GOOGLE DOCS: AN EFFECTIVE COLLABORATIVE TOOL FOR

ORIGINAL RESEARCH ARTICLE

GRADUATES TO PERFORM ACADEMIC ACTIVITIES IN THE CLOUD

*Dr. Ashadevi, B. and Muthamil Selvi, P.

Computer Science, M.V. Muthaiah Govt. Arts College for Women Dindigul – 01, India

ARTICLE INFO ABSTRACT

Academic writing, individual or collaborative, is an essential skill for today's graduates.

Unfortunately, managing, writing activities and providing feedback to students is very labor

intensive and academics often opt out of including such learning experiences in their teaching.

Successful integration of educational technology is a complicated process that is influenced by

multiple factors (Levin & Wadmany, 2008; Valcke et al., 2007). Recently, both within and across

schools, educators have been searching for cloud-based solutions to address the challenges of

integrating educational technology into their school systems ─ assessing whether these programs

are affordable, accessible, and well-suited to improve learning. While the popularity of cloud-

based applications among educational institutions and students is rapidly increasing due to their

enhanced sharing features, accessibility, and cost-efficiency, there have been few efforts to

investigate the impacts of these cloud-based applications in educational settings. The Internet

giant offers a suite of Web-based productivity applications under the name Google Docs (GoDs).

Google Docs is the ability to share and collaborate with others in “real time.” Each user saves

information to the cloud system, he or she can access the same file from anywhere. In online

collaboration, multiple users can make edits to the same files at the same time. The objective of

this paper is to highlight the various collaborative tools and the importance in doing the academic

activities collaboratively.

*Corresponding author

unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

INTRODUCTION

Although it's a relatively young industry, many companies

offer cloud computing services. One of those companies is

Google. The Internet giant offers a suite of Web-based

productivity applications under the name Google Docs. While

these applications aren't as complex or comprehensive as the

leading desktop counterparts, they have other advantages over

traditional software. The most obvious of these advantages is

that the applications aren't tied to a specific computer. There's

no need to download and install software on a particular

machine. Any computer connected to the Internet can access

Google Docs. Because each user saves information to the

cloud system, he or she can access the same file from

anywhere. Users don't have to worry about which version of a

document is the most current -- it will always be saved in the

Google cloud. Another advantage is that multiple users can

make edits to the same files at the same time.

This is called online collaboration, and it could streamline

teamwork over the Web. Because Google Docs preserves

earlier versions of documents, there's no reason to worry about

irrevocably changing a file. Collaborating on files might mean

changing the way we think about document management. But

it might also mean project managers can save time and effort.

Google Docs is a free Web-based application in which

documents and spreadsheets can be created, edited and stored

online. Files can be accessed from any computer with an

Internet connection and a full-featured Web browser. Google

Docs is a part of a comprehensive package of online

applications offered by and associated with Google. Users of

Google Docs can import, create, edit and update documents

and spreadsheets in various fonts and file formats, combining

text with formulas, lists, tables and images. Google Docs is

compatible with most presentation software and word

processor applications. Work can be published as a Web page

or as a print-ready manuscript. Users can control who sees

ISSN: 2230-9926

International Journal of Development Research

Vol. 07, Issue, 08, pp.14626-14633, August,

2017

Article History:

Received 10

May, 2017

Received in revised form

June, 2017

Accepted 22

July, 2017

Published online 30

August, 2017

Available online at http://www.journalijdr.com

Citation: Dr. Ashadevi, B. and MuthamilSelvi, P. , 2017.

“Google Docs: An Effective Collaborative Tool for Graduates to Perform Academic Activities

in the Cloud”, International Journal of Development Research, 7, (08), 14626-14633.

