Murtagh Jim Edtech505 4201 Final EvaluationR5c

8/11/2019 Murtagh Jim Edtech505 4201 Final EvaluationR5c

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Google Pilot EvaluationFinal Report - August 2014

Red River Schools

Wilton, CT

Submitted To:

Mr. Frank Delongo

Director of Technology, RRS

Evaluated By: Jim Murtagh

Graduate Student Boise State University

Prof. J. Thompson Edtech 505-4201 Summer 2014

Pseudo names were used in this

report to protect confidentiality.

This report should not be shared

without permission.


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Summary

Red River Schools (RRS) is contemplating switching to Google Apps for Education (GAFE) as a

tool for file storage and content creation for all 3,500 (K-12) students beginning in the 2014-

2015 academic year. The District has used the Microsoft Office productivity suite for the past 10

years for student work, and stored student files on an elaborate system of Windows based servers

housed in each of the districts seven schools. The switch to GAFE is being driven on the

promise of cost savings by eliminating licensing costs for MS Office, and the expense of

maintaining numerous file servers. The district implemented a four month pilot program at one

of its middle schools to determine if GAFE is a replacement for Microsoft Office, and if Google

Drive satisfies student storage requirements in order to take the place of their in-house solution.

This evaluation provides detailed information to the districts Director of Technology to

determine if the pilot achieved its two goals. Electronic surveys for students, teachers and the

buildings network technician at the pilot school were administered, and interviews with the pilot

teachers and the technician were conducted, to ascertain the nature and frequency of whichstudents used GAFE. This is a summative evaluation.

The results of this evaluation conclude that the pilot program could not determine if GAFE is a

direct replacement for MS Office. The pilot failed to include an analysis of all three of the major

components in GAFE, and as such, is unable to make a complete comparison to MS Office. The

evaluation supports that Google drive exceeds all the requirements for student storage needs.

Description of program evaluated

Red River Schools (RRS) implemented a Google pilot program at Logan Middle School (LMS).

LMS is an upper middle school (grades 7&8) and one of 7 schools in the district. The pilotprogram targeted one of the three seventh grade teams, and consisted of 95 students, and the two

Language Arts (LA) teachers on that team (one reading and one writing teacher). The building

network technician was assigned as a resource for teachers and students to support all technical

and training needs that might arise during the pilot. The student population represented a typical

cross section of the district.

The pilot began in February 2014 and was scheduled to last until the end of the school year, just

over four months. The students in the pilot were required to use Google Apps for all assignments

in their LA classes and to store their files on Google Drive, but continued to use Microsoft Office

and the districts H-drive for file storage in their other classes. Both LA teachers worked

collaboratively to modify existing lesson plans to accommodate the Google pilot.

Program Objectives

There were no formally defined program objectives when the pilot was rolled out to teachers and

students. After discussion with the Director of Technology, the following two objectives were


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media center. It was unknown at the start of the pilot how much technical support was going to

be required by students using GAFE on a daily basis, so the school wanted to make sure support

would be readily available. The teams two LA teachers volunteered to participate in the pilot

and was another significant factor in choosing this team. The buildings technician was

responsible for providing technical support and addressing any teacher needs. The Director of

Technology formulated the pilot plan and oversaw the entire process.

It was estimated by the Director of Technology that less than 20% of the students in the pilot had

experience with using Google Apps or Drive in their personal activities. Neither teacher had any

experience with GAFE prior to the pilot. The building technician had roughly four months to

explore GAFE before the start of the pilot, but had not used it prior to that time. Both teachers

have a very close and successful relationship working with each other. One teacher has been

employed by the district for more than 10 years, and is the mentor to the second teacher who has

only been with RRS for a year. The technician began working in the school system at the start of

the academic year. The Director of Technology has been with the district for nine years.

Procedures

A goal-based evaluation was used to determine if the pilot program accomplished its stated

objectives. This is a summative evaluation as the project was in its final week when the

evaluation was begun. The objectives were set by the Director of Technology during the last

week of the pilot in consult with the evaluator. Electronic surveys and interviews were the

primary instruments for collecting data and administered after the pilot was completed.

