Furthermore, for an experiment in which all students’ results are compiled to form a larger study, a Google Docs spreadsheet provides a data-handling framework a conceptually or statistically meaningful data set may be assembled more efficiently. Instructors who traditionally ask students to use the chalkboard to share experimental data or step-by-step calculations can employ Google Docs to expand the classmate peer group to students who previously performed the experiment or to students in other lab sections that meet concurrently. Instructors who view all students’ work on one computer screen may be quickly alerted to specific students’ needs. When multiple students edit a single spreadsheet, they see their peers’ work and can compare results and calculations at each step. Google Docs spreadsheets can be designed to guide students through complicated math problems. Using a Google Docs link provided by their instructor, students at different Internet-enabled computers can view the same spreadsheet file, enter data, and perform calculations. No special technical skill is required for an instructor to use a free account (7) to create a Google Docs file, such as a spreadsheet. Pence (4, 5) and Bonham (6) have described several science education applications for Google Docs-based cloud computing. Google Docs (1) is a free online suite of programs that provides much of the functionality found in the Microsoft Office (2) or OpenOffice (3) suites, affording significant opportunities for student collaboration during laboratory experiments and results interpretation.

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