ORIGINAL RESEARCH ARTICLE Open Access

Keywords:

Collaborative writing,

Collaborative tools,

Google Docs,

Google Sheets,

Google Presentations,

Google Drive.

their work. Google Docs is ideal for publishing within an

enterprise, maintaining blogs or composing work for viewing

by the general public. Google Docs lends itself to collaborative

projects in which multiple authors work together in real time

from geographically diverse locations. All participants can see

who made specific document changes and when those

alterations were done. Because documents are stored online

and can also be stored on users' computers, there is no risk of

total data loss as a result of a localized catastrophe. However,

the Internet-based nature of Google Docs has given rise to

concerns among some authors that their work may not be

private or secure. This section will elaborate on the

introduction to the study which is writing on the cloud: the use

of Google documents with Schoology to assist students in

improving their academic writing. Writing academic essays in

a tertiary education setting can be a rather daunting task for

many students. This is particularly applicable in the context of

this study where the respondents of this study are facing

difficulties when writing critical texts. However, this can be

done by introducing the students to cloud based collaborative

writing programs. Such programs are readily available online,

such as Wikispaces and Google documents.

The use of cloud based collaborative writing programs are not

a miracle drug for the students to immediately have their

writing skills improved. However, it could be used as a

catalyst to guide them in improving their academic writing

skills. This is especially true with regards to the use of certain

cloud computing platforms to provide collaborative support

and feedback to the students (Kafer and Center, 2013). In the

context of this study, google documents may be deemed as

effective when used as a collaborative writing software,

however it lacks any particular place for the lecturer to provide

any form of feedback. Calvo, O'Rourke, Jones, Yacef, &

Reimann (2011) mentioned of the same issue in his study.

However, Calvo et.al took a different approach where a new

software was developed to cater to the collaborative writing in

that study’s context. This study supplemented the feedback

element with an online learning management system (LMS)

known as Schoology. The use of Schoology can compensate

for the provision of feedback and can be used in tandem with

google documents. This can be done when Schoology was

used to post the feedback for the students on it to tell students

what are their strengths and weaknesses when it comes to their

essays.

Furthermore, the use of Schoology as a document archive is

good as the students will be able to keep all their previous

work as well as the feedback given to the students. Studies

such as the one conducted by Manning, Brooks, Crotteau,

Diedrich, Moser & Zwiefelhofer (2011) pointed out such

benefits that the use of Schoology provides in terms of

accessibility where the students are able to access their

feedback with ease via Schoology. In addition, according

Kafer and Center (2013) also mentioned of the use of

Schoology as an avenue which provided a place where

students could get feedback and support from. This could

either be from the lecturer or the students. This is useful as

students will not have to be in class to receive feedback as they

will be able to acquire such feedback from outside the

classroom. Therefore, based on the introduction, the use of

Google documents can be conducted together as they both

have the potential to help students in improving their writing

abilities.

A. Why use Google Docs ?

Work off-site: Prepare for meetings, trainings, and work on

projects

Collaborate: work easily with others by sharing the same

document, e.g., prepare conference presentation, write articles,

plan projects.

Control versions: no need for flash drivers, e-mailing etc. –

pull up actual document from homes and other remotes

locations

Simultaneous editing: collaborators can edit documents while

talking on the phone and know where the latest version is.

B. Why use Google Sheets?

Price: The entire suite of Google Apps is free.

Cloud storage and Portability: automatically saved in the

cloud, attached to google account, and accessible from any

computer with a browser. No need to worry about another

computer having the same version of Excel.

Better cross-platform support: it will work on different

platform.

C. Why use Google Presentations?

Compatibility in google presentations: import and export

graphics, text formats, PDFs and even Powerpoint

presentations without a hassle. They can also publish their

creations to the Internet quickly and easily.

Cloud based presentation creation: several different

colleagues can access and modify a presentation as it is being

formulated.

LITERATURE REVIEW

The concept of cloud computing has many definitions, Sultan

(2010) stated that cloud computing is a platform that can be

directly accessed via the internet and does not require any

form of software installation. An example that Sultan (2010)