Data Sources

Data sources consisted of on-line surveys using Google Forms and semi-structured interviewsconducted by the evaluator. Separate surveys were created for the students (28 questions),

teachers (27 questions) and the technician (12 questions). Survey questions included Likert

scales and fixed choice responses. The teachers and the technician were interviewed after the

surveys were administered. The interviews consisted of 5 and 6 questions (without preexisting

answers) respectively, and focused on supplementing data from the surveys. Both groups had an

opportunity to engage in limited unscripted discussion beyond the formal questions. Each

instrument consisted of two major parts to satisfy the needs of the two project objectives.

Results

Objective One: Student Survey Data

Students reported the number of times they used a particular Google application during the pilot,

and the number of times they needed to use MS Office programs to satisfy assignments in their

other classes. During the pilot, all students used the Docs app, but a significant number of

students did not use Sheets (5 of 7) or Slides (4 of 7). In their non-LA classes, most students

indicated they needed to use all three Office programs.


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Number of Students Reporting Use of Programs

Microsoft Office None 1-5 6-10 10+

Word 0 2 0 5Excel 2 4 1 0PowerPoint 1 5 1

Google Apps None 1-5 6-10 10+

Docs 0 0 1 6Sheets 5 2 0 0Slides 4 3 0 0

All seven students reported they felt Google Apps is a direct replacement for Microsoft Office,

though one student would still prefer to use MS Office next year. Four out of seven students

indicated GAFE was easier to learn. One student chose MS Office for its ease of use, and two

selected that there was no difference between the offerings.

Productivity suite that students would

prefer to use next year

Productivity suite that students feel

is easier to learn

Students were asked to indicate their preferred word processing, spreadsheet and presentation

program from the two suites. The results show mixed preferences, and do not align with their

overwhelming support for switching to GAFE next year, as Docs was the only preferred program

from the Google suite.

Docs Vs Word Sheets Vs Excel Slides Vs. PowerPoint


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Objective One: Teacher Survey and Interview Data

Teachers reported the frequency that students used a particular Google application during the

pilot. It is important to note that neither teacher required any student assignments that needed

Google Sheets.

Number of Teachers that Required Assignments By Application

Google Apps None 1-5 6-10 10+

Docs 0 1 1 0Sheets 2 0 0 0Slides 0 2 0 0

Both teachers reported they would prefer students to use Google Apps instead of Microsoft

Office next year. They also indicated that MS Office required more resources to support, but

when the three primary apps were compared for ease of use, they both felt PowerPoint was easier

and were unable to comment on Excel. They differed in their opinion of the easier word

processing program.

Program Ease of Use by Students (as observed by teacher)

Docs Word Sheets Excel Slides PowerPoint

Teacher A X N/A N/A XTeacher B X N/A N/A X

During the interview, both teachers reported they were not aware of the pilots two goals, and

each indicated they would have tried to add more variety to the assignments to require student

use of all the applications had they known about the objectives. One teacher said they would

have let the Director of Technology know that spreadsheets are not typically used in their LA

classes, and that maybe a math class should have been included in the pilot. Both teachers were

enthusiastic about implementing GAFE next year.

Objective One: Technician Survey and Interview Data

The network technician supported team 7A students and teachers in every technical aspect of thepilot. The technician reported that all Google applications appeared easier for the students to use.

He also indicated that GAFE was an easier solution to support and implement than Microsoft

Office.

Which program suite required more time and resources to support student use.

Google Apps Microsoft Office

Teacher A XTeacher B X


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Program Ease of Use by Students (as observed by technician)

Docs Word Sheets Excel Slides PowerPoint

Technician X X X

Which program suite required more time and resources to support student use.

Google Apps Microsoft Office

Technician X

The technician reported in his interview that he was not aware of specific pilot goals, but rather

felt the project was to see if Google was a good solution for the students. He reported that

most students really liked using GAFE, but the majority of student work was accomplished using

Google Docs. He added that the students were enthusiastic about the collaborative features, and

there was practically no printing as documents were shared through Google.

Objective Two: Student, Teacher and Technician Survey Data

All survey data regarding the use of Google Drive as a replacement for the H-Drive for student

file storage indicates unanimous agreement that Google is the preferred choice.

