Google Hangouts
Name of Tool | Website URL | Cost | Download or Web-based | 1 sentence description of the tool |
Google Hangouts | Free | Download; | This is Googles messaging and video app |
Description of the Tool
Google Hangouts is a free communications program that allows users to Text, Voice call or Video call. You use Google Hangouts to keep in touch; message friends, free video or voice calls, and group conversations with 1 or more of your friends. You can include all of your friends with group text chats, up to 150 people, and group video chat with up to 10 contacts. You can connect across android, iOS, and the web, and can sync chats across all your devices. In Google hangouts you can message friends anytime, even if they’re offline. You can snooze notifications, so you can response later.
How to Use This Tool
Whatever device you are using you first need to acquire the software. Android has the Google Play store, Apple has the App store and windows has the chrome web browser. Each platform is slightly different but they all require you to have a google email address to sign in with. Before you start your first Hangout you need to prepare by the following,
What you need to use Hangouts:
A Google or Gmail Account
A computer or phone with a camera and microphone for video calling.
An internet or data connection
System and browser requirements:
Systems-
Mac OS X
Windows
Chrome
Ubuntu and other Debian-based Linux distribution
Browsers-
Google Chrome
Microsoft Internet Explorer
Safari
Opera
Fire Fox
*On Internet Explorer, and Safari, download and install the latest version of Hangouts plugin.
What you need to make video calls:
Broadband connection to the Internet.
USB web camera. Other devices, like virtual cameras, may not work.
Any quad core processor.
Hangouts can be used in:
hangouts.google.com
Gmail
Inbox by Gmail
Hangouts Chrome extension
Computer:
On computer, download hangouts on chrome, or go to https://hangouts.google.com/ or open Hangouts in Gmail.
Enter your Google Account information.
Click Sign in. In Gmail, on the left, click Sign in.
Android:
On Android phone or tablet, download Hangouts from the Google Play store.
Open the Hangouts app.
Click install and once it has downloaded click open.
Select a Google Account, or sign in to another account. (It should automatically link the Gmail you already have setup on your android device and allow you to start using hangouts.)
Tap Sign in
Follow these steps to verify your phone number and let people find you on Hangouts. If you don’t want to verify your phone number, tap Skip.
When you sign in to Hangouts for the first time, you’ll be asked to verify your phone number. To edit phone number, tap number.
Confirm the number and tap Next.
Enter the verification code you receive in a text message.
Tap Next.
After you see the “verified” message, tap Done.
iPhone and iPad:
On iPhone or iPad, download Hangouts from the app store.
Open the Hangouts app.
Tap Get started.
Select a Google Account, or sign in to another account.
Verify your phone number and let people find you on Hangouts. If you don’t want to verify your phone number, tap Skip.
Sending messages:
To send a message click the plus sign then select either new video call or new conversation then select one or more, up to 150 from your contacts. Now just type your message and hit the send button. As long as you have access to the internet you can use google hangouts.
Once a group is made everyone in the group can message in real time and everyone in the group can see all the messages from anyone that posts like a chat room. Video calling is the same, everyone in the video call can see and talk with all the others in the video call.
How Can This Tool be Used by the Trainer/Teacher?
This Tool can be used to keep everyone in the class in touch with each other in real time. Most students have their smart device with them at all times. If someone posts to the group chat you are notified and can respond with little to no delay. Video calls can show the attendees what each person is seeing on the front or rear camera of the device. This can be useful if the teacher needs to visually show the class something, other than trying to coordinate all the participants to assemble in real life, they can broadcast from anywhere the student has internet.
Assignments can be posted to the group chat and if questions are asked the teacher can reply one time and everyone gets the answer. You can also break into smaller groups and message only your group. This comes in handy when you don’t want all of the larger group notifications. Inside your conversation you can post pictures from your camera roll or you can take pictures directly from the app. If you are out in the real world you can share your location and using GPS, find the contact on Google maps.
The other benefit is this is completely free whether you are a student or not. Once it has been downloaded it integrates all the other services google uses; Gmail, Maps, Docs, Sheets, slides etc. As with any other service Google wants the user to only use their specific services. For example, iMessage Apple does not work well with anything Google because they are 2 different companies competing for the same group of people, You! These different company’s software is called environments. Each company has their own Google, Apple, Samsung, Amazon. To use all the features everyone needs to be in the same environment.
Sebastian Lopez Jr & Kim Muldrow wrote a terrific article called, The Power of Google Hangouts. In this article some of the things they say a trainer/teacher can do with Google Hangouts are,
Connect to other classrooms in other parts of the country/ world.
Broadcast and archive lecture sessions for later playback.
Share screens and create demonstrations.
Create live shows and talks
Participate and deliver online professional development sessions.
Conduct online training and staff meetings from remote locations.
How Can This Tool be Used by the Trainer/Teacher to Support Student Learning?
“Google hangouts is completely integrated with most all other Google services such as YouTube, Gmail, Drive and Google Calendar. In the education field today, you can use a “Google Hangout to ask questions and engage in conversations with parents, students and/or faculty.” (Pace, 2015)
Because Hangouts is free and almost everyone has a Gmail account, all that is needed is an email or phone number. You can pull up a website and instantly share the link to anyone in your contacts. Pictures can be taken copied and sent faster than you can take them. You can send up to 450 characters per message, as many times as you like, as long as you have internet connection. YouTube videos can be shared and watched together in real time without losing the video of the participants. Students can also record a video session for future playback, this comes in handy when the teacher is reviewing during video conference. According to Lopez and Muldrow, Hangouts can be used to support student learning by,
Create virtual field trips.
Participate in mystery location calls.
Participate in mystery career calls.
Interview authors, researchers, etc. who are in other locations.
Listen and interact with guest speakers.
Allow absent students to view class live.
Record video for flipped lessons.
Form virtual book clubs.
How Can This Tool be Used by Students?
As a student, this is a great application for one because it’s free and the last thing a student wants is to pay more money! Google hangouts can be used for social and classroom settings simultaneously, no need to juggle between different applications. Notifications are in real time and read receipts are instant, so you will know when the teacher has read your message and vice versa. Because hangouts can be used on mobile devices no matter where you are, as long as you have active internet connection, you can be available for a video call. No need to be on site with other students. Other ways students can use Google Hangouts is,
Real time updates.
Pop up notifications.
Create and edit group chats.
Message read reports.
Location sharing.
Video conferencing.
Seamlessly syncs with Google eco system; Maps, Gmail, Calendar, etc.
Training and Other Resources
YouTube is managed by Alfabet which also manages hangouts so if you have any questions about Hangouts simply type the question into YouTube.
Google Hangouts is also designed to be extremely user friendly, no one wants to use something that is cumbersome to navigate! Google has taken the time to address the users feedback, making each update more user friendly. As with similar applications simply using the app a few times leads to more confidence in the way it is meant to be used. There is just so many ways to use Google Hangouts, I urge you to take a few minutes to try the application! It really is a fun, easy, and engaging way to connect, you won’t be disappointed!
References
Get started with Hangouts. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://support.google.com/hangouts/answer/2944865?hl=en&ref_topic=2944848
Lopez, S. and Muldrow K. (Convention TCEA) “The Power of Google Hangouts.
Retrieved from
https://convention.tcea.org/handouts/files/Session-171382.pdf
Pace, K. (2015, September 9). Creating and collaborating in the cloud with chromebooks. Retrieved from http://www.k12blueprint.com/content/creatingandcollaboratingcloudchromebooks
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