Google Workspace for Education
A-JIS's Integration of Google Workspace for Education
Aoba-Japan International School has fully embraced Google Workspace for Education, leveraging this comprehensive cloud-based platform to enhance learning, productivity, and collaboration within our educational community. This suite of tools empowers our students and faculty to create, communicate, and collaborate effectively, whether in digital documents, presentations, videos, or through engaging online interactions via Gmail, Chat, and Meet. Our commitment to utilizing Google Workspace facilitates a technologically enriched, collaborative learning environment that transcends the physical confines of classrooms, preparing our students for a future where digital fluency is essential for higher education, entrepreneurship, and teamwork.
Google Workspace Account Implementation:
As of 2020, every student is provided with a Google Workspace account upon enrollment. To cater to the diverse needs of our student body, we implement a tailored approach to account features:
Early Learning Focus: Students in Grades Kindergarten through Grade 4, who utilize iPads, receive accounts with limited features suitable for their age group and educational needs.
Comprehensive Access: Older students have access to the full suite of Google Workspace tools, including Gmail, Google Meet, and Google Docs, enabling a richer, more collaborative educational experience.
Responsible Use and Digital Citizenship:
In alignment with the IB Curriculum, our integration of Google Workspace is coupled with a robust educational program on responsible digital citizenship. Students are taught the importance of responsible use as they navigate and utilize various Google Workspace features, ensuring they develop the skills and ethics necessary for digital proficiency.
Our approach ensures that all students at Aoba Japan International School benefit from a balanced and thoughtful integration of technology into their learning journey, tailored to their developmental stage and learning objectives.
The table below shows which features are available to students at which level and illustrate the progression across the grades.
Kinder | Grades 1 ~ 3 | Grades 4 & Up | |
|---|---|---|---|
Google Drive & Docs |
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Google Sites |
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Google Calendar |
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Gmail |
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Chat |
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Google Meet (Local) |
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Google Meet (Outside of our Domain) |
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What is Google Workspace for Education?
G Workspace for Education is a collection of tools that allows students and teachers to collaborate in real-time to create documents, presentations, surveys, spreadsheets and even websites. All tools are free, ad-free, reliable and secure. We encourage parents to sit down with their children to look at the school work stored within their child’s Google Drive, just as we encourage pupils to share their work with their parents.
What tools are available in G Workspace?
There are many tools available - some of the more common tools we use are:
Name | How do I access | What is it? | Icon |
|---|---|---|---|
Google Drive | Cloud storage for all file types including images, videos and audio files. Students have unlimited storage and can access their files from any device, anywhere they have an internet connection. |  | |
Google Classroom | A blended learning platform that integrates Google Suite to allow teachers to assign and collect work from students. Classroom creates a paperless environment and saves time providing a way for teachers and students to easily communicate and stay organized. Parents can get update emails about the work going on in Google Classroom. |  | |
Google Slides | Presentation tool that allows students to collaborate together on the same presentation and easily add images, videos and graphics to tell a story. Students can choose from templates or create their own slide format. |  | |
Google Docs | Word processing tool to allow students to create and edit text and paragraphs. Students can collaborate on the same document and teachers can easily provide feedback while students are working. |  | |
Google Sheets | Spreadsheet tool for analysing, visualizing and charting data. Similar to the other G Suite tools, students can easily share and collaborate in real-time. |  | |
Google Sites | Collaborative webpage creation tool for publishing to a real-life audience. |  | |
Google Calendar | Online calendar that integrates with Google Classroom to help students to be aware of assignments and/or appointments. |  | |
Google Mail | Free web-based email service that provides users with storage for messages and the ability to search for specific messages. |  | |
Google Chats | Message and collaborate with anybody you work with. You can use Chat to: Talk to people directly or in small group messages. Collaborate in large, named groups called spaces. Send and share files from Google Docs, Slides, and Sheets. |  | |
Google Meets | High-quality video calling app designed to help you have meaningful and fun interactions with your friends, family, colleagues, and classmates, wherever they are. |  |
Why is Aoba-Japan International School using G Workspace?
G workspace provides the ability for students and teachers to communicate, store files and collaborate on documents, spreadsheets, and presentations from school or home, all within a secure ‘closed campus’ online environment. It is important to remember an educational Google account is structured and managed differently to a ‘consumer’ or ‘personal’ google account.
Google Workspace for Education Notice to Parents and Guardians
Google Workspace Accounts for Parents
Every student including those from K1 to Grade 3 will be given an AJIS Email account to be accessed by their parents. This account will be used mostly for Google Meets.
Not every class will use these accounts, please contact your child's Homeroom teacher.
The parents are responsible for the account set up, please consult the tutorial below on how to do this.
Once the student reaches Grade 4 they will be given personal access to it.
G Workspace for Education Notice to Parents and Guardians
This notice describes the personal information we provide to Google for these accounts and how Google collects, uses, and discloses personal information from students in connection with these accounts.