gave would be that of Google apps, which consists of Google

documents. Garner (2010) provides a discussion of how

technologies like GD can support collaboration around

information and personal knowledge management. Chu,

Kennedy, and Mak assessed stu-dents’ perception on the

effectiveness of MediaWiki and GD in report-writing

processes, and ana-lyzed usage experience, severity of

potential problems and knowledge management (Chu & Ken-

nedy, 2011; Chu, Kennedy, & Mak, 2009). They reported on

undergraduate students in the In-formation Management

Program, who found both MediaWiki and GD to be effective

and enjoy-able online collaboration and management tools. In

a study with a total of 1002 students on technologies that may

be suited to challenge the combination of Word and email in

solving a non-face-to-face collaborative writing and editing

task in three-person groups and distributed in time and space,

Dishaw et al. (2013) found that GD achieved high scores,

much higher than TWiki, both due to its perceived usefulness

and ease, and its support for collaboration (real-time up-date

editing; email, real-time chat and threaded comments available

14627 Ashadevi and Muthamil Selvi, Google docs: An effective collaborative tool for graduates to perform academic

activities in the cloud

within the tool) and the clarity of the collaboration process.

Brodahl et al. (2011) highlight the importance of GD and EP

claiming that properties and characteristics of the tools provide

opportunities for multiple users to work on the same document

and afford meta-communication. Oguilve et al. (2012) found

that use of GD increased motivation in writing tasks for

academic purposes depending on how efficiently students used

the tool. Blau and Caspi (2009a) did research on education and

psychology students sharing their written assignment for

suggestions or editing via GD. “They found differences in

psychological owner-ship, perceived quality of the document,

but not in [students’] perceived learning, and believe that a

collaboratively written document might have higher quality

than a document written alone” (Brodahl et al., 2011, p. 79).

They conclude that relation between perceived ownership and

per-ceived learning is mediated by perceived quality of the

written product (Caspi, & Blau, 2011) and improvement

suggestions preferred over editing one another’s writing (Blau,

& Caspi, 2009a, 2009b).

Another study by Al-Zoube (2009) defined cloud computing

as a tool for educational institutions that may not possess any

technical knowledge in computing to successfully implement

these tools smoothly. Sultan’s (2010) and Al-zoube’s (2009)

elaboration of course is derived from a more technical point of

view, on the other hand, other definitions are more

contextualized to the context of a language classroom. This is

seen in Al-zoube’s (2009) further elaboration of cloud

computing where Al-Zoube (2009) specifies that cloud

computing consists of several tools or applications that can be

used in a classroom to share, edit as well as collaborate to

produce content. Aside from that, Al- Zoube (2009) adds that

these tools are low-cost, web-based and easily accessible by

the students as long as there is a constant internet connection

via a variety of mobile devices and computers. This is

concurred by Johnson, Levine, Smith & Smythe (2009) who

defines the use of cloud computing as an application that can

be used in the classroom situation for collaborative work as

well as store data. On the other hand, Johnson, Levine, smith

and Smythe (2009) also further elaborates that the use of cloud

computing is gradually seeing its feasibility in several

classroom situations. Based on the aforementioned studies,

cloud computing in education share certain features with both

Google documents and Schoology. For example, Google

documents and Schoology both are web based software that do

not require any form of installation.

In addition, both Google documents and Schoology can be

accessed via a variety of mobile devices which includes

laptops and smartphones as concurred by the aforementioned

studies above. Finally, a similar feature that Google documents

and Schoology share that is similar to most cloud computing

software that is used in education would be that it is used to

collaborate, share and edit the work of the students. Cloud

computing’s feasibility in education has been investigated in

several studies. Wood (2011) investigated the use of cloud

computing in the classroom where students collaborated to

produce a report. According to Blue & Tirotta (2011) the use

of cloud computing has become more and more widely used in

the classroom environment due to its efficiency in the creation

of materials and facilitating work amongst students. Blue &

Tirotta’s (2011) sample were a group of teacher trainees and

thus they deduced that teacher trainers and trainees become

more accustomed to such tools, they can be implemented in

future classrooms more efficiently, especially when the teacher

trainees have their own classes in the future. Furthermore,

Schneckenberg, Ehlers & Adelsberger (2011) conducted a

study using cloud computing in the class to facilitate

publishing of reflections on wikis, collaborative brainstorming

activities as well as peer evaluation. Schneckenberg et.al took

an approach where constructivism was incorporated into the

cloud computing class. Since students are required to construct

knowledge from what they know or they will need to have

adequate prior knowledge in order for the students to construct

the necessary knowledge for the lesson. Schneckenberg et.al

(2011) mentioned of the convenience of cloud computing

where the students were able to access and find out about the

necessary prior knowledge Schneckenberg et.al (2011) also

reported a positive feedback from the students, in favor of the

use of the use of cloud computing as part of the class. Based

on the studies by Schneckenberg et al. (2011), Wood (2011)

and by Blue & Tirotta (2011), the effectiveness of cloud

computing as a learning tool to guide the students in learning

is undeniable especially since it facilitates collaboration,

constructivism as well as its efficiency in creating materials.

