Walking into a classroom and seeing students holding cardboard goggles to their faces is cause for a double take.
Accompanying the odd appearance were exclamations – “It looks like I’m actually there!” … “This is so cool!” … “There’s zebras!” – as the students’ heads turned from side to side as though they were looking at something.
The Grade 5/6 students at Victoria Terrace Public School in Fergus were trying out Google Explorer for the first time on Jan. 29. Later in the afternoon Grade 3/4 students were given the same opportunity.
The Upper Grand District School Board (UGDSB) was chosen as a pilot board to try the new technology produced by Google on the Google Expeditions Pioneer Program.
Each of the Google Cardboard devices have a smart phone screen connected to the teacher’s master tablet. Once the student puts the cardboard goggle case up to their eyes they enter a 3D world of their teacher’s choosing – and to see all of it, they must move and swivel their heads as though they’re actually in the environment.
The student who spotted the zebras was in a savannah with classmates at Victoria Terrace Public School.
“Look how engaged they are,” said teacher Katie Burns-Pinkney.
“Everyone is, they’re talking about it and they’re not wanting to put it down and they’re checking it out and exploring things and a lot of kids are never going to get to go to places like this so it’s pretty incredible.”
On Jan. 29 Burns-Pinkney’s class used the Google technology to learn more about biomes because they’re learning about biodiversity in Grade 6. Though it’s a trial run for the school, she has already used the technology in lesson planning.
“If I were doing biomes I would probably break it up so each day (we) look at a different biome, research what it’s about, what kind of animals there (are), that sort of thing, take them there, use it, explore it and then go back and have a discussion about it so they actually get that experience of going to it,” said Burns-Pinkney.
There are more than 100 expeditions teachers can choose from when designing student journeys. At Victoria Terrace the students visited the ocean and the desert to name a few. They can also go on career expeditions where one of the options is to do a day in the life of an airplane pilot.
With the controlling tablet, the teacher sees speaking notes provided by the program that can be used to teach students about the specific location. The teacher can also direct each student’s eye to a specific part of the environment and monitor where each student is looking.
Burns-Pinkney said to teach about biomes without Google Explorer she would use the internet and books.
“We’d use technology still, but it wouldn’t have this effect and the engagement that [Google Explorer is] having,” she said.
The UGDSB is just one of four school boards across the country that participated in the Google Expeditions road show.
The board has used of Google Apps for Education since 2012 and last year worked with Google on the Google Explorer prototype.
“So they approached us and asked us if we would help them with the prototype and so we did,” said Bill Mackenzie, IT curriculum liaison for the board. “They took that away and did more work on it.”
When it was time, Google gave the board a full week to try it out in classes.
Ten schools in the board were chosen to participate. In addition to Victoria Terrace, four others from Wellington County took part: Drayton Heights Public School, Maryborough Public School in Moorefield, Salem Public School and Victoria Cross Public School in Mount Forest.
Google Exploration is currently only available through limited trials, but the UGDSB isn’t waiting for the company’s technology to become available commercially.
The board is currently developing ways for students to create their own 3D adventures, with still images and videos, and share them with classmates.
“It isn’t just that you have some expert somewhere that’s making these spectacularly professional beautiful things, which they are and they should, but at the same time kids need to make their own expedition,” Mackenzie said.