Using their G Workspace for Education accounts, students may access and use the following “Core Services” offered by Google (described HERE):
Gmail
Calendar
Classroom
Contacts
Drive
Docs
Forms
Groups
Keep
Sheets
Sites
Slides
Talk/Hangouts
Vault
In addition, we also allow students to access certain other Google services with their G Workspace for Education accounts. Specifically, your child may have access to the following “Additional Services”:
Maps
Blogger
Google provides information about the information it collects, as well as how it uses and discloses the information it collects from G Workspace for Education accounts in its G Workspace for Education Privacy Notice. You can read that notice online at https://gsuite.google.com/terms/education_privacy.html You should review this information in its entirety, but below are answers to some common questions:
What personal information does Google collect?
When creating a student account, A-JIS may provide Google with certain personal information about the student, including, for example, a name, email address, and password. Google may also collect personal information directly from students, such as telephone number for account recovery or a profile photo added to the G Workspace for Education account.
When a student uses Google services, Google also collects information based on the use of those services. This includes:
device information, such as the hardware model, operating system version, unique device identifiers, and mobile network information including phone number;
log information, including details of how a user used Google services, device event information, and the user's Internet protocol (IP) address;
location information, as determined by various technologies including IP address, GPS, and other sensors;
unique application numbers, such as application version number; and
cookies or similar technologies which are used to collect and store information about a browser or device, such as preferred language and other settings.
How does Google use this information?
In G Workspace for Education Core Services, Google uses student personal information to provide, maintain, and protect the services. Google does not serve ads in the Core Services or use personal information collected in the Core Services for advertising purposes.
In Google Additional Services, Google uses the information collected from all Additional Services to provide, maintain, protect and improve them, to develop new ones, and to protect Google and its users. Google may also use this information to offer tailored content, such as more relevant search results. Google may combine personal information from one service with information, including personal information, from other Google services.
Does Google use student personal information for users in K-12 schools to target advertising?
No. For G Workspace for Education users in primary and secondary (K-12) schools, Google does not use any user personal information (or any information associated with an G Workspace for Education Account) to target ads, whether in Core Services or in other Additional Services accessed while using an G Workspace for Education account.
Can my child share information with others using the G Workspace for Education account?
We may allow students to access Google services such as Google Docs and Sites, which include features where users can share information with others or publicly. When users share information publicly, it may be indexable by search engines, including Google.
Will Google disclose my child’s personal information?
Google will not share personal information with companies, organizations and individuals outside of Google unless one of the following circumstances applies:
With parental or guardian consent. Google will share personal information with companies, organizations or individuals outside of Google when it has parents’ consent (for users below the age of consent), which may be obtained through G Workspace for Education schools.
With A-JIS. G Workspace for Education accounts, because they are school-managed accounts, give administrators access to information stored in them.
For external processing. Google may provide personal information to affiliates or other trusted businesses or persons to process it for Google, based on Google’s instructions and in compliance with the G Workspace for Education privacy notice and any other appropriate confidentiality and security measures.
For legal reasons. Google will share personal information with companies, organizations or individuals outside of Google if it has a good-faith belief that access, use, preservation or disclosure of the information is reasonably necessary to:
meet any applicable law, regulation, legal process or enforceable governmental request.
enforce applicable Terms of Service, including investigation of potential violations.
detect, prevent, or otherwise address fraud, security or technical issues.
protect against harm to the rights, property or safety of Google, Google users or the public as required or permitted by law.
Google also shares non-personal information -- such as trends about the use of its services -- publicly and with its partners.
What choices do I have as a parent or guardian?
First, you can consent to the collection and use of your child’s information by Google. If you don’t provide your consent, we will not create a G Workspace for Education account for your child, and Google will not collect or use your child’s information as described in this notice.
If you consent to your child’s use of G Workspace for Education, you can access or request deletion of your child’s G Workspace for Education account by contacting <parents.ict@aobajapan.jp>. If you wish to stop any further collection or use of your child's information, you can request that we use the service controls available to limit your child’s access to features or services, or delete your child’s account entirely. You and your child can also visit https://myaccount.google.com while signed in to the G Workspace for Education account to view and manage the personal information and settings of the account.
What if I have more questions or would like to read further?
If you have questions about our use of Google’s G Workspace for Education accounts or the choices available to you, please contact [parents.ict@aobajapan.jp]. If you want to learn more about how Google collects, uses, and discloses personal information to provide services to us, please review the:
Privacy & Security Center at https://edu.google.com/intl/en_ALL/why-google/privacy-security/
GOOGLE WORKSPACE FOR EDUCATION PRIVACY NOTICE at Google Workspace Terms of Service
Google Privacy Policy at https://policies.google.com/privacy?hl=en
The Core G Workspace for Education services are provided to us under
Google’s Apps for Education agreement at Google Workspace for Education Terms of Service