and ideas when you get back to your desk. You can also install the Mindful Break Chrome extension to go through a one-minute breathing exercise.

How classroom tech brings accessibility with dignity

For Lisa Berghoff, Director of Instructional Technology at Highland Park High School in Highland Park, Illinois, one of her big assistive technology “aha” moments came while working with a student with autism. The student, often disruptive in class because she wanted immediate answers to questions, needed a teaching aide at her side—an accommodation that set her apart from her peers. “There’s nothing less cool than having an adult next to you in a high school class,” Berghoff says. 

Berghoff decided to open up a Google Doc on the student’s Chromebook, with the teaching aide accessing the same Doc on her own Chromebook from across the room and responding to the student’s questions in real time. “That document, with all the questions and answers captured by the student, actually became a resource for other students—it was a huge win for everyone,” Berghoff says. “That’s something we couldn't have done years ago.” 

In Berghoff’s 25 years in education, she’s seen the many changes that technology has brought to every student—but particularly those with learning challenges. In honor of Disability Awareness Month, we asked Berghoff about the impact of assistive technology and accessibility up close. Just getting started with G Suite and Chromebooks, and want to learn more about accessibility? Head to edu.google.com/accessibility to learn more. 

How’d you get started in special education?

I did my undergrad degree in psychology with grand plans to be a psychologist, but when I applied to some Ph.D programs they told me to get some experience in the real world. My first job was working at a crisis shelter for teenage girls. Because of my work with the girls who struggled so much to learn, I took some courses in special education—and realized that was where I wanted to be.

How’d you make the switch from special education to instructional technology?

I’d spent the last several years working with high school students with an array of significant disabilities. I would try anything if I thought it could help my kids learn, so the technology office started throwing all the tech my way—everything from Chromebooks to iPads to Promethean boards—because they knew I’d give it all an honest try. 

I saw that when used with integrity, technology could really be a game changer in helping kids learn. I distinctly recall a reading lesson where I recorded myself reading and shared a YouTube link, so students could pause and replay the video at their own pace.

Timing was on my side, and when the instructional technology director position opened up at Highland Park, the thought of having a wider influence appealed to me. At the time, I was fascinated by all kinds of kids with learning challenges—not just the students with Individualized Education Programs (IEPs). No matter what challenges kids have, many often need some kind of special support and could benefit from the right technology. 

Lisa Berghoff in the classroom

So you’re seeing the value of the “accessibility for all” movement up close.

I do a lot of training in universal design, which is about making everything more accessible. When you design things for people at the edges, everyone benefits—like how ramps help people in wheelchairs, but if you’re pushing a baby stroller, you’ll benefit too. 

What’s changed in special education and EdTech over your time in the field?

It’s the attitude of the kids, and that’s because of the better tools we have. In the past we had to give struggling students big, bulky laptops with accessibility tools—and they hated them, because the laptops made the students look different than everyone else. Now laptops like Chromebooks are so ubiquitous; everyone has one. I love that students with disabilities can access the tools they need in a way that gives them dignity, and that doesn’t separate them from the rest of the class. Having a device in each student's hand has completely changed teaching and learning.

What’s the next new thing in assistive technology?

I think there’s a lot coming with augmented reality and virtual reality, especially for students with physical disabilities who don’t have access to the wider world. There’s also the possibility to use technology for global connections. We see kids who have a rare disease or disorder, and feel like they’re the only ones out there. If they can connect to other students just like them out in the world, it makes a big difference for them psychologically. 

I have a student who doesn’t speak, and hasn’t physically been to school for a long time. Even simply using Gmail helps her make friends at school—and her friends feel like they are her ally. Her lack of speech is no longer a barrier.

A progress report with Google Classroom’s first school

Five years after Google Classroom first showed up in schools, teachers are looking back at the tool that forever changed how they organize their classes and communicate with students. Out went the long hours standing at the copy machine; in came instant feedback, easy quizzes and “do now” assignments and more engaged students. 

To celebrate Google Classroom’s fifth birthday, we asked two faculty members from Fontbonne Hall Academy, a private high school for girls in Brooklyn, New York about their early days as one of Classroom’s beta testers, and what school life is like five years later. (Just getting started with Classroom, or need a refresher? Visit g.co/firstdayofclassroom and g.co/classroom/help to study up.) 

What was teaching like at Fontbonne before Google Classroom?

Jennifer McNiff, social studies teacher:I periodically think about what my life was like before, and I break out into a cold sweat. What I think about is how much prep we had to do, like printing out assignments and getting them to the kids. 

