Last Updated on October 2, 2024 by Editorial Team
In the ever-changing world, technology has transformed the entire learning experience. It is not only students but also teachers who benefit from different tools and technology. For quite some time now, we’ve been familiar with using websites and applications for various different purposes.
Nowadays, Google Chrome extensions have come into the limelight and are meant to aid and ease out the work we’re doing on the web pages. Applications that run inside the Chrome browser and offer more functionality, integration with other websites or services, and personalized browsing experiences are known as Google Chrome Extensions.
Just like other online tools, these also come in a variety, and specific extension is made for specific use only! If we look at the education field, these extensions can be used by teachers to structure data, manage assignments, track their productivity, and effectively complete tasks within the given timeline.
However, it can be a challenging job to decide which Google Chrome extension is going to benefit and to what extent. It is crucial for teachers to understand the usage as well as the benefits of the extensions available on the web.
To make the task easy, check out the list of helpful Google Chrome extensions mentioned below. These extensions make things simpler, more visible, and more convenient to enhance the teaching experience.
Relevant and helpful Google extensions for teachers
The teaching industry has transformed for teachers as well as students. It is important to stay updated and use different tools to enhance productivity as well as improve the learning experience for students. As teachers face different challenges with assessments, tracking productivity, and meeting deadlines, these extensions can help by working out some crucial factors.
1. Right Inbox
Presenting an interesting Google Chrome extension helpful to enhance communication between students, teachers, and parents. Your communication generally happens through email either with students, co-teachers, or parents. This email productivity helps you upgrade the entire Gmail experience on your phone. You need to spend less time on your Gmail account as the right inbox extension makes it completely handy and smooth for you to maintain communication over it.
With more than 11 features, Right Inbox helps you effectively use Gmail to its best purpose. You can use different features including email tracking, recurring email, reminders, templates, mail merge, and signatures. Along with this, you also get to understand follow-up emails, private notes, and send-later options.
2. Todoist
Teachers are constantly looking for different ideas and classroom activities. In such situations, you are bound to come across different websites and blog posts important for your teaching approach. Hence, this Google extension helps you organize your tasks for the entire day and plan them in a structured manner. Millions of people use the Todoist to collaborate on different projects, whether major or minor.
Some of the other features of this extension include reminders with deadlines and due dates, capturing tasks, organizing actions, tracking the progress of personalized products, and building lasting habits. It is the right time to bring all your notes, posts, and different activities aligned with this extension.
3. Grammarly
Grammarly is one of the helpful Google Chrome extensions used by numerous teachers across the globe. The tool effectively helps teachers sharpen their communication skills along with written communication. Sure that as a teacher you have a plethora of notes to check along with improving your grammatical skills. Your co-teachers and students expect you to be perfect with your language.
In such cases, it is generally possible for humans to make minor errors. Here, the Grammarly extension helps you check your document and spot various mistakes. It also spots the basic errors along with language improvisation suggestions. The free version helps with spelling errors and punctuation. It helps you make your text and notes better with respect to fluency and readability.
4. Scribe
Scribe is a huge time saver for any instructor who needs to write step-by-step instructions for pupils or parents. Its free Chrome plugin records your mouse movements and keystrokes as you work through a task, then instantly generates a step-by-step instruction manual with screenshots. Such an extension helps teachers and parents organize notes as well as capture information in a systematic manner.
Teachers can embed a guide in a content management system or learning management system, link to the guide on a class website, or share the link with a specific student or parent. Additionally, you can modify a process, and anyone using the guide will see the modifications. With the free Chrome plugin from Scribe, you can make as many instructions as you want without manually taking screenshots or recording videos.
5. Mote
To assist teachers in giving children individualized feedback, Mote was carefully designed. You can quiz students and provide feedback to them using voice notes as a tool. Additionally, you can capture and playback audio clips from anywhere.
Even Google Docs, slides, forms, sheets, classrooms, and Gmail can be integrated using this Chrome extension. Three options are available for a price. More than 20 different languages, including English, Spanish, French, Portuguese, and Arabic, are supported by Mote for transcribing.
