Category Archives: Google for Education Blog

The official source for information about Google’s education-related efforts

Inspiring the creative problem-solvers of the future

What's coming next in technology will shape our future. And because we can't predict what challenges the future will bring, we need to cultivate a new generation of problem-solvers, storytellers, and creative minds to tackle our next problems at scale. It’s not just about coding and programming computers, it’s about helping students learn skills they’ll need to approach problems in a fundamentally different way across every discipline from business to engineering to the arts.

Today, we hosted our fourth annual I/O Youth, part of a longstanding effort to get more students excited about where technology can take them. Nearly 150 5th-7th graders from schools around the Bay Area descended on Shoreline Amphitheatre in Mountain View, CA to explore activities focused on digital storytelling, inventing, science, and coding.

Ryan Germick, who leads our Doodle team, along with Krysia Olszewska of Technovation, emceed the day as kids delved into four activities:

  • Animating their very own cartoon with Toontastic
  • Building a wind spinner from craft supplies and analyzing its speed with the Science Journal app
  • Creating and programming a hot potato game using littleBits Code Kit, which uses drag-and-drop programming based on Google’s Blockly to help kids code
  • Coding an adventure on the high seas, programming the type of ship, height of waves, characters and dialogue, using Scratch with Google’s CS First curriculum
IOY6
Welcome to I/O Youth!
IOY3
Kids start filing in
IOY4
Pavni Diwanji, VP of Engineering for Kids and Families, welcomes the kids to I/O Youth 2017 
IOY2
Yoky Matsuoka, CTO of Nest, kicks off the day
IOY1
Coding with littleBits
IOY5
Creating a story set in space with Toontastic
IOY7
Quick, Draw!
IOY8
Coding with CS First and Scratch
IO9
Fun in the Sandbox

It wouldn’t be I/O without a Sandbox, so through “Toy Taxidermy,” an activity developed by Wonderful Idea Co, kids tinkered with mechanical toys to see how they work. The MIT Media Lab showed kids how to make their own game controllers with Play-Doh and tinfoil to control the games they created in Scratch. Kids also got to check out a virtual journey with Expeditions, learn about the Google Assistant and its sense of humor, and see examples of artificial intelligence through Google’s Quick, Draw! and Giorgio Cam AI Experiments.

Today was about opening a door to let kids see what’s possible. Mentors from littleBits, Scratch, and Technovation encouraged kids to get involved in local clubs and activities so that anyone who has a passion for technology has an outlet to keep going. And everyone went home with a littleBits Rule Your Room Kit, so they can continue creating and programming at home. We hope kids discover that a bright future isn’t some distant goal—it's something they have the power and skills to create right now.

Source: Education


Inspiring the creative problem-solvers of the future

What's coming next in technology will shape our future. And because we can't predict what challenges the future will bring, we need to cultivate a new generation of problem-solvers, storytellers, and creative minds to tackle our next problems at scale. It’s not just about coding and programming computers, it’s about helping students learn skills they’ll need to approach problems in a fundamentally different way across every discipline from business to engineering to the arts.

Today, we hosted our fourth annual I/O Youth, part of a longstanding effort to get more students excited about where technology can take them. Nearly 150 5th-7th graders from schools around the Bay Area descended on Shoreline Amphitheatre in Mountain View, CA to explore activities focused on digital storytelling, inventing, science, and coding.

Ryan Germick, who leads our Doodle team, along with Krysia Olszewska of Technovation, emceed the day as kids delved into four activities:

  • Animating their very own cartoon with Toontastic
  • Building a wind spinner from craft supplies and analyzing its speed with the Science Journal app
  • Creating and programming a hot potato game using littleBits Code Kit, which uses drag-and-drop programming based on Google’s Blockly to help kids code
  • Coding an adventure on the high seas, programming the type of ship, height of waves, characters and dialogue, using Scratch with Google’s CS First curriculum
IOY6
Welcome to I/O Youth!
IOY3
Kids start filing in
IOY4
Pavni Diwanji, VP of Engineering for Kids and Families, welcomes the kids to I/O Youth 2017 
IOY2
Yoky Matsuoka, CTO of Nest, kicks off the day
IOY1
Coding with littleBits
IOY5
Creating a story set in space with Toontastic
IOY7
Quick, Draw!
IOY8
Coding with CS First and Scratch
IO9
Fun in the Sandbox

It wouldn’t be I/O without a Sandbox, so through “Toy Taxidermy,” an activity developed by Wonderful Idea Co, kids tinkered with mechanical toys to see how they work. The MIT Media Lab showed kids how to make their own game controllers with Play-Doh and tinfoil to control the games they created in Scratch. Kids also got to check out a virtual journey with Expeditions, learn about the Google Assistant and its sense of humor, and see examples of artificial intelligence through Google’s Quick, Draw! and Giorgio Cam AI Experiments.

