HOUSTON COUNTY, Ga. — Technology is a major tool in education today, but because of major school closings due to COVID-19, districts are having to depend on it like never before.
"Roughly 30,000 students and roughly 3,000 educators teaching in this style in a way through a digital platform where it kind of removes a lot of barriers," Houston County Schools Integration Specialist Larry Wadsworth said.
Teachers, students and parents are having to navigate through nearly a whole semester's worth of lessons online.
"It really comes down to how easy we can get students in there, and we can help teachers facilitate that learning, and Google Classrooms makes that very very simple," Wadsworth said.
School leaders decided to move the entire district to Google Classrooms. Students can find the link on the district's homepage and log in using the same credentials they've had all school year.
"When you first log into a class, you're going to see your news and announcements -- this is called the stream. At the top, you'll see the classwork tab. You're going to click on that, and you'll see all your classwork. You click on an assignment name; you will see the assignment. Without leaving that screen, you can work on the assignment, and you can submit the assignment and any feedback that the teacher gives you, you'll be able to see on that screen," Wadsworth said.
Students can talk with their teachers and get their help in real time. Wadsworth says although this is a challenging time for us all, it'll be an advantage in the future.
"Using computer programs, using software, it's part of every industry out there, so it's something that kids need to be exposed to," he said.
The district posted a tutorial video with more information on using Google Classroom on their web page.
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