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= = =Technology in the Classroom: Student Collaboration in the Making = = = = = The goal of my research was to highlight findings on integrating technology in the classroom to enhance student collaboration through the use of cloud computing. The details provided in this paper will uncover the definition of cloud computing, how cloud computing could be beneficial for students of secondary schools, privacy, and security. Google was the provider of focus throughout this research and the current state of technology integration in Pencader Charter High School, a local high school located in New Castle, Delaware. 

**KEYWORDS**: technology, secondary schools, scores, technology integration, and student collaboration

So, what is cloud computing and how could it be leveraged to enhance the student experience? Cloud computing could easily be defined as computers that are networked together for formulate a platform that dynamically provides service to its users through a Web interface. One of the most common “cloud” is Google Apps. This service provided by Google provides endless computing and collaboration capabilities for its users. Like Google, cloud providers configure the platform by using multiple computers located in a variety of places. The “cloud” may also provide Microsoft-like software application such as Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. These applications do not live on one computer and can be accessed through the typical web browser. When reading literature about cloud computing, it was clear how there may be concerns about security and privacy. Despite these concerns, organizations such as Merrill Lynch believed that cloud computing is the wave of the future. In 2008, they predicted that 12% of the software market will shift to cloud networking (King, 2008). Reliability, along with safety and security will be reviewed later in the paper. Now let’s take a closer look Google, one of the leading cloud providers. 

Google provides cloud networking through the service in which they entitled “Google Apps”. This service is available for free and also at a cost for businesses. The free service is provided in a Standard or Educational edition. The Education edition has just a few more features than the Standard and could be implemented by any school that has been identified as a 501c3 institution. The edition for business is called “Premier” and generally cost approximately $50.00 per year/per user; relatively cheap when you compare to the cost of a typical software license. Their education edition is free and offers applications such as document, spreadsheets, presentations, drawings, and forms. They also provide email service as a part of this bundle. 

There are many advantages of cloud computing. The ones that I have identified include:
 * Free software – This would alleviate the need for students to have a Microsoft product installed on their computer in order to complete homework. I had a student who did not have PowerPoint and was unable to complete her assignment. I provided her with the information about Google Apps and she was able to use their presentation software to complete her assignment. The software has the capability to export in multiple file formats.
 * Software is always up to date – Versioning is become extremely important when sharing documents. There have been times as a student and instructor that I was sent documents by either students or peers that I was unable to open. My children also experienced this when working on group assignments and someone had a different version of software and forgot to “save down”. My daughter also experienced one of her peers sending her a document that was created in WordPerfect. He partner thought that this application was the same as Microsoft Word. Completing the assignment was next to impossible.
 * Automatic saving – this is something that secondary student often forget to do. Many have closed to of the application prior to saving and have lost documents that they have been working on for hours.
 * Document sharing – This would be helpful in that students would no longer have to pass documents between each other via email or jump drive. The documents are stored in one location and everyone can access them at once. The students can even see who inserted what. This helps with version control and reduces the risk of work being lost. I knew a group of students who actually had to start their project over because a member of their team left the school and had all the work that they had been working on. This was a true set back for the students.
 * Tracability – The teacher can see who is pulling their own weight on projects. The applications actually track who made revisions to the document and what exactly was changed.
 * Accessibility – The documents can be accessed from a devices such as cell phones, PDAs, et c.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 90%;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 144%;">Increased communication – The teacher will have the ability to communicate with the students more. They can publish assignment due dates on their calendars and students will be able to access this information via the web <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 130%;"> Some of the concerns that prospective users have are centered on privacy, security and reliability. It is imperative that the user understands how the cloud works and how data is not stored in one central place. The cloud replicates information and stores it in another place as a back up. If there is an issue with the network, the data is then retrieved from the back-up location. Since Google Apps has an automatic saving feature, synchronization of the data is critical. To date, I have not been able to find any cases around information stored on the cloud being lost or unavailable.

As for privacy and security, for businesses I can understand the concern about data being populated in multiple places and the lack of a universal standard for privacy in the United States. However, in regards to security, there have been regulations put in place for data protection. An example of this would be the USA Patriot Act and the Homeland Security Act. These acts were created as a control for monitoring data transmissions that could potentially be a threat to our country. But for someone using this service for educational purposes, I can not foresee any work being so confidential that it could not be shared. Even though Google Apps have features that only permits access by those in which a password was granted. There is more risk of accessing the data from within the institution than from someone on the outside. Google has also implemented Postini which is a security feature for the internet and email. This new feature enables the administrator to lock down who can receive email from its users. It also has security filters that scan email content for obscener and inappropriate language. This can also be thought of a control for cyberbullying when using this service. From now until the end of July, this service is being offered for free to educational institutions.

