Due to Covid-19, many schools changed to hybrid learning which combines the use of technology for online and onsite teaching. Four schools -- Matthayom Watnairong School, Rittiyawannalai School, Panyarat High School and Princess Chulabhorn Science High School Loei -- use Google For Education, an online service featuring many apps including Gmail (email), Meet (video conference), Google Calendar (time management), Drive (file storage), Docs (online word processor), Sheets (spreadsheet), Slides (presentation) and Classroom (learning platform), to allow teachers and students to access lessons, presentations, assignments, documents and grades anywhere at anytime.
Saranee Boonritthongchai, country marketing manager of Google Thailand, said that Google Classroom helps more than 150 million educators and students with teaching and learning. To ensure data security and privacy, Google offers the Chromebook, a computer and a tablet featuring the Chrome operating system. Around 50 million people use Chromebooks for education.
Matthayom Watnairong School first implemented Google For Education to develop teaching and learning in 2013. Thippaporn Sadao, deputy head of the Science and Technology Department, said that the school started using Google For Education because the board considers English and technology as learning tools and as means to develop learning in the 21st century.
"If students are able to use English to search for information, they can search various sources. At Matthayom Watnairong School, new Matthayom 1 and Matthayom 4 students are trained to use Google apps before the semester starts. Since the school has implemented Google For Education for years, teachers, staff and students are familiar with Google tools," said Thippaporn.
Since Google For Education provides many apps, Weera Kogthun, assistant deputy director for academic management at Rittiyawannalai School, said that teachers have to learn the features of each app and how they work before they can create content.
"We use Google Meet for class. Students can do their assignments using Google Docs or Google Slides and send their files to Google Drive or Google Classroom. During online class sessions, a common problem is that students do not turn on their cameras because they are shy. We had to encourage them by giving them a higher score. As a result, they agreed to turn on their cameras or interact with teachers by talking or sending messages," said Weera.
At Rittiyawannalai School, 98% of students have their own devices. Students who do not have devices can borrow the school laptops. At Panyarat High School, all Matthayom 1 students receive a Chromebook on their first day. Orrawee Rattanapian, school manager, said the Chromebook helps students become familiar with basic tools they will all use.
"A teacher sets up Google Classroom for each subject and parents can access it to see details of assignments. Panyarat High School focuses on the four C's of the 21st century, or critical thinking, creativity, collaboration and communication. After using tools such as Google Slides, Google Docs and Google Sheets, it is obvious that students' collaboration skills improve because they brainstorm and work as a team," said Orrawee. "Students do not use Google tools only for academic purposes. They use Google Forms [a survey administration tool] and Google Sheets to organise their Corporate Social Responsibility project to raise funds by selling snacks and cookies. They use these tools to survey and collect data.
"On the first day, we teach students how to be good digital citizens. We update them about new threats and topics in the digital world every year. This will help students understand the positive and negative sides of the internet. Some students do not know that a Google tool can detect plagiarism. We must teach students how to cite references and use quotations properly to avoid plagiarism, so they can be good digital citizens."
As younger teachers are likely to learn digital tools faster than older ones, it took time for all staff to reach a similar level of skill. Pradchayakorn Hodmalee, deputy director of Princess Chulabhorn Science High School Loei, said since students can learn technology very fast, they help teachers when they have problems.
"Young teachers in Matthayom Watnairong School assist those who are older and less skilled with digital tools. Many teachers and staff have gradually improved and become competent at using digital tools, so the outcome is good for the students and the school," said Thippaporn.
Google tools do not benefit only in teaching and learning. Pradchayakorn said Google Drive (file storage) in the Google Workspace, a collection of cloud computing apps, can help teachers in 12 branches of Princess Chulabhorn Science High School to reduce the work process.
"Google Workspace is useful for managing information. As an executive, when I make a decision, I need to look at data and information. All information is stored in Google Drive, so it is convenient to manage and access. These digital tools reduce the processes that we used to have," said Pradchayakorn.
"In the past, when a teacher had a problem with creating an exam which would be used in 12 branches, they had to send a document to an executive. To solve that problem, the executive had to hold a meeting with executives of other branches. In today's digital age, a teacher can solve the problem by sending messages to other teachers directly. Also, in the past, organising a meeting of teachers from 12 branches was a hassle because everyone had to commute to meet at one location. Currently, we can send a link to meet online. The digital tools can reduce time-consuming processes, and save budget and resources."
The best part of using Google tools is students' performances have shown positive results. Orrawee said students at Panyarat High School have improved in many areas.
"Because teaching is effective, students can learn faster. Due to Google For Education, teachers can design different kinds of tests. Students have opportunities to practice their skills in responding to tests which are not limited to only multiple choice and essays. Students can show they have presentation skills, public speaking skills and critical thinking skills," said Orrawee.
Weera added: "Research collaboration between Rittiyawannalai School and Chulalongkorn University revealed that within three months, students had improved their creativity, collaboration and teamwork skills. Also, students were more enthusiastic to participate in classroom activities."
It seems like the only problem in using Google For Education is the lack of devices. Since Rittiyawannalai School is under the Office of the Basic Education Commission (Obec), Weera said students in other schools under Obec do not have devices needed for digital tools.
"It would be nice if students at schools under Obec can have their own Chromebook. Currently, such students have to use an English lab and/or use their own mobile phones. If students have individual computers, teaching and lessons will be very much improved," explained Weera.
As a representative of Google Thailand, Saranee said the lack of devices is a challenge.
"Not every school is equipped with adequate digital devices for students. There needs to be a collaboration between the private sector, public sector and government to support accessibility to basic digital devices for students," said Saranee.
