Prep Tech
2/12/2016
Google Doc Chrome Extensions
Here are a few Chrome extensions to download to work specifically with Google Docs. To download these and try them out, you need to go to the Chrome Web Store. To get there, you can either click on the Apps button or just go to chrome.google.com/webstore. From there, you can search for app or extensions and click their install button to add these features to your Google Docs. And, of course, let me know if you need help. Have a great weekend!
Draftback
Google Docs allows you to see the revision history of any document, but you can only see a "version" that existed any point in time. Draftback is a Google Docs extension that allows you to actually "watch" the document being created. When run, it analyzes a document to show its complete creation up to its current version. It's like watching a video of a document being typed out (time lapsed, of course).
This can be especially useful to catch plagiarism. Three whole paragraphs suddenly appeared with one keystroke? You'll know they copy/pasted from somewhere. This can also be useful for language classes to catch Google Translate being used. Furthermore, within a classroom setting, you can play a Draftback session to show students the writing process by actually showing how a piece of writing evolves over time, from beginning to end. Here it is in action:
Google Camp - Draftback
Kaizena
Kaizena allows you to leave voice messages (attached to a Google Doc) about specific parts of a document that students can play and replay at any time. This allows you to simply "speak" to a student about what they need to work on instead of you having to condense your thought into a short comment that may not be enough to get your point across. This can also be a way of retaining your tone of voice when leaving constructive criticism for younger (or just more sensitive) students instead of covering their hard work in scary red ink. Kaizena is an extension to use with Google Docs that gives you more options instead of just leaving text comments when grading and reviewing work.
Thanks for reading!
Feel free to e-mail me any questions.
Email: nick.mims@augustaprep.org