The TechWizard's Guide to Library Magic
Written by Ms. Cummings
CiTi Library Media Specialist
Google Cardboard & Google
Expeditions: What I should know before
hand.
Figure 1 CiTi student Shark Expedition |
Hello, I am the Library Media
Specialist at the Center for Instruction Technology and Innovation (CiTi) in Mexico,
NY. A year ago I was introduced to
Google Cardboard at the NYSCATE 2015 conference. I was awestruck at what I experienced and
wanted to bring this back to our students.
Having the time in a student’s school day to go on a field trip is a
struggle of balancing schedules, but not so with Google Expeditions. During Summer School 2016 I took students on
trips to Egypt to see the Great Pyramids, took the students swimming with
sharks (Figure 1), and have landed on the moon (Figure 2).
Most recently I took a science class to see a volcano! How many students can say that they got an
up-close look at an active volcano? Of
course the students made the connection between the lava flow that I dropped
them into and how they place lava flows in Minecraft. This is just the tip of the experiences that
are instore for students with Google Cardboard.
Teachers are just as excited by Google Expeditions as the students are.
Figure 2 CiTi Student Moon Expedition
|
Google Cardboard and Google
Expeditions
What is
Google Cardboard? Google Cardboard is an
immersive experience that can give you the experience of being there. The images are 360 degrees and you can look
all around at everything. This provides
an opportunity to take students on virtual tours of places they may never see
in person. Google Cardboard is the entry
way to Virtual Reality. This app
connects your cardboard to virtual reality app you will be running. I started using Google Expeditions when it
was still in beta testing. I have done a
lot of trial and error to get this working for our students. Google Cardboard is expanding and growing
along with the Expeditions. I will be
sharing my experiences and what I have learned through my experiences with
Google Cardboard and Google Expeditions.
What will you will need:
Google Cardboard & the App: (Figure 3)
Figure 3 Google
Cardboard
https://www.google.com/edu/expeditions/
|
You can purchase a Google Cardboard
that is inexpensive and you assemble it yourself (save the QR code) or you can
purchase a plastic version. You can also
3D print a custom cardboard if you have access to a 3D printer. I prefer to the use the View Master VR
version. This is made of durable plastic
and looks similar to the old View Masters.
View Master VR has its own sets of apps and they are terrific. You will need to download them and purchase a
license (or purchase a physical kit that includes a license). Students will work independently in these
apps. I will be referring to all versions
as cardboard for this article. This app
connects your cardboard to virtual reality app you will be running. There are many to sort through when you do a
search in the app stores. You will need
the basic Google Cardboard app to get started.
You will also need the Google Expeditions App to use with students. These apps are free to download and use.
Devices:
You will
need devices to put into the cardboard. These
can be android or IOS versions. Most
importantly your device will need a gyroscope.
Without it the app will not be able to rotate the image based on student
movement. You will need to use the app
with the flat screen to make this work and your finger to move the image.
This is not as engaging as using the app with cardboard. A school policy that allows for the Bring
Your Own Device (BYOD) will save on the cost of the devices. You will not need to purchase as large a number of
devices but you should still have several devices on hand for those students
that do not have a device. Google
Cardboard supports devices with screens in the range of 4 to 6 inches.
Android devices
- The Samsung Nook does not have a gyroscope but the apps do run. These are useful when you have students that get motion sickness or have other vision issues. They also make great teacher devices, more on that later in this article.
- Android smart phones will work for Google Cardboard and are perfect if you have a BYOD policy in your school. These devices can be expensive and the BYOD policy will make it more affordable. If not you will need to purchase or borrow these devices from somewhere. The good thing is that you do not have to have a cell service on the devices just a connection to a Wi-Fi service.
