Chris Betcher

Over the years, one of the common questions I have regularly heard being asked by schools that are in the process of moving from one technology platform to another is about the choice of substitute apps. I’ve heard it when I’ve been in schools that made the switch from Microsoft to Google – “But the teaching program says we have to use PowerPoint! I can’t use Slides!” or “But I can’t use Docs, all my stuff is in Word!” I’ve heard it when people switched from one type of phone operating system to another – “I used to use iMessage on my iPhone, but there’s no iMessage on Android! Now what?!” I recently heard someone ask what Chromebook apps they could use to replace the apps they used to use with their iPads – “I need to know what apps to use on the Chromebook to teach robotics!” Asking what apps should be used on a new platform to replace the things that you used to do on the old platform seems like a valid question. Certainly if a school is moving from iPads to Chromebooks, or Google t...

Google Meet has undergone a number of changes recently to the way video calls can be made more secure for teachers and students. This video is a thorough guide to making sure your Meets are as safe as possible, by explaining everything you need to know, from the necessary admin-level settings, to the in-call settings like Host Controls and Quick Access settings. It goes into a fair bit of detail, including the important changes that need to be made in the admin console in order for the other settings to be effective.

Sometimes you don’t know what you don’t know, and just seeing some examples of what’s possible is a big help. To help you see the possibilities of Google Forms, here are two different examples that I hope you’ll find useful.  Did you know that there are actually 11 different types of questions you can ask with a Google Form? It’s not all just about Multiple Choice!  Understanding Different Question Types in Google Forms  This first one is a Form that has examples of every type of question that you can create with a Google Form, as well as some additional variations.  As you can see, there are LOTS of ways you can ask questions in Forms, and the real skill is making sure you are selecting the most appropriate question type for the type of information you want to collect.  Quiz Questions Galore  Of the 11 different question types, 7 of them can be set to automatically check the responses, making them ideal for creating self marking quizzes.   This...