Book Review: A Review of the Collaborative and Sharing Aspects of Google Docs

Abstract

book of value. Evidence-based practice is rarely mentioned in the text and does not warrant an entry in the index; accordingly, social work educators and students who are committed to an evidence-based practice process may give this book a less generous reception.Despite the lack of emphasis on the evidence-based practice process, Furman has made a significant contribution to the social work profession by raising the issue of cultural competence in the delivery of direct practice services to male clients. Although current books have addressed social work with gay, bisexual, transgendered, and African American men, this reviewer could find only one other book addressing social work with men in general that has been published in the last decade (Men and Social Work: Theories and Practices edited by Alistair Christie and Jo Campling; Palgrave MacMillan, 2001). Surely almost half the adult population is worthy of more formal consideration than is represented by two books. As Furman so compellingly explains, many men are at risk. Academics, practitioners, and students willing to respond to male needs in a culturally sensitive manner may find themselves grateful for having spent time understanding men as Furman does.

Collaborating Online with Four Different Google Apps : Benefits to Learning and Usefulness for Future Work

“…Finally, students reported some technical limitations such as problems with simultaneously typing at the exact same location on a shared document, deleting work by accident, and not being able to work without Wi-Fi, which supports Perron and Sellers (2011) statement that a problem with working on Google Docs is the need for an internet connection.…”

“…There have been a few disadvantages reported about using Google apps, such as the need to have a Google account to use the different Google tools (Firth & Mesureur, 2010), and problems with formatting and editing (Chu, Kennedy, & Mak, 2009). Perron and Sellers (2011) also mention a few downsides to using Google Docs such as: the need to have an internet connection to share, edit, and upload/download documents; more limited editing tools and features than Microsoft Word; and the lack of integration with bibliography management systems (e.g. EndNote and Refworks).…”

Exploring the effects of employing Google Docs in collaborative concept mapping on achievement, concept representation, and attitudes

“…Students in the Google Docs group not only had positive attitudes towards collaborative writing using Google Docs but also had higher writing abilities compared with the face-to-face group. Recently, increasing researchers have emphasised Google Docs and are studying its viability for collaborative learning: Google Docs can create a real-time collaborative learning environment for efficient discussion and interaction, thereby increasing the opportunity for sharing knowledge (Perron & Sellers, 2011;Wagner, 2010). Students can collaboratively edit content in a transparent manner similar to the face-to-face method.…”

Technology-Supported Online Writing: An Overview of Six Major Web 2.0 Tools for Collaborative-Online Writing

“…Another editing feature in Google Docs is called 'chain storytelling', it is a special feature that allows for collaborative construction of story initiated by the teacher or facilitator whereas each learner will be asked to contribute in completing the story. Thus, we can say that Google Docs allows learners to work together on a common task without restrictions they are imposed in a traditional face-to-face contact (Conner, 2008;Perron & Sellers, 2011).…”