However, another aspect of cloud computing that will be

investigated in this study would be the use of a cloud

computing as a form of learning management system.

Google Docs

Collaborative tools can serve as a knowledge platform for a

community of practice where members of the community can

share their knowledge with the group, post information, work

together, and critically discuss issues (Cattafi & Metzner,

2007). The use of col-laborative tools is characterized by some

of the elements fundamental to a community of practice,

including an online presence, a variety of interactions,

communication, partici-pation, relevant content, and

relationships to a broader subject field of interest. Collabora-

tive tools can be used to facilitate computer-supported

collaborative learning, i.e., the de-velopment of collaboration

by means of technology to enhance learning. In addition, col-

laborative tools can enhance peer interaction and group work,

facilitate sharing and dis-tributing knowledge and information

among a community of learners (Lipponen, 2002). Finally, an

essential element of collaborative learning is that learners

should be encour-aged to reflect on their knowledge.

Collaborative tools allow this reflection to be done

collaboratively, moving closer to a fully social constructivist

mode of learning. (Brodahl et al., 2011, p. 77)

A. Google Docs

Google Docs brings documents to life with smart editing and

styling tools to help you easily format text and paragraphs.

Choose from hundreds of fonts, add links, images, and

drawings.

1. Academic Activities

Annotated Bibliography

By the time a student reaches the later years of high school,

and certainly by the time she’s gotten to college, it’s likely that

she’ll be required to write an annotated bibliography, a list of

resources that not only includes the bibliographical

information of each source, but also a short paragraph

summarizing the resource and reflecting on its usefulness for a

given project. Usually an annotated bibliography is required as

14628 International Journal of Development Research, Vol. 07, Issue, 08, pp. 14626-14633, August, 2017

a part of a larger research

paper, but it could stand alone as an

assignment that tasks students with seeking out and evaluating

sources just for the practice of doing so. And the

in Google Docs allow students to locate, read, and cite their

sources all in one place. To learn more, see this guide from

Cornell University Library on

How to Prepare an Annotated

Bibliography.

2. Book Review

Instead of a book report, have students write a book review

instead. This is certainly not a new idea, but publishing

work electronically allows students to enhance the final

product with the book’s cover image, a link to the book’s page

on Amazon, and

even links to other titles the author has

written or articles on related topics. For models and

inspiration, elementary and middle school students can read

student-written reviews on sites like S

paghetti Book Club

Older or advanced students might work toward more

sophisticated, nuanced review styles like

book reviews written

on Oprah.com.

3. Collaborative Story

Because Google Docs is cloud-

based, multiple people can

work on a Doc at the same time. So students can work together

on a story, a script for a play, or any other kind of group

writing project. They can use the comments feature to give

each othe

r feedback and make decisions together. And because

students can work from any location with an Internet

connection, collaboration isn’t restricted to school hours; each

group member can work on the project from any location

whenever they have time.

4. Media-Rich Research Paper

Any kind of research paper can be given a big boost when

done in a Google Doc, because students can insert images,

drawings, and links to other relevant resources, like articles

and videos. Using the research tools

built into Docs, students

can research their topics and include in-

text citations with

footnotes.

5. Super Simple Blog

you don’t want to mess with actual blogging platforms, but

want students to be able to experience writing blog posts that

contain images and hyperlinks to other websites, this could be

accomplished easily in a single running Google Doc.

Instead of

creating a job chart yourself, have students build it

from scratch!