6. Read Aloud
This Google Chrome extension uses text-to-speech technology (TTS) to convert any text on the web page to audio. Sure that as a teacher you must be tired of reading so many different assignments on screen. Hence, this Google extension is one of the helpful tools to effectively assess students’ work. The extension also helps you avoid excessive strain on the eye by continuously reading notes on the screen.
The Google Chrome extension helps you convert text from a variety of websites, blogs, publications, textbooks, class websites, and online course materials. Interestingly, the Read Aloud is equipped with a feature that can read aloud from numerous formats. Here, you can make the extension read any PDF, Google Play Books, Amazon Kindle, or Google Docs. The Google Chrome extension is specifically helpful for teachers dealing with students who have dyslexia or other learning disabilities.
7. Edpuzzle
The World Wide Web is filled with a plethora of information with reference to teaching approaches, methodologies, and classroom activities. You are sure to come across different videos on YouTube that highlight the importance of a certain subject matter. Hence, when you wish to take a certain part of the video, it can be challenging! That’s where this Google Chrome extension comes to your rescue.
Edpuzzle extension helps you start editing the videos you see on YouTube. The extension helps you record the screen while you view the video. Once it is recorded, you can edit it, insert different questions, and also assign the same to your students. There is no longer a need to download different applications just to get a small part of a YouTube video. You can simply edit your favorite Educational videos and present them to your students to transform the learning environment.
8. Loom
As a teacher, you are constantly involved in the process of solving doubts and clearing misconceptions of students. In certain situations, it can be difficult for you to make students understand over text messages. That’s when Loom comes to your rescue! Loom is a Google extension that is used by millions of people across the globe. The extension allows you to record thoughts and screen to explain different concepts to students. Loom helps you instantly record and receive shareable links to further share in the classroom.
The extension helps you record through your microphone as well as internal audio. The extension also automatically saves different videos through cloud-based technology. Additionally, the extension also notifies of everything a student reacts to or comments on the video. Hence, it creates comprehensive learning where you are constantly interacting with your students, receiving their feedback, and clearing their misconceptions in a visually appealing manner.
Technology: A boon for teachers
With rapid globalization, different teaching models and structures are available for everyone in the world. Technology is transforming basic operations and every individual tries to benefit from it. Similarly, teachers can also benefit from the use of different tools and technologies. Due to covid-19 pandemic, technology has proved to be a boon for teachers through online teaching and messaging. Teachers have been successful in imparting education through the medium of technology.
The research[1] throws light on the willingness of teachers to use technology in the classroom and the different factors that affect the facilitation of the same. There are 6 different factors that influence the decision of teachers to use.
- Adapting to external requests
- Deriving attention
- Using basic Technology functions
- Relieving physical fatigue
- Class management
- Applying the enhanced functions of technology
The above-mentioned factors motivate teachers to use different tools and technologies in the classroom. The research suggests that the majority of teachers use technology to support teaching and illuminate the learning experience for students.
Conclusion
As these Google extensions are available for free, teachers should be motivated to try and test them. School management should also take the initiative to collect collaborative feedback from teachers with reference to different Google extensions.
Additionally, teachers should also be involved in different team-building activities and co-teaching models to amplify productivity. Teachers can also use different books, quotes, and jokes about technology and stay ahead of time by understanding the correct application of these extensions.
References
[1] Baek, Y., Jung, J., & Kim, B. (2008). What makes teachers use technology in the classroom? Exploring the factors affecting the facilitation of technology with a Korean sample. Computers & Education, 50(1), 224–234. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2006.05.002
An engineer, Maths expert, Online Tutor and animal rights activist. In more than 5+ years of my online teaching experience, I closely worked with many students struggling with dyscalculia and dyslexia. With the years passing, I learned that not much effort being put into the awareness of this learning disorder. Students with dyscalculia often misunderstood for having just a simple math fear. This is still an underresearched and understudied subject. I am also the founder of Smartynote -‘The notepad app for dyslexia’,