**<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">Teacher Apprehensiveness **
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 130%;">Some educators may feel a little apprehensive about incorporating tools such as this in the classroom. From informal discussions I have had with both veteran and newer teachers, more of the younger teachers were more intrigued about the idea of incorporating tools such as this into their lessons. The veteran teachers were more apprehensive and pondered about the thought about incorporating something that they did not know much about into their “normal” classroom. Many found more cons than pros to the idea. The impression that I received was that they were against it because they were not familiar with the tools and had no idea how they could possibly include this into their assignments. Some were not even interested in learning about it. From an article written by Hardy (1998), he quoted “teacher attitudes toward computer use can be affected favorably, if they have an understanding of how computers can be used most effectively” (Okinaka, 1992). It can be said that teachers who may feel this way have some sort of anxiety of computers. If they do not understand or feel comfortable with the idea, than the likelihood of technology being integrated in the classroom is significantly reduced. How could districts potentially solve for this? Through professional development. Hardy indicated as teachers become more comfortable with computers, their enthusiasm to use computers with their students increases (Hardy, 1998). So the key here is to reduce the anxiety and provide continuous support to the teacher.

When I presented the question of computer use, professional development, and continuous support to several veteran teachers that I know, the thought of computer use in the classroom was a little more relaxing. Mrs. Brown, one of the interviewed teachers, stated “I do not like change but if I know someone will be there to help me than I may be more likely to use it (the computer).” Mrs. Burton stated “If I knew how to use it I would show my students. They are little and I know they are always talking about how they use the computer at home. I just would need to figure out how I could use it with my planned lessons. I am not sure how my principal would feel about me using it (the computer).”

**<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">Conclusion **
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 130%;">In conclusion, from the literature that I have reviewed, there are more pros than cons to using a “cloud”. The critical thing that an educator must understand and consider prior to using a service such as this is how the information will be stored, the type of information that will stored, and the intended use by the students. Just as in any other business, it would be beneficial for the students and parents to sign a Terms of Use document outlining the rules and policies for using the service. In the end, if implemented, there is a strong possibility that the struggling student may become more successful. I would like to see someone perform a study on using services such as Google Apps with the learning disabled student. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">


 * References**

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">Breeding, M. (2009). The Advance of Computing from the Ground to the Cloud. //Computers in Libraries//, //29//22-25. Brown, M. (2010, April). Personal Interview. Burton, D. (2010, April). Personal Interview. Hardy, J. (1998). Teacher Attitudes Towards and Knowledge of Computer Technology. Computers in the Schools, 14, 199-131. Hew, K., & Brush, T. (2007). Integrating Technology into K-12 Teaching and Learning: Current Knowledge Gaps and Recommendations for Future Research. //Educational Technology Research and Development//, //55//, 223-252. Jaeger, P., Lin, P., & Grimes, J. (2008). Cloud Computing and Information Policy: Computing in a Policy Cloud? //Journal of Information Technology & Politics, 5//, 269-275. Kim, W. (2009). Cloud Computing: Today and Tomorrow. //Journal of Object Technology, 8//, 65-72. King, R. (2008). How Cloud Computing is Changing the World. //Business Week//. Retrieved from [] Lutch,B., Milo, J., & Sheth, R. (2010, April 23). //Webinar: Geek Out on the Cloud-based Infrastructure of Google Apps.// TechRepublic. Retrieved from http://webcasts.techrepublic.com.com/abstract.aspx?docid=1690161 Stephens, L. and Neurath, R. (2003). The effect of using Microsoft Excel in a high school algebra class. //International Journal of Mathematical Education in// //Science and Technology, 37,// 15 September 2006, 721–756 Sternberg, B., Kaplan, K., & Borck, J. Enhancing adolescent literacy achievement through integration of technology in the classroom. //Reading Research Quarterly//, //42//, 416-420. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">

Geek Out on the Cloud-based Infrastructure on Google Apps

<span style="color: #3232a9; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">Articles

 * [[file:MicrosoftExcel.pdf]][[file:integratingtech.pdf]] ||
 * [[file:goog_apps_geekout3v3.pdf]][[file:literacy.pdf]] ||