ITD 648 Communication Tools Group Project

Group Four: Jana Milsap, Kerry Pree, Hope Roberts, Caleb Thaggard, and Steven Winters

The University of Southern Mississippi

ITD 648 Digital Communications in Education

Dr. Shuyan Wang

April 20, 2021

 Introduction
The new normal for education has become online learning. With this new normal, there

has been an increase in online learning tools (Gautam, 2020). Communication has changed

severely after the COVID-19 pandemic. Many educators have to research to find the perfect

communication tool suited for their students' asynchronous and synchronous learning. The

difference between asynchronous and synchronous solely depends on if the students and teacher

meet at the same time or not. Synchronous means same time, and asynchronous means not at the

same time. Online learning has made communication the primary focus for synchronous and

asynchronous learning.

Each member of group four showcased a communication tool. Below is a chart to show

each group member communication tool and whether it can be suitable for synchronous or

asynchronous learning.

Name Communication Tool Synchronous/Asynchronous/

Both

Kerry Pree Google Classroom Both

Hope Roberts Class Dojo Both

Caleb Thaggard GoSoapBox Both

Steven Winters Showbie Both

Jana Milsap Flipgrid Both

 The first thing Kerry taught us about Google Classroom was how to create a google

classroom and join a classroom that is already created. After that, we learned how to add students

to the classroom. You could either invite students to join the classroom by simply entering their

email address, or you could give them a code and have them enter it on the site. He also taught us

how to create and upload assignments. Kerry created a fun crossword puzzle using 10

Instructional Technology words from our readings for us to complete as an activity.

Hope used the communication tool, Class Dojo, to provide a learning activity for a

sample class of students. She asked a biology-related discussion question about plant and animal

cells and the students were required to respond to the activity via text.

We learned how to use flipgrid by completing a tutorial by Jana. She recorded a brief

video where she shared her screen and explained how to navigate and use flipgrid. She had us
 record a video of ourselves with the following topics:

your name, your favorite hobby, your favorite food, and

where did you receive your undergrad degree.

The technology Caleb explored was

GoSoapBox. GoSoapBox is a tool that lets teachers

create custom quizzes and surveys that help promote

student engagement. GoSoapBox can be accessed by students through their cell phones which

helps teachers use to their advantage a technology that is often a distraction. GoSoapBox is

incredibly easy to use and easily accessible for both teachers and students.

To demonstrate just how easy it is, Caleb provided a brief video tutorial that demonstrated how

to create and edit a module (called “events” on the website) and add quizzes and surveys.
After the tutorial Caleb showed how to download the GoSoapBox app and access the quizzes

and surveys via cell phone so that we could get an idea of what our students would be working

with should we choose to implement the tool in our classrooms.

Steven’s telecommunication tool selection was Showbie. Showbie

is an online tool that allows for teachers to create virtual classrooms and

create a variety of asynchronous and synchronous assignments for students.

To demonstrate Showbie’s features, Steven created a classroom and several

assignments that would allow for the group to learn about Showbie. Steven

began the learning process by sharing the unique class code via an email

with a brief video on how to create a Showbie student account and how to

join the class. As students the group navigated through each assignment,
which explored different features of the Showbie tool and Showbie App. Participants were also

able to experience Showbie’s powerful notification suite and the tools students utilize to

complete assignments. Additionally, assignments presented both teacher and student

perspectives, so the group could get familiar with both sides of the application.

Findings
Google Classroom
Google Classroom has been around since May 2014. It has paved the way for teachers

and students making teaching and learning easy and fun. When it was first announced, it was

announced as the one-stop-shop. They named it that because it saved teachers plenty of time and

gave them a chance to concentrate strictly on teaching. Throughout the time Google Classroom

has been around, users have found ways for students to participate both asynchronous and

synchronous. For example, if a teacher sets a due date and time for the lesson that makes it

synchronous for students.

Teachers can add several things to their Google Classroom. It is not limited to what they

can add. They can add assignments, quizzes, questions, study guides, forms and whatever else

they may want to add. Teachers can also customize the way the answer choices are. For instance,

answer choices can be in short answer form, paragraph form, multiple choice, true or false, and

matching. Just like in a face-to-face classroom setting, teachers can also upload their rubric and

syllabus.

Advantages
Over the years, Google Classroom has been improving tremendously. With that being

said, the biggest advantage is that it is user friendly. The creator of Google Classroom is always

thinking of ways to make it accessible for users of all ages. Not only do students have access to
Google Classroom, but parents can easily log in and check the materials that are posted as well.