Mark Surdyka, director of technology:I used chalkboards and had kids write everything down in notebooks. I’d give kids assignments and grade them, and then those papers would get thrown in the trash. There was tons of paper wasted, and the prep time was ridiculous. 

Right now, I’m teaching an AP math course, and I think I printed out only one thing—some instructions on how to log in to Classroom. That was it. We do everything else in Google Drive instead of wasting time writing things down. Everything is shared faster. And our photocopiers don’t get so beaten up like they used to. 

I periodically think about what my life was like before, and I break out into a cold sweat. Jennifer McNiff
Social studies teacher

I’m sure you don’t miss all that prep time and paperwork! What does this mean to you as teachers?

Jennifer:It’s nice now because I don’t have to worry about using my prep time for mundane tasks like making photocopies. I can focus on lesson planning and getting right to work with students collaboratively, instead of waiting to give them handouts.

Mark:It’s part of our routine now. If we were without it, I don’t know what we’d do—it would feel like we were going back in time 20 years.

Were people nervous about using Classroom at the beginning?

Mark:There’s always fear of the unknown. People didn’t know what to expect, so they were hesitant to jump in with both feet. We were lucky to have a teacher do an early test of what is now called Classroom. We were able to take a collective deep breath and assure ourselves this would be a good experience. 

Jennifer: I remember that my biggest fear was that if my assignments were all online in Classroom instead of written down, that I’d forget about them. But that didn’t happen—teachers are good at remembering what they’ve assigned.

How have you gotten creative with Classroom?

Jennifer:I use it even for simple things, like my “do now” assignments that I give to kids as soon as they walk into the room. It’s so much easier now to get students starting on something right away, and getting comments from them right after they sit down. 

I also teach AP Psychology, and I structure it like a college class—we work together collaboratively as well as have lectures. I created slide templates in Classroom so that students can take lecture notes in them, and also see graphs and videos that I put there. It really helps move along the lectures so that students understand the material better. I love having all the content in one spot.

Any advice for schools that are just starting to use Classroom?

Mark:In one word, play. You’re not going to learn anything about Classroom unless you sit there and play around with it. The more you start playing with all the features, like making copies for students assigning projects, you won’t fully realize what’s there and how it can help you.

5 memories to celebrate Google Classroom’s 5th birthday

Five years ago, the world watched feats of human strength and spirit at the Olympics in Socci and the World Cup in Rio. A robot made the first-ever landing on a comet. Citizens of the internet dumped buckets of ice on their heads to raise awareness and funds for ALS research. And while millions of teachers and students headed back to school in 2014, a team of passionate engineers, former teachers and ed tech experts at Google launched a new program—Google Classroom. 

Since then, the community of educators and students using Classroom has grown to over 40 million worldwide. Thoughtful feedback from teachers has helped us build new features to meet the ever-changing needs of today’s schools.

Animated video showing Google Classroom facts, including: Classroom is now available in 238 countries, 40m educators and students use Classroom globally, 100s of pieces of feedback from educators read, 100s of Classroom features launched.

Here are five stories of how Google Classroom has evolved over the years.

1. Building a mission control center designed to save teachers time 

When talking with educators, we learned that their biggest need was a tool that allowed them to spend less time on administrative tasks and spend more time teaching. The first iteration of Google Classroom helped them create and organize assignments quickly, provide feedback efficiently, and communicate with students easily.


Google Classroom launch in 2014

Classroom was launched in the fall of 2014.

2. Listening to educators and incorporating their feedback

As Google Classroom spread to more schools, we heard lots of inspiring success stories. We also listened for ways to make improvements and launched hundreds of new features based on educator feedback. And in year four, it was time for a refresh. This led to the Classwork page which organizes assignments and questions by grouping them into customizable modules and units.

Video of Google Classroom, showing a complete tutorial of the product

In 2018, we added the Classwork page to help educators organize assignments, materials and more.

Teachers needed more ways to quickly find resources in Classroom, especially when juggling multiple classes. So we changed the Stream page into a conversation hub and improved the Settings page to allow teachers to turn off notifications. We also built a way for educators to copy and reuse classwork. The result? A more streamlined way to set up and manage classes, coursework and student rosters. 

After hearing that educators were spending too much time giving actionable feedback, we built a comment bank, which gives them a place to easily save, reuse and modify common feedback. Earlier this year, Classroom was refreshed further when it was redesigned with the intuitive look and feel that’s used across Google tools.  


