Google+ is Google's social networking platform. Faculty, staff, and students now have access to this tool from within our Google suite by clicking on the +You (or +Your Name) option in the black toolbar at the top.
Google+ has several features and one of them is Google Hangouts which is a tool that allows for video conferencing with up to ten people.
Here are just a few uses of Google Hangouts inside and outside of the classroom:
- Hold small group meetings with faculty, staff or students
- Conduct virtual office hours
- Share computer screen to walk through a web site or demonstrate a software program
- View and discuss YouTube videos
- View and/or edit Google Documents collaboratively for writing workshops or group projects
- Bring in a guest lecturer
To use Google Hangouts, you do need to set up a Google+ profile within your northshore.edu Gmail account. You can do one-on-one video conferencing without a Google+ profile.
Note: When entering your birth date, make sure you do not select a year that will make you 13 years or younger. This will lock your North Shore Gmail account.
For more information on social media in the classroom and using Google+, please take a look at these resources:
- Social Media as a Teaching Tool
- 3 Ways to Hack Your Class with Google+
- 31 Ways to Use Google+
- Ways for Faculty to Use Google+
- 30 Ways Colleges Are Using Google+ Right Now
Please do not hesitate to contact us at itd@northshore.edu to brainstorm ideas for integrating Google+ and other social media into your teaching or for assistance in using any of these tools.
• Do you see a use for Google+, especially Google Hangouts, in the teaching and learning environment? What goals might this tool help you meet?
• What challenges do you see to using Google+?
• What role, if any, does social media play in the classroom?
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