The PV school district will switch all teachers from the Microsoft Suite to the Google Suite at the end of this school year. There are many similarities between the two systems, but teachers are expecting many hours of struggle to convert to Google.
Some departments are finding it easy to convert their PowerPoints and Word documents to Slides and Google Docs, but the world language department faces several issues. In particular, accents ー which are critical to languages such as Spanish and French ー do not convert effectively from Microsoft to Google. Many accents are lost in the conversion process, meaning teachers have to check every document for missing accents manually.
In most software, writing an accent requires the use of the ALT key and a specific sequence of numbers that codes for the accent. “… in Microsoft, you can just use Control + accent + the vowel, and avoid all the ALT codes,” said World Language Department Lead Stephanie Risius.
This convenience is not present in Google. “With Google, you have to have a keyboard with a keypad to be able to use the ALT codes or you have to do about 5 extra clicks to get Easy Accents,” Risius added. World language teachers now are preparing for dozens upon dozens of hours of manually converting accents.
The math department is in a similar situation. Nearly all math classes have worksheets, homework and tests written in Microsoft Word, which do not convert well to Google Docs. “Equations, set notation, tables and graphs do not format correctly, so if we are asked to stop using Word, we will have to recreate most of these documents from scratch,” said math teacher Nikki Pitcher.
The conversion process is tedious, requiring many hours of monotonous labor to create the necessary diagrams and equations. Geometry teacher Kirstin Oppel explained that inserting equations into Google Docs is quite time-consuming as they must first be written in a Word document, snipped and then added to the Google Doc.
These equations are also difficult to modify. Oppel noted that making minor changes requires redoing whole documents. Because the snipped equation cannot be edited, making different versions of tests and quizzes is a much more tedious task in Google Docs.
Diagrams for classes like geometry are also burdensome to transfer. Geometry teacher Pam Ancelet explained that each diagram on a worksheet in Word must be recreated by hand in Google Docs since no diagrams convert from Word.
“Each document can take an hour or more,” added Oppel. With several documents, including homework, answer keys, quizzes, tests and more, being used during a single class period, math teachers are looking down the throat of hundreds upon hundreds of hours of manual conversion.
Another key difference between Microsoft Office and the Google Suite is that Microsoft allows for substantial offline access. It can also be set up to autosave all files to a computer’s hard drive, which then can be opened without internet access.
On the other hand, using offline features on Docs and Slides requires the Google Chrome Offline Extension and only saves the few most recent files to the local computer. Selecting specific files for offline use is possible, but this must be done in advance.
Many teachers believe it will be possible to adjust to offline editing on Google, but like Risius, some feel a series of trainings would help ease this transition. Others, like Oppel, believe their printed worksheets will allow classes to proceed smoothly, only with the hindrance that problems cannot be projected onto the board and must be rewritten.
As this change approaches, teachers have begun preparing. Pitcher began working with the district to find workarounds to manual equation conversion. Risius suggested paid time for teachers to learn how to use Google, transfer the files and convert them. In the end, teachers believe it is possible to successfully transition from Microsoft to Google but that it will require significant time and effort.