Comment bank in Google Classroom

In 2018, we added a comment bank to save and reuse commonly used feedback when grading.

3. Enhancing Classroom by integrating partner apps

We know there are lots of A+ education apps out there. It’s easy to feel bogged down by all the separate logins and applications to access your favorite tools. By partnering with some of the top EdTech companies—including Classcraft, GoGuardian, Pearson and others—we’ve helped integrate popular education apps with Classroom. Today, these partnerships allow teachers to share information between Classroom and other tools they love, without switching platforms.

4. Better feedback with rubrics, Gradebook, and syncing grades to your SIS

Earlier this year we introduced rubrics, a tool currently in beta that helps students clearly understand how their assignments will be evaluated, while also giving educators a standardized way to grade. This feature works alongside other feedback tools to help teachers personalize instruction and improve learning.

Rubrics in Google Classroom

In 2019, we introduced rubrics.

Other new developments include the ability to sync grades between a Student Information System (SIS) and Classroom, and Gradebook, a tool that keeps assignments and grades organized. Gradebook allows teachers to see a holistic view of their students’ grades across assignments, and offers quick ways to grade and return work. Teachers can also choose how grades are calculated (either by weighted average or total points) and set up grade categories for easier organization. 

Sync grades with your SIS and Google Classroom

Earlier this year, we launched an early access beta program that allows educators to sync grades from Classroom to their school information system (SIS) of record.

5. Help students keep their ideas authentic

Originality reports in Google Docs help students balance outside inspiration with authenticity in their own work. This beta feature is designed to allow both teachers and students to compare coursework against hundreds of billions of web pages and tens of millions of books. To use originality reports with Classroom, apply to join the testing program by filling out our form. 

Analyze student work with originality reports

In 2019, we added a beta for originality reports in Google Classroom.

Bring Google to your Classroom

Ready to try some of the new features mentioned? Syncing grades with your SIS, rubrics, and originality reports are available in beta. Sign up to test these tools today at g.co/classroom/betas.

Don’t have access to Google Classroom, but still want the benefits of collaborative teaching tools? Check out our new tool, Assignments. 

Google helps a nonprofit train young storytellers

Georgia is the number one filming location in the world, with a film and television industry worth $7 billion a year—a huge economic opportunity for local communities. On the flip side, Georgia is also home to about 180,000 disconnected youth. Disconnected (or opportunity) youth is defined as people ages 16-24 who are neither in school nor working. In Georgia, they represent 13.5 percent of people in that age range, two percentage points above the national average. Training programs to develop media production skills could give a new opportunity to thousands of young adults in the state.

Founded in 2014 in Atlanta, re:imagine/ATLis a nonprofit that trains the next generation of representative storytellers, to create a safe, inclusive and equitable workforce in the film and digital media industry. Partnering with schools and opportunity youth in metro Atlanta over the past five years, re:imagine/ATL has trained more than 3,000 young people who have produced more than 100 movies, documentaries, podcasts and other digital content.

Where I'm From | Westside Storytelling Competition

Where I'm From | Westside Storytelling Competition

This video produced by re:imagine/ATL is featured on the Best of Social Impact playlist in the YouTube Social Impact channel.

Google for Nonprofits spoke to re:imagine/ATL’s Executive Director Kimberlin Bolton to understand how they use Google products.

What’s one Google product that helped you explore new frontiers in storytelling?

Cardboard has been instrumental. Since 2015 we’ve offered three virtual reality training events per year. We hope to produce more 360 content and use Cardboard during screening events for the public.

How has Google for Nonprofits helped you become more visible?

We use Ad Grants for advertising our summer camp, in-school program and events. Through Ads we’ve reached new audiences. For example, a library in Doraville, Georgia, discovered our mobile workshops, and we provided an acting class for their filmmaking club. We had not previously considered libraries as a venue for our programming, and Doraville is outside of our usual service zone.

Our YouTube Channel is our primary distribution platform and has been a place to amplify youth voices and the next generation of leaders. The content our students create using Google products helps us raise awareness about different social issues in the community. Whether a video makes it to a film festival, a curated platform, or even network TV, they all begin on YouTube.

Any secret tips or tricks to share with other nonprofits?

We are using Google Alerts to discover every time we’re mentioned in the media. It also allows us to stay updated on the issues we care about most, find opportunities and celebrate our film and media community.

For an afterschool workshop, we used Google’s free CS First computer science curriculum to teach students to create animations using code. We are also starting to use Classroom for our film fellowship program, “No Comment.” Classroom allows us to send out assignments, track progress and communicate with all of our students, taking a great deal of administrative load off of our teachers.