14629

Ashadevi and Muthamil Selvi

paper, but it could stand alone as an

assignment that tasks students with seeking out and evaluating

sources just for the practice of doing so. And the

research tools

in Google Docs allow students to locate, read, and cite their

sources all in one place. To learn more, see this guide from

How to Prepare an Annotated

Instead of a book report, have students write a book review

instead. This is certainly not a new idea, but publishing

the

work electronically allows students to enhance the final

product with the book’s cover image, a link to the book’s page

even links to other titles the author has

written or articles on related topics. For models and

inspiration, elementary and middle school students can read

paghetti Book Club

Older or advanced students might work toward more

book reviews written

based, multiple people can

work on a Doc at the same time. So students can work together

on a story, a script for a play, or any other kind of group

writing project. They can use the comments feature to give

r feedback and make decisions together. And because

students can work from any location with an Internet

connection, collaboration isn’t restricted to school hours; each

group member can work on the project from any location

Any kind of research paper can be given a big boost when

done in a Google Doc, because students can insert images,

drawings, and links to other relevant resources, like articles

built into Docs, students

text citations with

you don’t want to mess with actual blogging platforms, but

want students to be able to experience writing blog posts that

contain images and hyperlinks to other websites, this could be

accomplished easily in a single running Google Doc.

creating a job chart yourself, have students build it

6. Table

Being able to organize information visually is an important

skill, and students who understand how to build

Google Docs will have a skill for

inf

ormation in the future. They can be used as a compare and

contrast exercise, to display data from an experiment, or even

put together a schedule. Yes, you could do these things

yourself, print them, and have students fill them out, but why

not have STUDENTS

practice learn how to

themselves?

7. Slides : Choose-Your-

Own

Because slides can contain hyperlinks to other slides, students

could build a whole story where the reader chooses different

options at key points in the stor

completely different paths. The reader would consume the

content as a slideshow, clicking on the links themselves as

they go through. This could be a pretty massive undertaking,

but we all know students who would be totally up for the

challenge.

8. E-book

These could take a variety of forms: mini

books, cookbooks or how-

to manuals, personal art or writing

portfolios, even yearbook-

style memory books. To learn more

about the possibilities, see my post from earlier th

on Student E-Books.

9. Magazine

Along the same lines as an e-

book, students could use a similar

template to create a PDF

magazine or newsletter that is shared

online on a regular

schedule. The possibilities here are endless,

useful for student clubs or sports teams, classroom or grade

level newsletters, or magazines put out by groups of students

who share a common interest, like gaming systems, soccer, or

books.

10. Museum Kiosk

Imagine if we could enhance science fair projects with a

looping video display that provides the audience with vivid

visuals and text about our topic. Or imagine an art show,

where a self-

running informational slideshow could be placed

beside an art displa

y to share the story behind the piece and

photos of the work in progress? This is possible and EASY in

Google Slides: Simply create a slideshow, then

“Publish to the Web” feature to create a slideshow that auto

advances and has no need for a presen

iPad or laptop and you’re all set. This mock

on Coral Reefs shows you what it could look like (click the

image to open in a new window).