Google Drive versus H-Drive for Student File StorageDoes Google Drive

meet all student file

storage needs?

Preferred file

storage location for

next year

Which storage

solution is more

reliable?

Which storage

solution is easier to

use?

Yes No Google

Drive

H-

Drive

Google

Drive

H-

Drive

Google

Drive

H-

Drive

Students 100% 0% 100% 0% 100% 0% 100% 0%

Teachers 100% 0% 100% 0% 100% 0% 100% 0%Technician 100% 0% 100% 0% 100% 0% 100% 0%

Both teachers and the network technician indicated in their interviews that Google Drive was

given a thorough and fair assessment, and students used it for all the tasks they would have

performed with their H-drive. The teachers praised Google for its ability to provide students with

access to their files at home, which eliminated the need for portable USB drives.

Discussion

There were two objectives to the pilot program: 1. Determine if GAFE was a direct substitute for

MS Office, and 2. Determine if Google Drive can fulfill all student file storage needs. The resultsof the program are intended to help school administrators determine if the district should choose

to implement Google Apps For Education for all students next school year. Upon evaluation of

the data, it was determined that the pilot was not properly designed to assess objective one

regarding the use of GAFE as a direct replacement for MS Office. This became evident from the

student and teacher surveys, and then confirmed through further exploration during the teacher


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interviews. The pilot was more successful in evaluating objective two, and clearly showed that

Google Drive can replace student H-Drives.

Objective 1:Google Apps for Education (Docs, Sheets, Slides) is a direct replacement for the

established Microsoft Office suite (Word, Excel, PowerPoint) for student content creation.

Google Apps and MS Office both contain programs for word processing, spreadsheets and

presentations. To determine if GAFE is a direct replacement for MS Office, the pilot needed to

provide students with an opportunity to evaluate the three Google components with a similar

frequency to that which they would have used their Office equivalent. Since the pilot was only

implemented in LA classes, there were no pilot assignments requiring spreadsheets, and only

limited opportunities to use the presentation software. Interviews with the LA teachers, and the

student and teacher surveys, revealed that no assignments requiring spreadsheets were required

in these classes during the pilot. The data supports that students required the use of all three

components to satisfy their full course load. By failing to adequately evaluate Google Sheets andSlides, the pilot is unable to determine if Google can replace Office.

Student surveys revealed the unanimous opinion that GAFE is a direct replacement for Office,

but based upon the pilots failure to evaluate two of the three components, these findings cannot

be interpreted to mean that objective one was satisfied. The data also shows that most students

expressed a desire to use the Google suite next year, but the results of student preference by

individual applications does not mirror this. Roughly half of the students chose Google Docs as

their preferred word processing application, but nobody preferred the Google spreadsheet, and

only 14% chose the Google presentation offering. The lack of support for Google apps in these

two latter categories is most likely due to the omission of using these programs in the pilot, but itdoes not explain why students chose the Google suite over the Microsoft suite.

The failure of the pilot to measure objective one is rooted in the selection of classes in which the

pilot was conducted, and the explanation of the intent of the pilot to the LA teachers. The district

wanted to keep the pilot small, but by limiting the coursework to just LA classes, it failed to

make a thorough comparison of the programs. The pilot does show that Google Docs is a direct

replacement for MS Word, and that it is the preferred application by the students, teachers, and

technician. Unfortunately, the data about a single application cannot be extrapolated to include

the entire Office suite. The teachers were given full access to GAFE and the support of the

school technician, but they were not informed that the pilot was intended to compare the entire

Office suite to GAFE. Lacking this insight, the teachers made no attempt to incorporate all three

components into their assignments. The teachers and the technician indicated they did use all

three programs and that GAFE can replace MS Office, but the pilot was intended to determine

student use of these programs.


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Objective 2:Google drive will satisfy all the student file storage needs which are currently

provided by the districts in-house servers.

