Google Suite for Education (Google Apps)

G Suite for Education is a collection of Google Applications that are available online and are free to use for faculty and students. You have a separate Google account that is linked to your HCC email which gives you access to unlimited storage space with Google Drive and fully online tools such as Google Docs, Forms, Slides, Sites, and much more. Click on the links below to learn more about each app within the G Suite, or explore the apps by reading the summaries in the list below.

​Google Calendar
Google Calendar is a free tool you can use to organize your schedule and classes. You can add files and Hangout calls to appointments or events you create on your calendar. You can also share your calendar with others. 

​Google Classroom
Google Classroom is a free LMS by Google that is used to manage classes. You can add students to your class by sending them an invitation or a unique class code. Google Classroom allows you to create and grade assignments as well as host course materials and provide feedback to students. Classroom is fully integrated with Google Drive and Docs.

​Google Chrome
Google Chrome is an internet browser designed by Google that integrates many of the features of Google to make your browsing experience more efficient. Google Chrome can be supplemented by "extensions" which are programs that have various functions that work directly within your browser. You can download many free and very useful extensions by visiting the Google Chrome Web Store, which is a marketplace where developers can make their extensions available for download. ​

​Google Chrome Web Store
Google Chrome Web Store is an online marketplace where you can download extensions and themes to make your browsing experience with Google Chrome more seamless and productive. ​

​Google Docs
Google Docs is Google's version of Microsoft Word. Google Docs can be copied, shared and published to the web. Google Docs are automatically saved every time you make a change and update automatically when embedded into other sites. Google Docs is also available offline so you do not need an internet connection to use this app. Google Docs also has many add-ons, which are programs that supplement the functionality of Google Docs, increasing the possibilities of what you can do with Google Docs. By uploading your existing Word documents to Google Drive, you can convert them to Google Docs which can be fully edited and modified and shared.

Google Drive
Google Drive gives you unlimited cloud-based file storage for all of your instructional materials. This means that when you upload a document or presentation to Google Drive, you can access it from any computer where you can log into Google. Google Drive allows you to share and collaborate on documents, making it a great tool for collaboration among students and faculty alike. ​

​Google Forms
Google Forms is a tool you can use to create online surveys and quizzes which can collect information about users or remain anonymous. Google Forms automatically creates charts and tables of responses and data can be exported to a Google Sheet or Excel Workbook. You can embed images and videos into your Google Form and there are several built-in question types available to choose from. ​

Google Hangouts
Google Hangouts is a free tool that allows users to create web conferences with up to ten participants. Google Hangouts allows users to share video and audio with each other, and even allows a "share your screen" option. Hangouts may be useful for virtual office hours, tutoring students at a distance, allowing an invited guest speaker at a distance to interact with your students, or for groups of students to study and collaborate on a project.

​Google Keep
Google Keep is a free note-pad tool that allows you to keep track of important information and check lists that you can check off as you complete tasks. You can add drawings, images and text to notes and with the mobile version, you can record your voice as an audio file to accompany a note. Keep notes can also be imported directly into Google Docs for easy access

​Google Maps & Earth
Google Earth is a free tool that you can use to see many parts of the world by entering in the name of a street, city, state, or country. Using the Street view, you can see 360-degree views of a location. Google Maps allows you to get directions from one place to another, with routes for travel on foot, by bike, by car, by public transportation and even by plane. Google Cultural Institute uses Google Maps and Earth to create virtual tours of museums, historical sites and even the international space station. Google Tour Builder allows you to create your own trips, with stops at certain locations to which you can add text, images and video to explain what happened at each stop. Google Lit Trips utilizes Google Maps and Earth to create virtual trips from novels. 

​Google Sheets
Google Sheets is Google's version of Microsoft Excel. Google Sheets can be copied, shared and published to the web. Google Sheets are automatically saved every time you make a change and update automatically when embedded into other sites. Google Sheets is also available offline so you do not need an internet connection to use this app. Google Sheets also has many add-ons, which are programs that supplement the functionality of Google Sheets, increasing the possibilities of what you can do with Google Sheets. By uploading your existing Excel Workbooks to Google Drive, you can convert them to Google Sheets which can be fully edited and modified and shared.

​Google Sites
Google Sites is a free website creation and design tool that you and your students can use to create your own websites. Google Sites allows you to create multiple pages within a Site and you can embed video, images, text and HTML code. Google Sites also has sharing capability to allow students to collaborate in real-time to create a website. All changes are automatically saved in Google Sites but must be published to the web before it will be accessible to non-editors.

Google Slides
Google Slides is Google's version of Microsoft PowerPoint. Google Slides can be copied, shared and published to the web. Google Slide Decks are automatically saved every time you make a change and update automatically when embedded into other sites. Google Slides is also available offline so you do not need an internet connection to use this app. Google Slides also has many add-ons, which are programs that supplement the functionality of Google Slides, increasing the possibilities of what you can do with Google Slides. By uploading your existing PowerPoint presentations to Google Drive, you can convert them to Google Slide Decks which can be fully edited and modified and shared.

​Google Voice
Google Voice is a free Voice Over Internet Protocol (VoIP) service that allows you to connect a working phone number to your cellphone number. You can set up voice mail and text messaging and use it to contact your students without giving them your personal phone number. You can turn Google Voice numbers off at any time and change your number whenever you want. ​

YouTube
YouTube is Google's video hosting and sharing platform. You can use YouTube to find videos related to your course content as well as create playlists of videos to collect videos on specific topics and keep them organized. You can also upload and edit your own videos through YouTube's creator studio as well as add captions and download the .srt file.