11. Short Film

Students can upload their own images and add text boxes to a

slid

eshow to create an animated story, then record the

slideshow with a Google extension called

can either record their own voice as narration, add background

music, or both. There ar

e so many different kinds of films

students could produce: illustrated stories or poems, final

reflections for a

20 Time or Genius Hour

Ashadevi and Muthamil Selvi

Google docs: An effective collaborative tool for graduates to perform academic

activities in the cloud

Being able to organize information visually is an important

skill, and students who understand how to build

a table in

Google Docs will have a skill for

presenting all kinds of

ormation in the future. They can be used as a compare and

contrast exercise, to display data from an experiment, or even

put together a schedule. Yes, you could do these things

yourself, print them, and have students fill them out, but why

practice learn how to

create the tables

Own

-Adventure Story

Because slides can contain hyperlinks to other slides, students

could build a whole story where the reader chooses different

options at key points in the stor

y, leading them down

completely different paths. The reader would consume the

content as a slideshow, clicking on the links themselves as

they go through. This could be a pretty massive undertaking,

but we all know students who would be totally up for the

These could take a variety of forms: mini

-textbooks, children’s

to manuals, personal art or writing

style memory books. To learn more

about the possibilities, see my post from earlier th

is year

book, students could use a similar

magazine or newsletter that is shared

schedule. The possibilities here are endless,

useful for student clubs or sports teams, classroom or grade

level newsletters, or magazines put out by groups of students

who share a common interest, like gaming systems, soccer, or

Imagine if we could enhance science fair projects with a

looping video display that provides the audience with vivid

visuals and text about our topic. Or imagine an art show,

running informational slideshow could be placed

y to share the story behind the piece and

photos of the work in progress? This is possible and EASY in

Google Slides: Simply create a slideshow, then

use the

“Publish to the Web” feature to create a slideshow that auto

advances and has no need for a presen

ter. Pop that up on an

iPad or laptop and you’re all set. This mock

-up of a slideshow

on Coral Reefs shows you what it could look like (click the

image to open in a new window).

Students can upload their own images and add text boxes to a

eshow to create an animated story, then record the

slideshow with a Google extension called

Screencastify. They

can either record their own voice as narration, add background

e so many different kinds of films

students could produce: illustrated stories or poems, final

20 Time or Genius Hour

project, video

Google docs: An effective collaborative tool for graduates to perform academic

textbooks on content-

related topics, or news

-like feature

stories of school or community events. In this quick sample, I

YouTube’s library of royalty

-free music

that anyone can use to enhance their recordings:

Using the same screencasting software mentioned above,

students could also create their own video tutorials by creating

a Slides presentation on their topic (such as “How to Open a

Combination Lock”), then recording the slideshow with

This would make a nice final product for a unit on

informational writing or a way for students to demonstrate

their learning at the end of a unit in science (“How to Take

Care of Lab Equipment”), social studies

Distance on a Map”), or math (“How to Multiply Fractions”).

Student-

made tutorials could even be created to

teach

classroom procedures. And any tutorials students make

could be stored for later, so other students can also benefit

from them.

Learn more about how Screencastify works right

inside Chrome.

image above to watch a sample Museum Kiosk in action!

International Journal of Development Research,

Vol. 07, Issue, 08, pp. 14626-14633,

August

This would make a nice final product for a unit on

informational writing or a way for students to demonstrate

their learning at the end of a unit in science (“How to Take

Care of Lab Equipment”), social studies

(“How to Measure

Distance on a Map”), or math (“How to Multiply Fractions”).

made tutorials could even be created to

classroom procedures. And any tutorials students make

could be stored for later, so other students can also benefit

Learn more about how Screencastify works right

August

, 2017

13. Forms: Peer Survey

Whenever students need to gather data to support an

argumentative essay

or speech, let them gather data quickly

and easily by creating a survey with Google Forms. Links to

the survey can be sent out via email,

QR codes

post in a learning management system like Edmodo or Google

Classroom. When results come in, students can use them to

support whatever claim they are trying to make in their

argument, or make adjustments

based on what they discover in

their research.

14. Feedback Form

Have students provide feedback to each other’s presentations,

speeches, even videos using Google Forms. Here’s how it

would work: Each student creates her own form, asking for the

kind of

feedback she wants on the project. As other students

view or the project, they can be sent to a form to offer praise or

constructive criticism, which the creator would then be able to

view privately and use to improve the project. Students could

even use t

heir feedback to write a reflection on their process

after the project is done.

15. Quiz

One great way to learn material is to create a test or quiz over

the content. Have students use Google Forms to create their

own multiple-choice, True/False, fill-in-

the

ended quizzes on the content they are learning.

16. Visual Representation of Data Sets

Whenever people

enter responses to a Form, Google allows

the form creator to view responses

in charts and graphs. Have

students gain a better understandin

g of how data can be

represented visually by accepting responses (or entering their

own fake ones) into a

Form, then looking at how the numbers

are represented in graphs. This could work well as a series of

math lessons.

