
9
The Paperless Classroom with Google Docs
Overview
Google Docs provides many ways to go paperless through sharing and collaboration options. There is
not just one single right way to use Google Docs for a paperless classroom. Rather there are many tools
and features that can be used on their own or in combination to meet your varying needs. This guide
will cover many of the most common ways that Google Docs can help teachers and students move away
from paper and into a digital-only environment.
How to name documents and folders
Since many students and staff may be sharing documents and folders with other students and staff, it
could get confusing quickly when seeing all of the shared files in Google Docs. One thing that can help is
to agree upon a common naming scheme for files and folders. A good name should tie the item to a
time (year), a class (perhaps period), who created it (your name), and what it is (a certain paper,
projector, or turn-in folder).
You may want to come up with your own specific way for files and folders to be named, but if not, below
are some helpful recommendations:
For documents and folders, include in the name:
the current school year (four digits such as 2011 for school year 2011-2012)
your class period (two digits such as 03 for 3rd period)
your name (last name then first name)
the name of the document or folder
For example a document may be named: 2011-07-Smith John-Research Paper
A shared folder may be named: 2011-02-Doe Jane-Turn-in Folder
The most important aspect of a good naming system is that the files and folder names should make
sense to both the person who created them, and the people they are being shared with.
How to choose sharing options: Edit, Comment, and View
When you choose to share a document through Google Docs, you get to decide how much access that
person has to your document. Typically you can choose up to three different options for the level of
access you give. The access you choose will depend why you are sharing the document with the person.
Can edit - If you choose this option, then the other person is able to make changes to the
document. This is good for group work, where several people are collaborating on the project.
This can also be a good match when turning in an assignment to a teacher, if the teacher needs
to be able to mark up the document in detail.
Can comment - If you choose this, then the other person will not be able to edit the document,
but they will be able to leave comments in the document. These comments will not print out
with the document, but will be visible on screen. This is useful for peer review, such as when a
student needs another student to read their work and leave comments on it. This is also a good
fit when turning in an assignment to a teacher, if the teacher just needs to leave feedback and
grading information as comments.
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