IOS Devices
- iPads, iPad Mini, iPhones, and iPod touches (IOS) these require the IOS 8.0 or later. If you have an older iPod touch it must be able to be updated to the IOS 8.0 and not all are capable of this. Again if you have a BYOD policy this will help to make this possible and save a bit of money. The nice thing is that the iPod touch is a less expensive device ($199) and does the same job but with a 4 inch screen. You will notice that the screen is too small. I saw two red areas on either side of the screen when in the cardboard. iPads - if you have a set of iPads and are working with younger students or students with vision problems I would recommend using the iPads. The iPad Mini is 7.9” for the screen size. You will either need to use it without a viewer or custom print (3D printing – there is a file available) a viewer or purchase one that is large enough. The iPads are way too big for a viewer but will work and students will enjoy the experience since it does have a gyroscope. Students will be able to twist and turn to look around just as they would with a Google Cardboard.
Wi-Fi connection:
A Wi-Fi
connection will be needed to download not only the app to the device but to also
download any tours that you would like to take.
With Google Cardboard there are many apps that allow the viewer to
control the app themselves, but Google Expeditions is unique in that the
teacher leads the students through the tour.
In order to do this you will need all the devices on the same Wi-Fi
connection. This can be an issue in some
schools because it uses screen sharing aspects that are often blocked on school
networks. You will need to test this
ahead of time, if your test proves that you can run an expedition then you are
all set. Skip to the next section. Be sure to test with two devices, one in
Guide “lead” mode and one in Explorer “follow” mode. You are successful when
the Explorer can view the tour and the Guide can see that the Explorer has
joined the session.
My school network at this time does
not allow the screen sharing on the Android devices. How have I been able to use Google
Expeditions at school? It is simple but then it is not
that simple to do. You have a few
options.
- The first option is a router that you purchase and the tech department helps you set up (Yes, this is another expense). I have not taken this route and this is the method that is used in the Google Cardboard Kits that are available now. This is a good option since you can connect an unlimited number of devices, but you will need to download your tours before you connect your teacher device to this router. It is just a Wi-Fi signal and not an internet connection. This is to keep our networks secure.
- The second option is a cell phone hotspot. This relies on a cell phone service that the teacher device has. Up to 10 devices can be connected this way. This will eat up your data quickly. I would not recommend this option. Your cell plan must allow you to set up a hotspot and not all cell phone plans allow for this. Please double check your agreements before doing this.
- The final option is the one that I am using. This is Wi-Fi Direct. The Android phones and the Samsung Nooks have a setting under Wi-Fi connections that will set up a private Wi-Fi connection that you can connect up to 8 devices. The catch to this is that you will need to download your tours before starting this connection. You will not be able to once you are part of this connection. The other catch is that this can be time consuming. I have it down to 20 minutes to get all 8 devices connected and that is still with the devices arguing with me. Sometimes the devices just will not join and no reason is given. This process is started by selecting 2 devices and setting up the Wi-Fi direct, this will display a name for the Wi-Fi connection and passcode that you can use to connect the other phones and makes this the primary phone. Use this code to connect the other phones through the regular Wi-Fi connection. Find the Wi-Fi listed and tap it then enter the passcode. You will need to go back to the second phone and switch it to this Wi-Fi. I do not understand why it has to be done this way but it is the only way that I have found to get the primary phone to work to connect all the other phones too. If you forget to go back to that second phone you will not be able to connect that phone to the Expedition because it is not on the same network. I hope this makes sense to you. I am still working on the settings to get the devices to remember the connection but I have not been successful on that yet. I am still working with our Technology Department on this issue.
Once you
have your devices, apps and cardboard you will need to run the Google Cardboard
app. This app will tell your device
which cardboard you are using. Once you
have done this you will be able to use any app that works with Google
Cardboard. You will be asked to scan the
QR code that came with your cardboard, I hope you held onto that item when you
were putting your cardboard together.
Figure 4 View Master
VR
http://www.view-master.com/en-us
|
The Kit is set up now what?
I have a kit
of 8 View Master VR headsets (Figure 4), 8
Android phones with no cell service and a Samsung Nook tablet. In addition I have the charging cords and a
power strip in a locking box.