14631

Ashadevi and Muthamil Selvi

Whenever students need to gather data to support an

or speech, let them gather data quickly

and easily by creating a survey with Google Forms. Links to

QR codes

, or through a

post in a learning management system like Edmodo or Google

Classroom. When results come in, students can use them to

support whatever claim they are trying to make in their

based on what they discover in

Have students provide feedback to each other’s presentations,

speeches, even videos using Google Forms. Here’s how it

would work: Each student creates her own form, asking for the

feedback she wants on the project. As other students

view or the project, they can be sent to a form to offer praise or

constructive criticism, which the creator would then be able to

view privately and use to improve the project. Students could

heir feedback to write a reflection on their process

One great way to learn material is to create a test or quiz over

the content. Have students use Google Forms to create their

the

-blank, or open-

ended quizzes on the content they are learning.

enter responses to a Form, Google allows

in charts and graphs. Have

g of how data can be

represented visually by accepting responses (or entering their

Form, then looking at how the numbers

are represented in graphs. This could work well as a series of

17. Dictionary

If you’re halfway t

hrough writing a report and realize you

don’t remember the difference between “compose” and

“comprise,” select Dictionary

enter one of the words in the search box. You’ll be supplied

with definitions and synonyms from sources ar

18. Personal

Sometimes the information you need is not out on the Web but

rather buried somewhere in your Google Drive account. In that

case, use this search option. Select

down menu and enter your search term and the research tool

will return results from your Docs, Sheets, and Slides, as well

as images from your Picasa account and posts from your

Google+ stream. Click

Preview

Insert Link

to insert the item’s URL and title. Click

a footnote citation with the link (documents only). In the case

of presentations, you can click

to insert into your current presentation.

B. Google Docs : Tools

1. MobiSystems Office

Suite (Android, iOS and Windows)

Office

Suite is a long time favorite for many people. The app

has changed a lot from its early days. Currently, the developers

seem to be transitioning the suite into something closer to

Google Drive or

Microsoft OneDrive. The idea is to have a

cloud storage hub from which to work. Most of the basic

features are available in the free version and that's good news.

The paid version allows for PDF scanning, a font pack that’s

compatible with Microsoft, a spe

document support. It's one of the better run

apps. It is also among the most expensive.

Documents To Go (Android and others)

Docs to Go is an older app that’s been around for quite some

time. However, it's st

ill receiving new features and updates. It

has the basics, such as word processing, spreadsheet editing,

and presentation editing. It does an excellent job of letting you

do these things without too much of a setup. The paid version

unlocks password-locked

files, saving to (and loading from)

cloud storage sites, and file syncing with your desktop. It’s not

great in every situation, but it's one of the more solid office

apps.

3. iWork (iOS)

Ashadevi and Muthamil Selvi

, Google docs: An effective collaborative tool for graduates

to perform academic

activities in the cloud

hrough writing a report and realize you

don’t remember the difference between “compose” and

from the drop-down menu and

enter one of the words in the search box. You’ll be supplied

with definitions and synonyms from sources ar

ound the web.

Sometimes the information you need is not out on the Web but

rather buried somewhere in your Google Drive account. In that

case, use this search option. Select

Personal from the drop-

down menu and enter your search term and the research tool

will return results from your Docs, Sheets, and Slides, as well

as images from your Picasa account and posts from your

Preview

to glance at the content, and

to insert the item’s URL and title. Click

Cite to add

a footnote citation with the link (documents only). In the case

of presentations, you can click

Import Slides to choose slides

to insert into your current presentation.

Suite (Android, iOS and Windows)

Suite is a long time favorite for many people. The app

has changed a lot from its early days. Currently, the developers

seem to be transitioning the suite into something closer to

Microsoft OneDrive. The idea is to have a

cloud storage hub from which to work. Most of the basic

features are available in the free version and that's good news.

The paid version allows for PDF scanning, a font pack that’s

compatible with Microsoft, a spe

ll checker, and additional

document support. It's one of the better run

-of-the-mill office

apps. It is also among the most expensive.