Today was about opening a door to let kids see what’s possible. Mentors from littleBits, Scratch, and Technovation encouraged kids to get involved in local clubs and activities so that anyone who has a passion for technology has an outlet to keep going. And everyone went home with a littleBits Rule Your Room Kit, so they can continue creating and programming at home. We hope kids discover that a bright future isn’t some distant goal—it's something they have the power and skills to create right now.

Source: Education


#GraciasALosProfes: Celebrating Teacher Appreciation Day in Mexico

Today is Teacher Appreciation Day, or Día del Maestro, in Mexico, where 30 GEG (Google Educator Groups) leaders are at the helm of the movement to transform education through technology in Latin America. Our Mexican GEG leaders empower their fellow teachers to harness tech to meet students’ needs. We are amazed at the innovative and inspiring ways these teachers and leaders are building their movement across Mexico—from Guadalajara to Mexico City to Monterrey.

In Quéretaro, Nay Belaunzaran thought up an idea to scale the impact of tech across generations by mobilizing children to teach their parents about the internet. Under Nay’s leadership, primary school students prepare classes for their parents about G Suite for Education where the parents learn to jot their thoughts down in Docs, build presentations in Slides, and communicate with teachers through Google Classroom. Galvanizing students to bridge the generational tech literacy gap has made it easier for parents to stay engaged with kids’ schools.

4

Nay connected with fellow teachers from all over Latin America at last year’s Google for Education Certified Innovators Summit in Mexico City.

In Tijuana, Gabriela Torres Beltrán has paved the way for dozens of her students to become Google Certified Educators themselves. By building a community of future teachers who keep innovation and technology top of mind, Gabriela is making her mark on the future of education in her community.  “Seeing the smile of satisfaction on their faces as they explore ways to implement technology in class is extremely inspiring,” she shared with an inspired smile of her own.

RVP_8345baja_halfimage.jpg

Verónica stays after class on most days, providing extra support for students whose curiosity extends beyond school hours.

In Verónica Nuñez Loyo’s classroom in Mexico City, students find themselves at the intersection of traditions of the past and technology of the future. She challenges her middle schoolers not only to research the history of Mexico, but to leverage the internet to share their learnings. Recently, Verónica’s  seventh grade class collaborated to create a multimedia presentation about the Axolotl, an endangered amphibian species endemic to Baja California. Technology was at the heart of the project, whether students were exploring the Náhuatl origin of the word “Axolotl” or investigating how portrayals of this “walking fish” have changed over time.

These are three of many educators who work tirelessly to ignite curiosity and give life to the ideas of Mexico’s rising generation. Which teachers inspire you? Today—and everyday—join us in celebrating the educators who dedicate their lives to working with students to create a more connected Latin America. #GraciasALosProfes.

Source: Education


We’ve reached more than 1 million U.K. students with Google Expeditions

For the past eight months, we’ve been on a mission to bring virtual reality experiences into classrooms all across the U.K. Launched in September 2016, the Google Expeditions Pioneer Program set out to bring virtual reality field trips to more than 1 million U.K. pupils and open their eyes to places and environments they are unable to see otherwise. To date, the team has visited 3,000+ schools in more than 430 cities and towns, from Leicester to Edinburgh to Port Talbot.

Twickenham Prep School_students.jpg
Students enjoying one of 600+ expeditions now available in the app.

We also teamed up with Google Arts & Culture and partners like The British Museum, English Heritage and Westminster Abbey to add more than 150 expeditions tailored to the U.K. curriculum, taking the total number of tours now offer in the app to more than 600.

LochNess2.jpg
An underwater world brought to life, where you can explore the depths looking for the famous “Nessie.”

Ongoing feedback from teachers continues to help us improve the product, from building lessons tailored to the curriculum, to running teacher training events on how to incorporate Expeditions into effective lesson planning.

It’s a tool that makes lesson planning easier and engages pupils right from the start. Jon Duffy Computer Science teacher

New content is continually being launched on the app. Starting today, teachers and students can explore 20 new destinations from Loch Ness—taking the time to scour the renowned site for its infamous monster—to Exploring Roman Baths, where students can tour one of the U.K.’s most interesting landmarks.

The Expeditions Pioneer Program will visit U.K. schools until the end of May 2017. However, if we're not visiting your school, you can still make the most of these tours by downloading Google Expeditions on iOS or Android and following these simple instructions.