Based upon the interviews with the teachers and building network technician, it was confirmed

that students in the pilot used Google drive exclusively for their LA assignments. These students

continued to use their H-drive in other content areas. The pilot provided an objective and

thorough opportunity for students to compare the two storage methods. The network technician

reported that Google Drive satisfied all the student storage needs. Students accessed their files on

the Google Drive in school and at home, and did not require the use of flash drives to move their

files between the two. Files were shared with the pilot teachers through Googles collaborative

features so student use of the faculty network drop boxes was not needed. The survey data of

all three groups confirm that Google drive can address all student storage needs, and that it is

also the preferred choice of all three groups to implement next year.

Based upon the data, objective two was met, and Google Drive meets all of the student filestorage requirements. In many areas, the Google Drive solution offers more flexibility and

reliability than the districts current H-drive solution. Google drive provides access to student

files through the use of cloud technology, so their data is accessible wherever there is Internet

access. Both teachers and the technician reported that no student lost a single file using Google

Drive, while this is typically a weekly incident using the H-drive. The technician reported that

the schools in-house file servers would not be needed for student use if Google Drive was

implemented. This would save considerable technician time performing backups and retrieving

lost files.

While the survey data included feedback from both LA teachers and the network technicianinvolved in the pilot, it had a limited sampling of the student population (7 out of 95) because

summer break prevented access to students. While a larger sample would have been preferred, it

is unlikely that more data would have affected the outcome of the objectives. The significance of

the design limitation for objective one would not be overcome by additional data, and the

variability in the student survey data was so low regarding Google Drive, that it is likely the

same conclusion would be made with a larger group. A larger sampling could help clarify the

student data about which productivity suite is easier to use, and which program is preferred for

word processing, spreadsheets and presentations between each suite.

Should the district choose to implement another pilot program, it is recommended that the

project goals are defined at the outset and communicated to teachers, students and technician so

each understands their roles. All content areas should be included in the pilot, not just language

arts, so that all the GAFE components can be properly evaluated. There is no reason to modify

any aspect of the pilot with regard to Google Drive.


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Project Cost

The primary expense for this project is the evaluators time. The evaluation required three survey

instruments to be created, administered and analyzed, along with interviews of the teachers and

network technician. There is minor travel expense between the evaluators office and the school

where the pilot was administered. Students and employees that completed surveys received an

ice cream gift card as a token of appreciation for their participation during their summer break.

INVOICEDate: 8/1/2014

Invoice # 228

James Murtagh TO: Frank Delongo

27 Tiger Swallow Lane Red RiverSchoolsGuilford, CT 06437 1010 Main Street

203-481-1928 Wilton, CT [email protected] 203-751-0700

Customer ID RRS1234

J o bP a y m e n t

T e r m sD u e D a t e

RRS Google Pilot Evaluation Due on receipt 10/1/2014

Q t y D e s c r i p t i o n U n i t P r i c e L i n e T o t a l

12 Days Personnel: Jim Murtagh, Project Evaluator $500.00 $6,000.00

10Student and Employee Survey Incentives

(gift cards for ice cream)$10.00 $100.00

1

Travel: 5 trips from Central Office to Logan

Middle School. 11 miles roundtrip at

$0.56/mile$30.18 $30.18

S u b t o t a l $6,100.18

S a l e s T a x TaxExempt

T o t a l $6,130.18

MakeallcheckspayabletoJimMurtagh

Thankyouforyourbusiness!


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Appendix A: Surveys

Student Survey

Please answer the following questions based on your experience with the Google pilot.

* Required

Which of the following programs did you use throughout the school year? (select all that apply) *

Microsoft Word

Microsoft Excel

Microsoft PowerPoint

Microsoft Publisher

Google Docs

Google Sheets

Google Presentation

Google Forms

Google Sites

Assignments

How many assignments did you use Microsoft Word for during this year? *

None

1-5

6-10More than 10

How many assignments did you use Microsoft Excel for during this year? *

None

1-5

6-10

More than 10

How many assignments did you use Microsoft PowerPoint for during this year? *

None

1-5

6-10

More than 10


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How many assignments did you use Microsoft Publisher for during this year? *

