« Tips for Launching a Successful New Business | Home | Use Visualization to Achieve Success in Your Life »
How to Use Google Docs for Your Online Tutoring Business
By Meaghan Montrose
Google Docs is an online tool that allows you to share and edit documents with others. This tool can be very beneficial to you as a tutor working with a student. However, its capabilities do not end there. Google Docs gives you the ability to have groups of people collaborating on one document. This feature can be useful for small groups of students that need to work together on a school paper or it can be used as a way for you and other members of your business to edit and revise a project without physically being in the same room.
The best thing of all about Google Docs is that it’s FREE! There is no software to download. All you need is internet access and you can begin creating new documents or uploading existing ones to share and collaborate on in real time. Are you interested yet? Here is how you can get started.
1. Logging in:
First, go to http://docs.google.com. This will bring you to a login page. If you have a google account, just use that to login. If you don’t have an account you will need to set one up by clicking on “Create New Google Account”.
2. Opening a Document:
After you have logged in, you can start a new document by going to “File” and clicking on the type of document you would like to create. You can also upload an existing file by clicking on the “Upload” tab. Google Docs accepts many file formats, including DOC, XLS, ODT, ODS, RTF, CSV, and PPT. This uploading ability is useful for working with students online. Sometimes a student will have a specific question about something in their textbook or on a worksheet. Tutoring online where you can’t see their book or handout can make it difficult to help the student. This tool, however, can change that. The student can simply take a picture of the page, put it into a PowerPoint presentation, and upload it to Google Docs for you to see. It’s as if you are right there in the room with them!
3. Sharing a Document:
Once you have created, named, and saved a document (or uploaded an existing document) you can share this document with others. To do this, click on the “Share” tab on the upper right side of the document. Select “Share With Others” from the drop-down menu. This will bring up a box for you to write in the email address of anyone you want to share the document with. You can choose people to be collaborators or viewers. A collaborator is capable of editing the document, but a viewer can only read it. Once you have invited a collaborator or a viewer they will receive an email with a link to your shared document. They just need to click on the link and sign in.
4. Other Features:
Google Docs also has an instant messaging feature that allows you to have a real-time discussion with other collaborators. In addition, using the “Revisions” action allows you to go back and view all of the changes that have been made to the document.
This is just an overview of the Google Docs program to give you a starting point. The best way to learn about the many features and options is to jump right in and explore. Get started now!
Topics: Starting/Running Your Tutoring Business, Tutor Tips | No Comments »