It’s very easy for students to access materials. Students and teachers have the capability to

upload and access content no matter their location, all they need is internet connectivity. Even if

a student is absent, they can still access class work that was missed. This will reduce stress from

both the students and teachers. Another advantage is that students can learn at their own leisure.

It is also paperless, so it helps to save cutting trees and making paper. Unlike teachers and

students being able to lose assignments due to not being organized, assignments cannot be

misplaced in Google Classroom because it will be uploaded to Google Drive.

Challenges
One challenge that I discovered that could be an issue for users is that Google Classroom

is very limited on integration options. What I mean by that is, it doesn’t sync with google

calendar and that could be very helpful. Another challenge is that it is not updated automatically.

Users will have to constantly refresh the page to get the latest information. Students aren’t able

to share their documents with their classmates unless they are the owner. Google classroom is

very impersonal. Some students may need live interactions with their teachers to get a better

understanding of lessons and Google Classroom does not offer that.

Teaching Strategies

With Google Classroom you will discover that there are several great teaching strategies.

Teachers could use Google Classroom in so many different ways. Students can receive feedback

in a timely manner on their assignments as well as assessments. Teachers could also use a

Google Form that would allow them to not only create quizzes, but automatically grade them

once they are submitted. This is really good because teachers would spend less time grading and

it would give students results instantly. Just like in the face-to-face setting, they still can
communicate and discuss assignments. This can be done by posting reminders and

announcements to the platform. In addition to that, teachers could also have one on one time with

their students if needed.

Google Classroom is an all-round communication tool that is not limited to how teachers

can teach. Teachers also have the option to use external applications that integrate with Google

Classroom. For instance, if a teacher wants students to prepare for a spelling or vocabulary test

they could use Flipgrid and Quizlet. This can be done by directly sharing and assigning flash cars

to their Google Classroom. Almost any edtech application can be linked with Google Classroom.

Class Dojo

Class Dojo is a behavior management program that uses a point system to reward

positive behaviors. It is an excellent tool for communication between parents and teachers

regarding student behavior. Students can also complete activities on Class Dojo that can be

seen by their parents. The point system allows the teacher to customize the positive and

negative behavior points that students can earn. The teacher would design a reward system
based on the number of Class Dojo points a student has. This encourages students to engage

in positive behaviors so that they can earn rewards.

Advantages

It provides an easy way for teachers to keep track of the positive and negative

behaviors of their students. It allows parents to be immediately informed of their child's

classroom behavior. It is a tool used to encourage positive behaviors in the classroom by

creating a points system that teachers can use to provide rewards for positive behavior points.

This tool allows teachers to have one collective database with all of their students' parents'

information for quick, convenient access and communication. Class Dojo also has a fun

monster aesthetic that can be enjoyed by students of all ages. Students can even customize

their own monster avatars!

Challenges

Students have very limited interactions on Class Dojo. They cannot like or comment

on posts on the Class Story or communicate with their teachers or parents. Class Dojo is only

somewhat effective for submitting assignments. Although students can complete activities

and upload pictures, videos, files, and drawings to the Portfolio, the activities cannot be

graded and teachers can only select one type of submission--text, picture, video, drawing, or

worksheet--so students do not have options for how they want to upload an assignment.

Teaching Strategies

Because the submission type is limited and activities cannot be graded, it is not a

very effective tool for assessing student performance. Instructional strategies using this tool
are limited because the primary purpose of this tool is assessing student behavior, not

performance. However, this is an excellent tool for implementing classroom management

strategies. When students exemplify either positive or negative behaviors, these behaviors

can be recorded. When students earn points for positive behavior, these points can be

redeemed for rewards, which encourages students to engage in more positive behavior.

Showbie

Showbie is an online tool that provides a paperless virtual

classroom experience that allows teachers to easily provide students

with various assignments and allows for students to easily access and

complete those assignments from within the application (Lukes,

2019). Assignments can be assigned to the entire class or to individual students.

Assignments may also be scheduled for future dates and assignment due dates may be

assigned, so the assignments will no longer be accessible after the due date. Students may

complete assignments by using the annotation tools within Showbie. For example, if a

teacher uploads a scanned math sheet, students can use the pen annotation tool or the text

box tool to complete the assignment. Additionally, students may use the voice note tool or

comment tool to provide audio or visual notes to their work.