None

1-5

6-10

More than 10

How many assignments did you use Google Docs for during this year? *

None

1-5

6-10

More than 10

How many assignments did you use Google Sheets for during this year? *

None

1-5

6-10

More than 10

How many assignments did you use Google Presentation for during this year? *

None

1-5

6-10

More than 10

How many assignments did you use Google Forms for during this year? *

None

1-5

6-10

More than 10

How many assignments did you use Google Sites for during this year? *

None

1-5

6-10

More than 10


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Skill Level

Please rate your skill level with Microsoft Word? *

0 1 2 3 4 5

Never Used it Advanced

Please rate your skill level with Microsoft Excel? *

0 1 2 3 4 5


Please rate your skill level with Microsoft PowerPont? *

0 1 2 3 4 5


Please rate your skill level with Google Docs? *

0 1 2 3 4 5


Please rate your skill level with Google Sheets? *

0 1 2 3 4 5


Please rate your skill level with Google Presentation? *

0 1 2 3 4 5


Preference

Which program package do you feel is easier to learn? *

Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint)


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Google Apps (Docs, Sheets, Presentations, Forms, Sites)

Both programs are the same

Which program would you prefer to use? *

Microsoft Word

Google Docs

I don't have a preference


Microsoft Excel

Google Sheets




Google Presentation


What was your experience with Google Apps (docs, sheets, presentations, etc.) BEFORE starting the pilot *

Never used Google Apps prior to pilot

Used Google Apps for 1-6 Months prior to pilot

Used Google Apps for more than 6 months prior to pilot

List any features or functionality in the Microsoft Office suite that you feel are missing in Google

Apps? *___________________

Which program package would you prefer to use next year to complete your assignments? *

Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint)


Do you feel Google Apps is a direct replacement for Microsoft Office? *

Yes

No

Student Storage

Which storage solution do you feel is easier to use? *

My school H drive

My Google Drive


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Which do you feel is more reliable for saving your files? *

My school H drive

My Google Drive

Does Google drive meet all of your student file storage needs? *

Yes

No

Where would you prefer to save your files next year? *

My school H drive

My Google Drive


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Teacher Survey

Please answer the following questions based on your role as a language arts teacher participating in the Google pilot.

Some items in this survey go beyond the pilot, so please don't worry that you might not be familiar with them or

didn't use them in your class. This survey is NOT an evaluation of you or the pilot, but rather an Office versus

Google comparison.

* Required

Which of the following programs did you observe students using throughout the school year? (select all that

apply) *

Microsoft Word

Microsoft Excel


Microsoft Publisher

Google Docs

Google Sheets

Google Presentation

Google Forms

Google Sites

Assignments

How many assignments would students typically need to complete using Microsoft Word in your language

arts classes throughout a year (assuming no pilot)? *

None

1-5

6-10

More than 10

How many assignments would students typically need to complete using Microsoft Excel in your language

arts classes throughout a year (assuming no pilot)? *

None

1-5

6-10

More than 10

How many assignments would students typically need to complete using Microsoft PowerPoint in your

language arts classes throughout a year (assuming no pilot)? *

None


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1-5

6-10

More than 10

How many assignments would students typically need to complete using Microsoft Publisher in your languagearts classes throughout a year (assuming no pilot)? *

None

1-5

6-10

More than 10

How many assignments did students use Google Docs to complete in your classes during the pilot? *

None

1-5

6-10

More than 10

How many assignments did students use Google Sheets to complete in your classes during the pilot? *

None

1-5

6-10

More than 10

How many assignments did students use Google Presentation to complete in your classes during the pilot? *

None

1-5

6-10

More than 10

How many assignments did students use Google Forms to complete in your classes during the pilot? *

None

1-5

6-10

More than 10

How many assignments did students use Google Sites to complete in your classes during the pilot? *


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None

1-5

6-10

More than 10

Skill Level

Please rate your skill level with Microsoft Word? *

1 2 3 4 5

Beginner Advanced

Please rate your skill level with Microsoft Excel? *

1 2 3 4 5

Beginner Advanced

Please rate your skill level with Microsoft PowerPont? *

1 2 3 4 5

Beginner Advanced

Please rate your skill level with Google Docs? *

1 2 3 4 5

Beginner Advanced

Please rate your skill level with Google Sheets? *

1 2 3 4 5

Beginner Advanced

Please rate your skill level with Google Presentation? *

1 2 3 4 5

Beginner Advanced

Ease of Use

Which program suite do you feel requires more of your time to support and train students? *

Microsoft Office suite (Word, Excel, PowerPoint)


Based on your observations, which program did students have an easier time using? *

Microsoft Word


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Google Docs

Did not observe students using these programs


Microsoft Excel

Google Sheets

Did not observe students using these programs.