Source: Education


We’ve reached over 1 million UK students with Google Expeditions

For the past eight months, we’ve been on a mission to bring virtual reality experiences into classrooms all across the UK. Launched in September 2016, the Google Expeditions Pioneer Program set out to bring virtual reality field trips to over 1,000,000 UK pupils and open their eyes to places and environments they are unable to see otherwise. To date, the team has visited 3,000+ schools in more than 430 cities and towns, from Leicester to Edinburgh to Port Talbot.

Twickenham Prep School_students.jpg
Students enjoying one of over 600 expeditions now available in the app.

We also teamed up with Google Arts & Culture and partners like The British Museum, English Heritage and Westminster Abbey to add more than 150 expeditions tailored to the UK curriculum, taking the total number of tours now offer in the app to over 600.

LochNess2.jpg
An underwater world brought to life, where you can explore the depths looking for the famous “Nessie.”

Ongoing feedback from teachers continues to help us improve the product, from building lessons tailored to the curriculum, to running teacher training events on how to incorporate Expeditions into effective lesson planning.

It’s a tool that makes lesson planning easier and engages pupils right from the start. Jon Duffy Computer Science teacher

New content is continually being launched on the app. Starting today, teachers and students can explore 20 new destinations from Loch Ness—taking the time to scour the renowned site for its infamous monster— to Exploring Roman Baths, where students can tour one of the UK’s most interesting landmarks.

The Expeditions Pioneer Program will visit UK schools until the end of May 2017. However, if we're not visiting your school, you can still make the most of these tours by downloading Google Expeditions on iOS or Android and following these simple instructions.

Source: Education


We’ve reached over 1 million UK students with Google Expeditions

For the past eight months, we’ve been on a mission to bring virtual reality experiences into classrooms all across the UK. Launched in September 2016, the Google Expeditions Pioneer Program set out to bring virtual reality field trips to over 1,000,000 UK pupils and open their eyes to places and environments they are unable to see otherwise. To date, the team has visited 3,000+ schools in more than 430 cities and towns, from Leicester to Edinburgh to Port Talbot.

Twickenham Prep School_students.jpg
Students enjoying one of over 600 expeditions now available in the app.

We also teamed up with Google Arts & Culture and partners like The British Museum, English Heritage and Westminster Abbey to add more than 150 expeditions tailored to the UK curriculum, taking the total number of tours now offer in the app to over 600.

LochNess2.jpg
An underwater world brought to life, where you can explore the depths looking for the famous “Nessie.”

Ongoing feedback from teachers continues to help us improve the product, from building lessons tailored to the curriculum, to running teacher training events on how to incorporate Expeditions into effective lesson planning.

It’s a tool that makes lesson planning easier and engages pupils right from the start. Jon Duffy Computer Science teacher

New content is continually being launched on the app. Starting today, teachers and students can explore 20 new destinations from Loch Ness—taking the time to scour the renowned site for its infamous monster— to Exploring Roman Baths, where students can tour one of the UK’s most interesting landmarks.

The Expeditions Pioneer Program will visit UK schools until the end of May 2017. However, if we're not visiting your school, you can still make the most of these tours by downloading Google Expeditions on iOS or Android and following these simple instructions.

Source: Education


Celebrating our teachers

Two weeks ago, a few people on our team were lucky enough to attend the 2017 National Teacher of the Year Recognition Gala in Washington, DC, which we were proud to help sponsor. The Council of Chief State School Officers has organized this program for the last 65 years, and we were so inspired after meeting and celebrating the 55 educators who were recognized as the best in their states and territories.

Teachers_group photo
The 2017 National Teachers of the Year in front of the Washington Monument

But today—on National Teacher Appreciation Day—we acknowledge that the important contribution of our nation’s teachers deserves to be celebrated not just on one day, or one week, but every single day of the year. They are the ones who inspire us to work harder, who motivate us to stay curious, who believe in us when we don’t always believe in ourselves, and who ultimately help shape the people we’ll become and the world we’ll live in tomorrow.

Everyone has his or her own story about that one special teacher. For me, it’s Mr. Aalbers, my 5th grade teacher. His imagination and love for exploration —through books and classroom projects— sparked a curiosity that still drives me today. I can only hope my own children will be as lucky as I was to have a teacher like him. We have gathered more stories like mine, and we hope you might also share your own.

Aalbers-class photo-Bram
Mr. Aalbers with his 5th grade class. I’m in the back row, 5th from the right.

Thanks to close collaboration and ongoing feedback from many great teachers, we’ve been able to build and continue improving many of our own products designed for education like Classroom, Chromebooks and Expeditions. Our goal is to create tools like these that expand the classroom walls while also minimizing administrative burdens to help teachers spend more of their time doing what they do best: teaching.