How did G Suite for Nonprofits impact the way you work?

We rely on Sheets to track donations, program and operations budgets as well as student demographics and participation. Docs has been the bedrock of our administrative processes. In Docs we have our letterhead, we write grants and proposals collaboratively  and we plan programs and agendas. We also created a shared company calendar to coordinate equipment and space efficiently, or to know when employees are traveling.


Having a unified professional email system that is separate from our personal inboxes has made such a difference. G Suite for Nonprofits provides security for us and our constituents, communicates professionalism, and makes information more compartmentalized and easy to find.

Google helps a nonprofit train young storytellers

Georgia is the number one filming location in the world, with a film and television industry worth $7 billion a year—a huge economic opportunity for local communities. On the flip side, Georgia is also home to about 180,000 disconnected youth. Disconnected (or opportunity) youth is defined as people ages 16-24 who are neither in school nor working. In Georgia, they represent 13.5 percent of people in that age range, two percentage points above the national average. Training programs to develop media production skills could give a new opportunity to thousands of young adults in the state.

Founded in 2014 in Atlanta, re:imagine/ATLis a nonprofit that trains the next generation of representative storytellers, to create a safe, inclusive and equitable workforce in the film and digital media industry. Partnering with schools and opportunity youth in metro Atlanta over the past five years, re:imagine/ATL has trained more than 3,000 young people who have produced more than 100 movies, documentaries, podcasts and other digital content.

Where I'm From | Westside Storytelling Competition

Where I'm From | Westside Storytelling Competition

This video produced by re:imagine/ATL is featured on the Best of Social Impact playlist in the YouTube Social Impact channel.

Google for Nonprofits spoke to re:imagine/ATL’s Executive Director Kimberlin Bolton to understand how they use Google products.

What’s one Google product that helped you explore new frontiers in storytelling?

Cardboard has been instrumental. Since 2015 we’ve offered three virtual reality training events per year. We hope to produce more 360 content and use Cardboard during screening events for the public.

How has Google for Nonprofits helped you become more visible?

We use Ad Grants for advertising our summer camp, in-school program and events. Through Ads we’ve reached new audiences. For example, a library in Doraville, Georgia, discovered our mobile workshops, and we provided an acting class for their filmmaking club. We had not previously considered libraries as a venue for our programming, and Doraville is outside of our usual service zone.

Our YouTube Channel is our primary distribution platform and has been a place to amplify youth voices and the next generation of leaders. The content our students create using Google products helps us raise awareness about different social issues in the community. Whether a video makes it to a film festival, a curated platform, or even network TV, they all begin on YouTube.

Any secret tips or tricks to share with other nonprofits?

We are using Google Alerts to discover every time we’re mentioned in the media. It also allows us to stay updated on the issues we care about most, find opportunities and celebrate our film and media community.

For an afterschool workshop, we used Google’s free CS First computer science curriculum to teach students to create animations using code. We are also starting to use Classroom for our film fellowship program, “No Comment.” Classroom allows us to send out assignments, track progress and communicate with all of our students, taking a great deal of administrative load off of our teachers.

How did G Suite for Nonprofits impact the way you work?

We rely on Sheets to track donations, program and operations budgets as well as student demographics and participation. Docs has been the bedrock of our administrative processes. In Docs we have our letterhead, we write grants and proposals collaboratively  and we plan programs and agendas. We also created a shared company calendar to coordinate equipment and space efficiently, or to know when employees are traveling.


Having a unified professional email system that is separate from our personal inboxes has made such a difference. G Suite for Nonprofits provides security for us and our constituents, communicates professionalism, and makes information more compartmentalized and easy to find.

Google Assignments, your new grading companion

Instructors lose valuable time doing cumbersome tasks: writing the same comment on multiple essays, returning piles of paper assignments, and battling copy machine jams. These frustrations are most often felt by instructors with the highest teaching workloads and the least time. For the last five years, we’ve been building tools—like Classroom and Quizzes in Google Forms—to address these challenges. Now you can take advantage of these tools if you use a traditional Learning Management System (LMS). 

Assignments brings together the capabilities of Google Docs, Drive and Search into a new tool for collecting and grading student work. It helps you save time with streamlined assignment workflows, ensure student work is authentic with originality reports, and give constructive feedback with comment banks. You can use Assignments as a standalone tool and a companion to your LMS (no setup required!) or your school admin can integrate it with your LMS. Sign up today to try Assignments.