Students and teachers receive real-time notifications based on

their notification preferences when certain activities occur. For

example, students can receive notification through email or through

SMS messages when a teacher assigns them an assignment or makes

comments on the student’s completed assignment. Furthermore, teachers may receive

notifications when students upload, comment, or annotate an assignment. Notifications can

be received through email as long as the teacher and student provide an email address, or

they may be received through SMS messages using a mobile device.

Showbie offers two teacher accounts, basic and pro. The basic edition allows

teachers to create unlimited classes but limits active assignments to ten. However, teachers

can archive completed assignments in order to create new assignments. In the pro version,

teachers can create unlimited assignments and have the ability to organize their assignments

using assignment folders. Additional features that the pro version provides are live video

chats and live discussion boards. The pro version also provides teachers with the ability to

integrate quizzes, keep a grade book, provide parent access, and provide group learning

assignments.

Advantages
 One of the major advantages of Showbie is the ability for students and teachers to

access the application and the associated assignments from any device that has an internet

connection. Students can access Showbie using the traditional methods of a personal

computer or laptop or they may access assignments and complete them using a mobile phone

or tablet, such as an iPad. Additionally, devices such as a smartphone or tablet allow for

assignments to include activities that require students to take pictures or videos of a subject

matter. Incorporating multiple types of media within assignments increases student

engagement and allows for different avenues of student feedback.

Another advantage is Showbie’s custom notifications. The built in notifications allow

students and teachers to select their preferred method of receiving notification and which

notifications they would like to receive. Participants can choose to receive notifications by

email, mobile device, or both. The notifications allow for real-time communications

between students and teachers. The notifications that students receive allow for them to be

more accountable and organized regarding assignment completion. For example, a student

can receive a notification when an assignment is created and also receive another notification

when the assignment is due. These two notifications inform the student, without logging into

the Showbie application, that an assignment has been created and that it is about to expire.

Challenges

Using only the basic teacher edition, it was hard to organize assignments, so students

take them in order or to group assignments. By default, Showbie organizes assignments

alphabetically. Therefore, if assignments are to be completed in a specific order, a teacher

would be required to create one assignment at a time, so students would complete them in the

proper order. However, this is not very productive and does not allow for multiple

assignments to be created within the same time period but also in a specific order unless they

are in alphabetical order. A good work around is to number your assignments in an outline

fashion (1A, 1B, 2A, 2B, etc.). By including an alphanumeric number in the prefix of the

assignment name, Showbie will order the assignments as they are to be completed.

However, it should be mentioned that the pro version provides for class folders, so you may

group assignments.

Group work, live chat, and video chat is also challenging without the Pro version;

however, by incorporating outside sources, such as Google Drive and Zoom students can

perform group activities, and perform live/video chats. Teachers can still create an

assignment requiring group participation, but would simply provide a link to a Google doc,

spreadsheet, or presentation to collaborate. Live Chat can also be performed using a Google

Document. It will not be a traditional live chat program, but Google documents provide real

time collaboration, which allow for live commenting/chating. Also, for a video chat,

teachers could use an application such as zoom and provide the link within Showbie for live

video chatting.

Teaching Strategies

There are unlimited teaching strategies that can be utilized with Showbie. For

example, teachers can upload PowerPoint or Prezi presentations, link You-tube videos,

create tutorials and demonstrations for software or processes, create problem-solving

activities, and drill and practice activities. However, one of the most powerful teaching

strategies is the ability for students to create digital learning portfolios. With student e-

portfolios, teachers can gauge a student’s overall performance with the class. And, one of

the key benefits to creating a portfolio is that the portfolio allows for students to provide self-

reflection for their own creations within the portfolio (Smaldino et al., 2019). The teacher

may create weekly assignments that require the student to learn through various media, such

as text, video, audio, etc., and then at the end of each week or module, the assignment would

be for the student to submit a reflection of their learning for the week. The reflection could

require different technology as well, such as the student needing to upload a relevant video

or images that are relevant to the assignment or that support their reflection main topics.

Flipgrid
Flipgrid is a communication tool that was made to use

asynchronously. Users have found a way to make Flipgrid a synchronous

activity if you embed a live youtube video into the Flipgrid topics according

to Flipgrid. Flipgrid gives educators an opportunity to make discussion time

fun. Educators are able to pose a question for students to respond using video format. Getting

started is fairly easy being that the communication tool is free. Educators are able to sign up

using a Microsoft or Google account.