We also want to make sure that teachers have the support they need to use technology effectively in their classrooms, which is why we’ve created the Training Center. And since we know how important it is for educators to connect with and learn from their peers, we’ve established community programs like Google Educator Groups and the Google Certified Innovator Program. We look forward to our continued work with educators to make sure that technology can play a role in helping make education both effective and engaging.

As a gesture of our continued appreciation and gratitude for our teachers, we’re offering 50% off the Google Certified Educator exam through this week, ending May 14, 2017. Just enter the code TeacherDay2017. We hope this will be a small way for teachers to continue their own professional development, on us.

And in the meantime, we encourage everyone to #ThankATeacher this week for making the world —and all of us—better.

Source: Education


Celebrating our teachers

Two weeks ago, a few people on our team were lucky enough to attend the 2017 National Teacher of the Year Recognition Gala in Washington, DC, which we were proud to help sponsor. The Council of Chief State School Officers has organized this program for the last 65 years, and we were so inspired after meeting and celebrating the 55 educators who were recognized as the best in their states and territories.

Teachers_group photo
The 2017 National Teachers of the Year in front of the Washington Monument

But today—on National Teacher Appreciation Day—we acknowledge that the important contribution of our nation’s teachers deserves to be celebrated not just on one day, or one week, but every single day of the year. They are the ones who inspire us to work harder, who motivate us to stay curious, who believe in us when we don’t always believe in ourselves, and who ultimately help shape the people we’ll become and the world we’ll live in tomorrow.

Everyone has his or her own story about that one special teacher. For me, it’s Mr. Aalbers, my 5th grade teacher. His imagination and love for exploration —through books and classroom projects— sparked a curiosity that still drives me today. I can only hope my own children will be as lucky as I was to have a teacher like him. We have gathered more stories like mine, and we hope you might also share your own.

Aalbers-class photo-Bram
Mr. Aalbers with his 5th grade class. I’m in the back row, 5th from the right.

Thanks to close collaboration and ongoing feedback from many great teachers, we’ve been able to build and continue improving many of our own products designed for education like Classroom, Chromebooks and Expeditions. Our goal is to create tools like these that expand the classroom walls while also minimizing administrative burdens to help teachers spend more of their time doing what they do best: teaching.

We also want to make sure that teachers have the support they need to use technology effectively in their classrooms, which is why we’ve created the Training Center. And since we know how important it is for educators to connect with and learn from their peers, we’ve established community programs like Google Educator Groups and the Google Certified Innovator Program. We look forward to our continued work with educators to make sure that technology can play a role in helping make education both effective and engaging.

As a gesture of our continued appreciation and gratitude for our teachers, we’re offering 50% off the Google Certified Educator exam through this week, ending May 14, 2017. Just enter the code TeacherDay2017. We hope this will be a small way for teachers to continue their own professional development, on us.

And in the meantime, we encourage everyone to #ThankATeacher this week for making the world —and all of us—better.

Source: Education


Why I celebrate College Signing Day

I grew up as a first-generation American living on welfare and food stamps with a single mother in Hell’s Kitchen, New York. For most of my life, college seemed out of reach—no one in my family or neighborhood had gone, so it was hard to imagine that I’d ever get there. The day I committed to going to college was the day my life changed. It opened many doors and opportunities, and I made lifelong friends (and learned a few important lessons) along the way. Now I’ve dedicated my career at Google to helping educators use technology to give students more opportunities.

 Though it didn’t have an official name when I was in school, College Signing Day marks the day when high school seniors commit to attending a four-year university, professional training program or community college. This College Signing Day, I'm joining Michelle Obama to celebrate this moment and the students whose lives are about to change with their decision to go to college.

 Attending college was a huge milestone for me, but it was accompanied by fear and anxiety. I was entering the unfamiliar and unknown, and my mind filled with dread and doubt. Who was going to help me? If I take out student loans, will I ever make enough money to pay those loans back? What if I'm not smart enough? What if I don’t make any friends?

 These reservations are intensified for students who are growing up the way I grew up. You don't know many individuals who went to college, so you don’t have anyone to turn  turn to for guidance or to help you build the confidence and mindset you need to succeed in college. But I was a stubborn kid (and am now a stubborn adult) and refused to accept expectations for kids like me—that we were destined to a life of crime or poverty. I wanted to prove the stereotypes wrong, which is why I committed to attending SUNY Brockport.