If you're one of the 40 million people using Classroom: you've got the best of Assignments already baked in, including our new originality reports. For everyone else, Assignments gives you access to these features as a compliment to your school’s LMS. 

Assignments is your tireless grading companion

Using an LMS can create more work than it saves: students turn in all kinds of files, you have to download and re-upload student files one-by-one, and what if students can keep editing after they already turned in their work? Assignments handles all this for you.

Assignments streamlines the creation and management of coursework, and tackles some of your biggest frustrations:

  • Stop typing the same feedback over and over by using a comment bank, and never worry about pressing the “save” button again

  • Check student work for originality and automatically lock work once it’s turned in

  • Assign files with the option to send each student a copy (no more copy machines!)

  • Grade assignments for an entire class with a student switcher and rubrics, and review any file type without leaving your grading interface

  • Comment and leave suggestions on student work with Google Docs

Grade in Google Assignments

Instructors and students can attach anything to assignments: Docs or Word files for papers, spreadsheets for data analysis, slides for presentations, sites for digital portfolios or final projects, Colab notebooks for programming exercises, and much more. 

Create assignments with Google Assignments

Help students turn in their best work with originality reports

With originality reports in Assignments, you can check student work for missed citations and possible plagiarism without interrupting your grading workflow. When students turn in a document, Assignments will check students’ text against hundreds of billions of web pages and tens of millions of books. 

If you enable originality reports on an assignment, students can also check their work for authenticity (a limited number of times) to correct issues, turn in their best work, and save instructors time grading. Since both you and your students can see originality reports, they’re designed to help you teach your students about authenticity and academic integrity. 

Analyze student work with originality reports

Getting started with Assignments

Starting today, you can sign up to get access to Assignments when it becomes available in a few weeks. Assignments will be available for free as part of G Suite for Education and can be used by instructors alongside or integrated with an LMS. 

Instructors can use Assignments even if your school has an LMS. There’s no setup required, all you need is to sign up and have a school-issued Google account. 

Admins can turn on access to Assignments within your LMS. Assignments is available as an LTI tool, which provides a more integrated experience and enables roster syncing and grade transmission to your LMS gradebook. Assignments is an improved and expanded version of Course Kit, so if you’re already in the Course Kit beta, you’ll automatically have access to Assignments. 

If you use Canvas, we’ve worked with their team to complement the Assignments LTI tool with a set of additional features that make Docs and Drive work seamlessly across all Canvas assignments. 

Source: Drive


A new way to help students turn in their best work

Today’s students face a tricky challenge: In an age when they can explore every idea imaginable on the internet, how do they balance outside inspiration with authenticity in their own work? Students have to learn to navigate the line between other people’s ideas and their own, and how and when to properly cite sources.

We've heard from instructors that they copy and paste passages into Google Search to check if student work is authentic, which can be repetitive, inefficient and biased. They also often spend a lot of time giving feedback about missed citations and improper paraphrasing. By integrating the power of Search into our assignment and grading tools, we can make this quicker and easier. 

That’s why Google is introducing originality reports. This new feature—with several reports included free in every course—will be part of Classroom and Assignments, which was also announced today. We create originality reports by scanning student work for matched phrases across hundreds of billions of web pages and tens of millions of books. 

When assigning work in Classroom and Assignments, instructors will have the option to enable originality reports. Students will then be able to run up to three originality reports on documents they attach to the assignment before submitting their work. This heads-up gives students an opportunity to proactively improve their work, and also saves time for instructors. 

After submission, a fresh originality report will automatically be available to instructors when grading the assignment. These reports will flag text that has missed citations and has high similarity with text on the web or in books.

Analyze student work with originality reports in Google Assignments

But comparing work to search results isn’t the only way to ensure authentic work. Coming soon, schools can choose to have their own private repository of past student submissions, so instructors can receive originality reports that include student-to-student matches within the same school. 

Once the feature is generally available, instructors will be able to access originality reports at no charge for up to three assignments in each course they teach. Schools that would like unlimited access can upgrade their instructors to G Suite Enterprise for Education.  During the initial, limited testing period, all instructors can use originality reports as much as they would like to, at no charge. We’ll continue to add features at no additional cost to G Suite for Education.

To use originality reports with Classroom, sign up to apply to be part of the testing program by filling out our form. To try Assignments, which includes originality reports automatically, sign up through our website.

We’re looking forward to seeing how teachers and students alike use the tool to create work that’s both authentic and original. 

Source: Drive