Teachers can add a video, recorded video, youtube or vimeo video, image, giphy, and

emoji to help facilitate posing the question. Teachers are also able to link microsoft, google

classroom, bitmoji, nearpod, kahoot and many more platforms. Grids could be created to help

with organization and teachers must give students a join code and select permissions and
features. Topics are created the same way as groups, with a join code except users have to select

more options pertaining to students' video responses.

Students’ videos can be between the time of 15 seconds and 10 minutes. Depending on

the settings the teacher created students can view and comment on other students videos. Flipgrid

added some cool features where students can add filters, emojis and even texts. If the students

are not satisfied with their recordings they are able to record the video again.

Advantages

One huge advantage is that Flipgrid is free to sign up for. I know many educators are

having to pay for a lot of learning tools to help facilitate online learning that the school does not

buy. Another huge advantage is it helps students with presenting and speaking skills. Students

can record their videos and hear themselves talk and record again to help identify speaking

weaknesses and improve that flaw (Vorholt, 2019). Another advantage is Flipgrid incorporates

nice features that could help motivate students to respond. Students in Generation Z love to use

filters and emojis in general so incorporating those features motivate students.

Another advantage is that flipgrid makes it easy for educators to access students when

working on a speaking project. For example, my school district requires English Learners to test

in certain areas. We could pose a question and require the student to respond in Flipgrid and it

would make it easier to grade them being that the majority are virtual students. Lastly, another

advantage would be how students could learn from one another. A student may be unsure about

how to start off, so they are able to look at other people's responses to get an idea which

ultimately promotes that student to student learning.There are many exciting features on Flipgrid

which helps outway the disadvantages.

Challenges
One challenge with using Flipgrid is that you are only limited to creating a certain

amount of topics and receiving a certain amount of responses. For example, my school district's

only platform focus is Peardeck, Microsoft Teams, and its learning therefore we do not have the

upgraded version of other platforms. Padlet only lets you create so many padlets before it asks

you to upgrade for a price, therefore I have to delete my padlets as we go. I had a teammate that

was very frustrated with doing so that he purchased the upgraded version. Flipgrid eventually is

going to do the same. With the 4.0 version, which costs around $65 per year for teachers, you

can create an unlimited amount of topics and have an unlimited amount of responses. With the

free version teachers are not able to type in the comment section of the videos.

Another challenge would be students creating inappropriate videos. Teachers have to

actively monitor responses to avoid this. Online learning is already harder which makes teachers'

time very slim. In addition to the recording, students may add too many emojis especially to

cover their faces not to mention if they are super shy to even start recording. Also, the fun

features can often distract students from completing their assignments.

Teaching Strategies
There are alot of teaching strategies that could be implemented while using Flipgrid.

Social emotional learning is a hot topic right now and flipgrid can help. Teachers could pose a

discussion that is centered around this topic. For example, teachers could create a wheel of

feelings and each week have students reflect on their feelings. (See Flipgrid Figure 1). Students

could also participate in a fliphunt. Fliphunt is a digital scavenger hunt on flipgrid.

Another teaching strategy for English would be students acting out their favorite scene.

This let teachers know if students were paying attention as well as student comprehension.
Teachers could have a guest speaker join the topic and make it a community event. Each day

Flipgrid presents a topic of the day and a wonder of the day that teachers could have students

work on as a bell ringer. (See Flipgrid Figure 2). Lastly, flipgrid can be used to have fun on top

of learning. One Flipgrid educator created a flipgrid lip sync battle. He created this as a way

music, tech, or drama teachers could use for distance learning. (See Flipgrid Figure 3).

Flipgrid Figure 1

Flipgrid Figure 2
Flipgrid Figure 3

GoSoapBox
GoSoapBox is a web based clicker-tool that allows teachers to create their own quizzes

and surveys that coordinate with the lesson material. Teachers can go into GoSoapBox and

create their quizzes in little to no time. Teachers can also create discussion boards in which

students can discuss material in a message board format. Students can access the GoSoapBox

activities through their cell phones negating the need for laptops or chromebooks. The

information regarding student success or survey opinions is easily transferred into a file that can

be examined and worked through the teacher’s technology of choice before being entered into

gradebooks

Advantages:

The biggest advantage of GoSoapBox is its simplicity and ease of use. Many new

teachers are wary of using new technologies and sometimes intimidated by how complicated

some of them appear to be. Right from the start GoSoapBox offers a quick tutorial that
introduces teachers to GoSoapBoxe’s events and how to create them. Events are essentially

modules that consist of quizzes, surveys, and discussion. All three are easy to create. All teachers

have to do is create a set of multiple choice questions with a determined answer. The teacher can

also create surveys on which students vote on answers or topics. All of these activities are

accessed via an app on the student’s cell phones which is another advantage because students

don’t necessarily have to worry about having a personal laptop to take quizzes or test.