Google Presentation


Rate your experience with Google Apps (docs, sheets, presentations, etc.) BEFORE starting the pilot *




List any features or functionality in the Microsoft Office suite that students reported were missing in Google

Apps? *_________________________________

Which program suite would you prefer students use next year to complete their assignments? *



Student Storage

Which student storage solution do you feel requires more of your time to support and train students? *

Their local H drive

Their Google Drive

Which do you feel is more reliable for saving student files? *

Their local H drive

Their Google Drive

Does Google drive meet all the needs for student file storage? *

Yes

No


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Where would you prefer students save their files next year? *

Their local H drive

Their Google Drive


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School Technician Survey

Please answer the following questions based on your role as a Network Technician supporting student use

of Microsoft Office and Google Apps for Education.* Required

Which of the following programs did you observe students using throughout the school year? (select all that

apply) *

Microsoft Word

Microsoft Excel


Microsoft Publisher

Google Docs

Google Sheets

Google Slides

Google Forms

Google Sites

Which program suite required more of your time to support and train users? *


Google Apps (Docs, Sheets, Slides, Forms, Sites)


Microsoft Word

Google Docs



Microsoft Excel

Google Sheets

Did not observe students using these programs.



Google Slides


Rate your experience with Google Apps (docs, sheets, slides, etc.) BEFORE starting the pilot*



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List any features or functionality in the Microsoft Office suite that students reported were missing in Google

Apps? *_____________________

Which program suite would you prefer students use next year to complete their assignments? *



Which do you feel is more reliable for saving student files? *

Their local H drive

Their Google Drive

Does Google drive meet all the needs for student file storage? *

Yes

No

Which student storage solution requires more of your time to support and train users? *

Their local H drive

Their Google Drive


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Appendix B: Survey Results

Technician Survey Results (1 respondent)

Question Technician 1

Which of the following programs did you observe students using

throughout the school year? (select all that apply)

Microsoft Word, Microsoft Excel , MicrosoftPowerPoint, Google Docs , Google Sheets, Google

Slides, Google Forms

Which program suite required more of your time to support and

train users?


Based on your observations, which program did students have an

easier time using?

Google Docs


easier time using?

Google Sheets


easier time using?

Google Slides

Rate your experience with Google Apps (docs, sheets, slides,

etc.) BEFORE starting the pilot


List any features or functionality in the Microsoft Office suite

that students reported were missing in Google Apps?

None Known

Which program suite would you prefer students use next year to

complete their assignments?


Which do you feel is more reliable for saving student files?

Their Google Drive

Does Google drive meet all the needs for student file storage?

Yes

Which student storage solution requires more of your time to

support and train users?

Their local H drive

Where would you prefer students save their files next year?

Their Google Drive


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Teacher Survey Results (2 respondents)

Question Teacher 1 Teacher 2

Which of the following programs did you observe students using

throughout the school year? (select all that apply)

Microsoft Word,Microsoft PowerPoint,

Google Docs , GooglePresentation

Microsoft Word,

Microsoft PowerPoint,

Google Docs , Google

Presentation

How many assignments would students typically need to

complete using Microsoft Word in your language arts classes

throughout a year (assuming no pilot)?

More than 10 6-10


complete using Microsoft Excel in your language arts classes


None None


complete using Microsoft PowerPoint in your language arts

classes throughout a year (assuming no pilot)?

None 1-5


complete using Microsoft Publisher in your language arts classes


None None

How many assignments did students use Google Docs to

complete in your classes during the pilot?

6-10 1-5

How many assignments did students use Google Sheets to


None None

How many assignments did students use Google Presentation to


1-5 1-5

How many assignments did students use Google Forms tocomplete in your classes during the pilot? None None

How many assignments did students use Google Sites to


None None

Please rate your skill level with Microsoft Word? 5 4

Please rate your skill level with Microsoft Excel? 2 3

Please rate your skill level with Microsoft PowerPoint? 4 3

Please rate your skill level with Google Docs? 3 3

Please rate your skill level with Google Sheets? 1 1

Please rate your skill level with Google Presentation? 1 2

Which program suite do you feel requires more of your time to

support and train students?