My kit is
all set up
- I have downloaded the Google Cardboard.
- I have scanned my QR code into Google Cardboard.
- I have downloaded the Google Expeditions App.
I’m all
set! Not just yet. Now I have to
write lesson plans. Just like an in
person field trip you will need to do some planning and lesson plan
writing. Google for Education Training
Center has added a training unit on Expeditions in Teach beyond the four walls
of your classroom. Here is the link https://edutrainingcenter.withgoogle.com/advanced_training/unit?unit=44&lesson=64, it is called Giving Your Students
the World with Google Expeditions.
Teachers will be uploading their own lessons to this area to share with
other teachers. You are not required to
upload your lesson to this area but they do provide a template for planning
that you can use. I use the template and
I have not uploaded any lessons yet.
There are
many expeditions that you can take students on, but where to start. I started out with just the first ones that
appear in the App, but Mr. Caffrey at http://mrcaffrey.com/google-expeditions/ has mapped out all of the
expeditions and made this available through his blog. This is a wonderful resource if you are
deciding based on location. I have set
up a Microsoft Sway Infographic to find expeditions based on categories for
education. Here is the link to that info
graphic https://sway.com/AKSGLCOJAcGH1FwO.
This will be refined using teacher feedback as they explore Google
Expeditions.
Figure 5 CiTi
Teachers Egypt Expedition |
Google
Cardboard is here to stay. It is growing
every day. The Google Expeditions are
created and curated by experts at museums and experts in their fields of study. This is great for the quality of the
expeditions plus these same experts have provided the guides with talking
points for each section of the tours. I
would recommend that you preview and plan your Expeditions ahead of time. These talking points may include names that
are difficult to pronounce and at this time there is no connection to having
the device pronounce it for you. You
will need to do a separate Google search for this ahead of time. With this in mind take the leap into Google
Expeditions and share the wonders of the world with your students and other
teachers (Figure 5).
The
following are the resources that I used while creating and using my Google
Expedition kit. These online resources
inspired me to undertake this endeavor.
It is a journey that I have enjoyed and continue to enjoy with each new
virtual tour.
Bell, Kasey. "Getting Started with Google Expeditions and
Virtual Reality." Shake up learning, Shake Up Learning, LLC, 18
Oct. 2016,
www.shakeuplearning.com/blog/getting-started-google-expeditions-virtual-reality/.
Accessed 28 Nov. 2016.
Caffrey, Andrew. "Getting Started with Google
Expeditions." mrcaffrey A blog about e-learning and things I have
broken then fixed…, WordPress, 2 Aug. 2016,
mrcaffrey.com/google-expeditions/. Accessed 28 Nov. 2016.
"Google Expeditions." Google Expeditions, Google,
www.google.com/edu/expeditions/. Accessed 28 Nov. 2016.
Wylie, Jonathan. "Build Your Own Google Expeditions
Kit." Jonathan Wylie Blog, WordPress,
jonathanwylie.com/2016/10/03/build-your-own-google-expeditions-kit/. Accessed
28 Nov. 2016.
#GoogleCardboard #GoogleExpeditions
#GoogleCardboard #GoogleExpeditions
4 comments:
Wow! Very impressive. Wish I had access.
The Google Cardboard can be around $3.00 each but I use the View Master VR ones at $10 each. The devices for inside the cardboard are the real expense. I have a wonderful tech department that got the devices for me, but others have collected old cell phones and connect them to their wifi. iPod Touches run about $199 each. The apps are free. They work on the iPads without cardboard which is great for the youngest students. Best Buy offers a kit but they are really expensive. Good Luck! Please come back and share your progress.
Nichole at a Mexico High School shared here newsletter with me that contains additional links to Google Expedition lesson plans - https://www.smore.com/keevd
#GoogleCardboard #GoogleExpeditions
http://techwizardsguidetolibrarymagic.blogspot.com/2016/12/google-cardboard-google-expeditions.html
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