 For students who are the first in their family to attend college, celebrating College Signing Day is critical. We tell students the most important thing they can do for their future is to focus on their education. We tell them how higher education will give them the perspective and tools they’ll use for the rest of their lives. When these students get into college, it’s an enormous accomplishment—and we need to show them it’s worth celebrating.

 Though these students may not have grown up around college graduates, they’ll soon be surrounded by a community of educators, counselors, students and alumni who can help them through the college experience. This community—combined that with the love and support of families and communities back home—is critical to the success of college-bound students.

 Google has done a lot of work to expand opportunities for students at every step of their education (so that they can eventually make it to College Signing Day!). Through Google.org we’ve committed $50 million toward supporting nonprofits that are working to close global education gaps. We’ve built products and tools—like Classroom and Chromebooks—designed to make teaching and learning more effective and engaging. And we’ve also created programs that give every student the tools to become the creators, not just the consumers, of technology.  

A critical component of this commitment is ensuring that every student also has a pathway to pursue their higher education, whether that’s through scholarships, mentors or interning with us at Google. In partnership with Reach Higher (part of the Better Make Room initiative), we’ve also created a series of Google Expeditions for students to virtually visit college campuses. This opens up opportunities for students who don’t have the means to travel to for college visits—they can check out residence halls, classrooms, and even financial aid offices before ever stepping foot on campus. Colleges interested in creating their own Expedition can sign up via this form.

howard

Former First Lady Michelle Obama touring the advanced skills lab in Howard Community College's Expedition.

For more information on College Signing Day and to access a toolkit to help teachers, counselors, and community organizations host a celebration in their community, visit www.bettermakeroom.org.

Source: Education


Why I celebrate College Signing Day

I grew up as a first-generation American living on welfare and food stamps with a single mother in Hell’s Kitchen, New York. For most of my life, college seemed out of reach—no one in my family or neighborhood had gone, so it was hard to imagine that I’d ever get there. The day I committed to going to college was the day my life changed. It opened many doors and opportunities, and I made lifelong friends (and learned a few important lessons) along the way. Now I’ve dedicated my career at Google to helping educators use technology to give students more opportunities.

 Though it didn’t have an official name when I was in school, College Signing Day marks the day when high school seniors commit to attending a four-year university, professional training program or community college. This College Signing Day, I'm joining Michelle Obama to celebrate this moment and the students whose lives are about to change with their decision to go to college.

 Attending college was a huge milestone for me, but it was accompanied by fear and anxiety. I was entering the unfamiliar and unknown, and my mind filled with dread and doubt. Who was going to help me? If I take out student loans, will I ever make enough money to pay those loans back? What if I'm not smart enough? What if I don’t make any friends?

 These reservations are intensified for students who are growing up the way I grew up. You don't know many individuals who went to college, so you don’t have anyone to turn  turn to for guidance or to help you build the confidence and mindset you need to succeed in college. But I was a stubborn kid (and am now a stubborn adult) and refused to accept expectations for kids like me—that we were destined to a life of crime or poverty. I wanted to prove the stereotypes wrong, which is why I committed to attending SUNY Brockport.

 For students who are the first in their family to attend college, celebrating College Signing Day is critical. We tell students the most important thing they can do for their future is to focus on their education. We tell them how higher education will give them the perspective and tools they’ll use for the rest of their lives. When these students get into college, it’s an enormous accomplishment—and we need to show them it’s worth celebrating.

 Though these students may not have grown up around college graduates, they’ll soon be surrounded by a community of educators, counselors, students and alumni who can help them through the college experience. This community—combined that with the love and support of families and communities back home—is critical to the success of college-bound students.

 Google has done a lot of work to expand opportunities for students at every step of their education (so that they can eventually make it to College Signing Day!). Through Google.org we’ve committed $50 million toward supporting nonprofits that are working to close global education gaps. We’ve built products and tools—like Classroom and Chromebooks—designed to make teaching and learning more effective and engaging. And we’ve also created programs that give every student the tools to become the creators, not just the consumers, of technology.  

A critical component of this commitment is ensuring that every student also has a pathway to pursue their higher education, whether that’s through scholarships, mentors or interning with us at Google. In partnership with Reach Higher (part of the Better Make Room initiative), we’ve also created a series of Google Expeditions for students to virtually visit college campuses. This opens up opportunities for students who don’t have the means to travel to for college visits—they can check out residence halls, classrooms, and even financial aid offices before ever stepping foot on campus. Colleges interested in creating their own Expedition can sign up via this form.

howard

Former First Lady Michelle Obama touring the advanced skills lab in Howard Community College's Expedition.

For more information on College Signing Day and to access a toolkit to help teachers, counselors, and community organizations host a celebration in their community, visit www.bettermakeroom.org.

Source: Education