Microsoft Office suite(Word, Excel,PowerPoint)

Microsoft Office suite

(Word, Excel,

PowerPoint)


easier time using?

Google Docs Microsoft Word

Based on your observations, which program did students have an Did not observe Did not observe students


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easier time using? students using theseprograms.

using these programs.


easier time using?

Microsoft PowerPoint Microsoft PowerPoint

Rate your experience with Google Apps (docs, sheets,

presentations, etc.) BEFORE starting the pilot

Never used Google

Apps prior to pilot

Never used Google Apps

prior to pilotList any features or functionality in the Microsoft Office suite

that students reported were missing in Google Apps?

Teacher 1 Response: Students felt that the spell check in Microsoft Office was more effective. I, however, did

not notice an increase in spelling errors. Only two students utilized Google Presentations, and while I saw some

of their work, it was not for my class. They didn't seem as comfortable with it as most students are with

PowerPoint.

Teacher 2 Response:First, I want to emphasize that Google Docs/Presentation was very manageable for the

students (see 2nd & 4th questions above). However, since they were already familiar with the Microsoft suite, I'd

have to say that was easier for them.

The students wanted more auto-correcting and a better spell checker. They especially disliked that it did notcorrect their lower case "i's" automatically. Some reported trouble with font changes. They would be able to

change the font for part of their document but not all. It was also more challenging for them to add components

to Google Presentation (music).

Which program suite would you prefer students use next year to

complete their assignments?

Google Apps (Docs,Sheets, Presentations,

Forms, Sites)

Google Apps (Docs,

Sheets, Presentations,

Forms, Sites)

Which student storage solution do you feel requires more of your

time to support and train students?

Their local H drive Their local H drive

Which do you feel is more reliable for saving student files? Their Google Drive Their Google Drive

Does Google drive meet all the needs for student file storage?Yes Yes

Where would you prefer students save their files next year? Their Google Drive Their Google Drive


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Student Survey Results (7 respondents)

Question Student 1 Student 2 Student 3 Student 4 Student 5

Which of the following

programs did you use

throughout the school year?

(select all that apply)

Microsoft Word,Microsoft Excel

, Microsoft

PowerPoint,MicrosoftPublisher,

Google Docs ,Google Sites

MicrosoftWord,

Microsoft

Excel ,Microsoft



MicrosoftWord,

Microsoft

Excel ,Microsoft


Google Docs

Microsoft Word,Microsoft

PowerPoint,

MicrosoftPublisher,


Microsoft Word,Microsoft

PowerPoint,

MicrosoftPublisher,

Google Docs

GoGo

PGo

G

How many assignments did you

use Microsoft Word for during

this year?

1-5 1-5 More than 10 More than 10 More than 10 M


use Microsoft Excel for during

this year?

1-5 1-5 1-5 None None


use Microsoft PowerPoint for

during this year?

1-5 1-5 1-5 6-10 1-5


use Microsoft Publisher for

during this year?

1-5 1-5 1-5 1-5 1-5


use Google Docs for during this

year?

More than 10 More than 10 More than 10 More than 10 6-10 M

How many assignments did youuse Google Sheets for during

this year?

None None None 1-5 None


use Google Presentation for

during this year?

None None None 1-5 None


27/30


use Google Forms for during

this year?

None None None None None


use Google Sites for during this

year?

1-5 1-5 None More than 10 None

Please rate your skill level with

Microsoft Word?

4 4 4 5 4


Microsoft Excel?

2 2 5 1 1


Microsoft PowerPoint?

4 4 5 5 4


Google Docs?

5 5 5 4 3


Google Sheets?

0 0 0 0 0


Google Presentation?

0 0 0 4 0

Which program package do you

feel is easier to learn?

Google Apps(Docs, Sheets,Presentations,Forms, Sites)


MicrosoftOffice (Word,

Excel,PowerPoint)


Both programsare the same

G(DPrF

Which program would you

prefer to use?

