Colegio Virgen Del Valle

Educators have access to a multitude of high tech teaching tools these days. The most recent of these tools is the Google Wave. While not strictly an educational tool, its potential as such will make all educators sit up and take notice if they are interested in new and better ways to teach. Google Wave has a long list of interesting features and many of them can be put to work for a modern educational dynamic.

What Is Google Wave?

Google Wave is basically a real-time communication platform. It brings together a number of online tools to create one tool with limitless possibilities. It contains characteristics of emails, instant messages, social networking tools, and more.

When you get down to it, Google Wave is a way to communicate with other people. Not only that, Google Wave also allows you to collaborate because all involved can have conversations, edit the information presented, and share new information. The repercussions for educational settings are sure to be astounding.

How To Use Google Wave To Benefit The Classroom

First off, the ability to share information with a group of individuals is not new but it is always useful. You can disseminate information to your class anytime you wish. More than that, your class can collaborate on projects. They can take whatever information you present and can edit that information or make comments on it.

This type of ongoing discussions allows the feel of interactive discussion to continue outside of the classroom. If there is no real classroom then this setting could replace this pivotal aspect of the learning environment. As online classes become more popular, this tool can return some of what can be lost by having students who face computers instead of each other.

What Exactly Can It Do For Educational Settings?

Students can have real-time discussions about anything. This means that you can see most text as it is being typed instead of waiting for posts to be complete and to be posted. Students can discuss lessons, current events, or coordinate study plans using this tool.

You then have the option of correcting details in these conversations or of adding in your own personal commentary to provide additional guidance or insight. The fact that everything in the Google Wave is open to everyone allows every student to benefit from comments given to one.

You can drag and drop files so that everyone can instantly access files that you choose to share. Another interesting feature is that you can go back and play anything that was said previously. This may help you to see the progression of discussions and to track the amendments of informational sources.

Educators can use Google Wave to further the progression of education in ways that have never been done before. This tool allows for a level of communication and collaboration that was never possible using a single means before. Google Wave could be the next stage in learning technology and educators who take advantage of this tool could create an interactive learning experience like no other.

Julie-Ann Amos writes about how to apply to the best universities online.