Documents To Go (Android and others)

Docs to Go is an older app that’s been around for quite some

ill receiving new features and updates. It

has the basics, such as word processing, spreadsheet editing,

and presentation editing. It does an excellent job of letting you

do these things without too much of a setup. The paid version

files, saving to (and loading from)

cloud storage sites, and file syncing with your desktop. It’s not

great in every situation, but it's one of the more solid office

to perform academic

iWork is an office suite of applications created by Apple Inc.

for its macOS and iOS operating systems, and also available

cross-platform through the iCloud website. It includes

Keynote, a presentation program; the word processing and

desktop publishing application Pages; and the spreadsheet

application Numbers

4. G Suite

G Suite (formerly Google Apps for Work and Google Apps for

Your Domain) is a brand of cloud computing, productivity and

collaboration tools, software and products developed by

Google, launched on August 28, 2006. G Suite comprises

Gmail, Hangouts, Calendar, and Google+ for communication;

Drive for storage; Docs, Sheets, Slides, Forms, and Sites for

collaboration; and, depending on the plan, an Admin panel and

Vault for managing users and the services. It also includes the

digital interactive whiteboard Jamboard.

5. Polaris Office

Polaris Office is a lot like OfficeSuite. It used to be a good,

simple office suite. The app isn't simple or small anymore. It

does have a ton of features, including the basics along with

note taking, document searching, encrypted files, and support

for various formats. That includes PDF and Microsoft

documents. The free version is serviceable. You can also get

$3.99 and $5.99 per month subscriptions. That gives you

additional features like the ability to use it on more than three

devices along with extra cloud storage. The subscription

models aren’t great, but the free version is still decent. It's still

one of the better office apps.

6. Office suite

Office Suite is a long time favorite for many people. The app

has changed a lot from its early days. Currently, the developers

seem to be transitioning the suite into something closer to

Google Drive or Microsoft OneDrive. The idea is to have a

cloud storage hub from which to work. Most of the basic

features are available in the free version and that's good news.

The paid version allows for PDF scanning, a font pack that’s

compatible with Microsoft, a spell checker, and additional

document support. It's one of the better run-of-the-mill office

apps. It is also among the most expensive.

7. Quip

Quip is one of the newer office apps on the list. It's also one of

the few free ones. It has a small, but decent set of features.

That includes the ability to collaborate on documents with

other people. It comes in the form of a chat that you can use to

talk to people while editing documents. You'll also get a

support for spreadsheets, cross-device syncing, offline support,

and various exporting options. It also has cloud storage

support. Quip hasn’t been around as long as other office apps,

but it’s better than many of them.

8. Smart office 2

Smart Office 2 is another one of the rare free office apps. The

app used to cost money. However, at some point, they decided

to let it go for free. It comes with all of the basic features as

you’d expect, including support for word processing,

spreadsheets, and presentations. It also comes with support for

Microsoft Office documents from 2013 and back. You can

also use it to view (and save) PDF files, some image files, and

WMF and EMF file types. The interface is clean and simple.

It's a good option for those who don't need much.

9. Soft maker Office

Softmaker has a lot of office apps. That includes a suite of free

office apps. They also have a suite of paid office apps. Both of

them are pretty good. There are three apps in the suite,

including TextMaker, PlanMaker, and Presentations which are

just funny names for word processor, spreadsheet, and, well,

presentations. Unlike most, the apps are completely free. Their

features include PDF support, TrueType and OpenType fonts,

and support for (most) Microsoft file types. You'll have to buy

the paid versions of the apps separately. On the plus side, you

can only buy what you need. On the negative side, all three

apps costs about $15.

10. WPS Office

WPS Office was once called Kingsoft Office. Despite the

name change, it remains one of the most popular office apps

on Android. With it, you can view and convert PDFs, do the

basic stuff (documents, spreadsheets, presentations), and more.

It also comes with support for wireless printing, support for

Microsoft file types, and support for 46 languages. The app

does have ads. There is no way to pay your way out of seeing

those adverts. That is unfortunate. Otherwise, it's a solid app.

Conclusion

Our case study suggests that the introduction of cloud based

tools was perceived by students, teachers, and district officials

to make technology use more accessible and convenient, to

enhance cost-efficiency and productivity, and, most

importantly, to provide ample affordances for writing practice

and instruction.

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14633 Ashadevi and Muthamil Selvi, Google docs: An effective collaborative tool for graduates to perform academic

activities in the cloud