GoSoapBox also provides an easy way to download and assess student progress and grades along

with a “confusion” barometer that lets students report on anything they’re not certain about. This

is helpful because it allows students to give input on how beneficial the teacher created activities

are.

Challenges:

The advantages of GoSoapBox outweigh the disadvantages. The main disadvantage of

GoSoapBox is how simple it is. This may seem considering how lauded its simplicity was, but

the simplicity is a double-edged sword. With GoSoapBox, what you see is what you get as far as

visual formatting goes. The opportunity to increase student engagement through visuals is not as

customizable an option like one would find in other tools like Google classroom. GoSoapBox is

also not completely free, the tool is free for up to thirty students so any groups bigger than thirty

the instructors would have to pay for. This could be an obstacle for teachers in charge of larger

classrooms.

Teaching Strategies:

GoSoapBox’s simplicity allows it to be integrated into several different strategies. If the

instructor was using a New American lecture strategy which is used to connect learners to past
knowledge and teach them how to organize information (Perini, Silver, Strong, 21) the instructor

can run students through a quick pop quiz or have students vote on answers that pertain to

questions asked about the previous lessons so that they’re better prepared for the next lesson.

These quizzes don’t have to be taken in class, the students can also take the quizzes from home

as homework.

Before a lesson begins, the instructor can ask a question and then create a poll asking

students to vote on what they think an answer is. The instructor can allow students to discuss and

vote in groups while consulting notes. This helps students prepare for tests in a more relaxed way

and teaches them to have information organized in a way that is easily accessible for study.

GoSoapBox can be used for synchronous or asynchronous learning, it is entirely dependent on

the instructor.

Summary
Technological tools, when used effectively and appropriately, are extremely helpful ways

to engage students and enhance the learning experience. Due to current events such as COVID-

19, synchronous and asynchronous distance learning have become the foremost way to teach

students and make sure that they continue on the path of a quality education. Because of the

increased demand for distance learning, teachers who are both new to the profession and those

that have been doing it for a long have been forced to adapt their teaching style into one that

better incorporates technology. Some teachers are intimidated by the need to be more proficient

with technological tools or are stymied by how complicated some appear to be, but hopefully

through this report we’ve demonstrated that there are many options for technologies that are easy

to use and readily available to teachers seeking to increase their classroom experience and help

develop their students’ education in a meaningful way.

 Google Classroom is an incredibly easy tool for teachers to use, and has a myriad of

options that teachers can take advantage of to customize a classroom and assignments to their

exact specifications. Google Classroom is the perfect example of a technology that adapts to a

teacher’s comfort level with technological tools. FlipGrid is a technology that lets teachers help

their students develop their skills with presentations or discussions, and even gives students the

option to record presentations until they’re comfortable enough to present in person. Tools such

as Showbie and GoSoapBox allow teachers an easy to use platform in which they can create

assignments and quizzes, though not as customizable as Google Classroom, the tools have the

perks of being accessible from the students’ phones or personal devices without one having to

worry about formatting issues. Class Dojo is a unique technology tool due to the fact that it helps

teachers gauge their students’ emotional well-being and classroom behaviors, and communicate

these to students’ parents. Class Dojo is incredibly helpful for distance learning because it is a lot

harder to gauge student attitudes through a camera than it is in person. All of the tools mentioned

in this report can be used to supplement each other, or can be used separately depending on the

individual needs of the teacher. Whatever the need, all are highly recommended and as long as

the teacher familiarizes themselves with the tools and is aware of the limitations, the tools

described will enhance the students’ learning experience and help provide maximum results.
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Lukes, J. (2019, May 5). Introduction. Showbie Tutorial. https://showbie-tutorial.weebly.com/

Silver, Strong, Perini. (2007). The Strategic Teacher. Thoughtful Education Press. P. 21.

https://www.gosoapbox.com/

Smaldino, Lowther, Mims & Russell: Instructional Technology and Media for Learning, 12th

Ed. (2019). ISBN-13: 9780134299624

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