Google Classroom has helped schools, teachers, and students learn beyond the four walls of an actual classroom. But previously, you needed to have a G Suite for Education account in order to be a part of this. Now the tech giant has decided to bring “technology to people who want to lear, no matter what the setting.” So their latest announcement is that you can join any of the virtual classrooms just by using your personal Google account.
Previously, requiring people to have a G Suite for Education account for this educational collaboration tool was pretty limiting for both teachers and schools. For example, if you had guest lecturers or student teachers who needed to be part of the virtual classroom, they couldn’t just use this service. But now, as long as you have a functioning Google account, then administrators will be able to add you to specific classes that you are authorized to join.
The G Suite for Education administrators will have updated settings so they have better control over who can join their classes, whether it’s with the said personal account or from other G Suite domains. This will open up collaboration with other schools and organizations as well. For now, using your personal account here will allow you to join existing classes. But later on, probably in upcoming updates, you will even be allowed to create your own classes.
Google is still encouraging schools to sign up for G Suite for Education as there are still plenty of things that teachers and students can do there. They are also looking for stories on how Google Classrooms has helped foster both teaching and learning through technology.
SOURCE: Google