Google Docs Google Docs Google Docs Microsoft Word I don't have apreference

G

Which program would you

prefer to use?

Microsoft Excel MicrosoftExcel

MicrosoftExcel

I don't have apreference


I

Which program would youprefer to use?



MicrosoftPowerPoint

GooglePresentation

MicrosoftPowerPoint P

What was your experience with

Google Apps (docs, sheets,

presentations, etc.) BEFORE

starting the pilot

Used GoogleApps for 1-6

Months prior topilot









NGp


28/30

List any features or

functionality in the Microsoft

Office suite that you feel are

missing in Google Apps?

Google shouldbe able to make

a brochure

Google shouldbe able to

make abrochure

None Some of thepreferences

I can't reallythink of any

Thse

chthyoco

Which program package would

you prefer to use next year to

complete your assignments?






G(DPrF

Do you feel Google Apps is a

direct replacement for

Microsoft Office?

Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes

Which storage solution do you

feel is easier to use?

My GoogleDrive

My GoogleDrive

My GoogleDrive

My GoogleDrive

My GoogleDrive

M

Which do you feel is more

reliable for saving your files?

My Google

Drive

My Google

Drive

My Google

Drive

My Google

Drive

My Google

Drive

M

Does Google drive meet all ofyour student file storage needs?

Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes

Where would you prefer to saveyour files next year?

My GoogleDrive

My GoogleDrive

My GoogleDrive

My GoogleDrive

My GoogleDrive

M


29/30

Appendix C Teacher Interview Questions and Answers

Q1. Were you aware of the pilots two objectives?

A1-Teacher1. No - not until you told me about them.

A1-Teacher2. Not until the pilot was nearly finished.

Q2. (only if answered no to Q1) If you were aware of the pilots two objectives, what would

you have done differently?

A2-Teacher1. I would have told the Tech Director we dont use spreadsheets and I wouldhave included a presentation assignment or two. Nothing to change about Drive exceptmaybe ask students for more frequent feedback.

A2-Teacher2. I would have tried to make more varied assignments.

Q3. Based upon your observations, did the pilot provide a fair assessment of Google Drivefor student storage requirements?

A3-Teacher1. I guess so. Students saved and accessed their files. What else did it need to do?

A3-Teacher2. Yes. My students used Google Drive exactly as they used their H-drive exceptthat they could access their files at home.

Q4. What is your opinion of the two options for student file storage?

A4-Teacher1. I liked the students using Google. It seemed easier and more reliable.

A4-Teacher2. Google all the way. No more USB drives for bringing files home.

Q5. What did you learn from the pilot about GAFE?

A5-Teacher1. So much. It looks like a great resource. I cant wait to use in next year(hopefully)

A5-Teacher2. Where to start? The collaboration was great. Students picked it up so quickly


30/30

Appendix D Technician Interview Questions and Answers

Q1. Were you aware of the pilots two objectives?

A1. I knew that we wanted to see if Google was a good solution for the students. I did notknow the specific objectives?

Q2. What were your observations regarding student use of GAFE?

A2. Most students really liked using GAFE. Most of the work was done use Google Docs.The students loved the collaborative features. There was practically no printing as documentswere shared through Google.

Q3. Did the pilot provide a fair comparison of all the major functionality (word processing,

spreadsheets, presentations) in GAFE to the programs found in Microsoft Office?

A3. Students in the pilot really only used Google Docs. In classes outside of the pilot theyused all the Office apps. I only observed students using Google Docs.

Q4. Is GAFE a direct replacement for Office for student use?

A4. Based on my own use of the programs, GAFE can definitely do everything students needthat they currently use Word to accomplish.

Q5. Based upon your observations, did the pilot provide a fair assessment of Google Drive

for student storage requirements?

A5. Yes, the pilot had students use Google Drive for all the tasks they would normally usetheir H-drive to accomplish. In fact, students did a lot more with Google than our districtsolution is capable of, such as accessing files from home.

Q6. What is your opinion of the two options for student file storage?

A6. There is only one option - Google Drive was superior in every way.

Documents

Murtagh Jim Edtech505 4201 Final EvaluationR5c