Common Questions

A Google Educator Group (GEG) is a community of educators who are passionate about using technology in their classrooms, with a special focus on Google tools (like Google Workspace for Education, Chromebooks, Google Arts & Culture, Google Earth, Gemini, and more) to enhance teaching and learning. 

GEG's exist all over the world, and every local GEG provides a platform for members to connect, share ideas, collaborate on projects, and learn from one another.

Our primary goals are to:

• Connect: Facilitate networking and collaboration among educators in the Sydney area and beyond.

• Share: Provide a space for members to share best practices, innovative lesson ideas, and success stories using Google (and other) tools.

• Learn: Offer professional development opportunities, workshops, and discussions on new tools, features and educational technology trends.

• Inspire: Empower educators to confidently integrate technology into their classrooms and transform learning experiences for their students.

Anyone involved in education – teachers, administrators, IT staff, librarians, pre-service teachers, and even parents interested in educational technology – is welcome to join our GEG! 

Whether you're a Google expert or just starting your journey, there's a place for you.

Not at all! We do plan to run some face-to-face events in Sydney, either at the Sydney Google Office, or hosted at local Sydney schools, so obviously it's an advantage to be in the Sydney area if you'd like to attend those. But many of our activities will be hosted online, so you can join from anywhere. 

So whether you are from Sydney, further afield in NSW, somewhere else in Australia or New Zealand, or even overseas, you're more than welcome to be part of GEG Sydney.

That said, it's worth noting that there are GEGs all over the world, so you may be able to find an active GEG group closer to where you live that may work even better for you (or just be part of both!)

Simply fill in this form to be added to our member list. 

We'll keep you informed of upcoming events, both in-person and online. You can also follow our social media channels.  We encourage you to introduce yourself at our next event or in our online community!

No, membership in Google Educator Groups is completely free. Our goal is to support educators, not to add another cost.

We mainly communicate through our Google Group, to which you'll be added after filling in this form. Please make sure you are subscribed to our Group to receive timely updates via email.  We recommend adding gegsydney@googlegroups.com to your contact list to avoid messages going to spam (which unfortunately happens more than we'd like)

In addition, you can follow us on any of our social media channels found at the bottom of this page. 

We plan to host a variety of events, including, but not limited to:

• Workshops: Hands-on sessions focusing on specific Google tools or educational applications.

• Meetups: Informal gatherings for networking and idea-sharing.

• "Show & Tell" Sessions: Opportunities for members to showcase how they're using Google tools in their classrooms.

• Guest Speakers: Presentations from Google Certified Educators, Innovators, or other ed-tech experts.

• Collaboration Projects: Opportunities to work with other educators on shared resources or initiatives.

• Certification Study Groups: Support for those pursuing Google Certified Educator Level 1, 2, Trainer, Coach, or Innovator certifications.

Absolutely! We highly encourage members to suggest topics and even lead sessions. Your expertise is valuable to our community. Please just get in touch with one of the GEG Sydney Leaders to have a chat about what you'd like to see happen and we'll do our best to support you.

Not at all. We are open to all kinds of technologies that can help teachers in the classroom. While these GEG groups were created to support educators interested in how Google tools can be used in the classroom, there are obviously many other digital tools that can be useful and effective. So whether you prefer to be very Google-focused, or would rather be more tool-agnostic, there's space for everyone to belong.  So whether it's Google, Canva, Adobe, Brisk, Microsoft, whatever. It doesn't really matter.

At the end of the day, it's about helping teachers use technology effectively with their students, whether that's with Google tools or something else.

Beyond our GEG events, there are many excellent resources:

• Google for Education Teacher Center: Offers free online courses and training.

• Google Help Centers: Comprehensive guides for all Google products.

• YouTube Channels: Many educators share tips and tutorials.

• Google Certified Educators: Connect with certified trainers and coaches for personalized support.

You can find links to these in the Resources section of this site.

Google Educator Groups are peer-to-peer learning communities and not official Google technical support. However, many members are experienced Google users and may be able to offer advice or point you to the right resources. If we can help, we will.

For immediate or in-depth technical issues, it's best to consult your school's IT administrator or Google's official support channels.

The Google Certified Educator program validates your proficiency in using Google tools in the classroom. You can find free training materials on the Google Teacher Centre and register for the exams there. Many GEGs also organise study groups or courses to support members.

Welcome! We recommend starting with the basics:

• Google Classroom: A central hub for managing assignments and communication.

• Google Drive: For cloud storage and file organisation.

• Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides: Collaborative alternatives to traditional office software.

• Google Gemini AI: Amazing AI assistance to save you time.

• Attend our introductory workshops, and don't hesitate to ask questions in our community!

There are many ways to contribute:

• Attend events and actively participate in discussions.

• Share your own tips, tricks, and resources with other members.

• Volunteer to co-host a session or lead a discussion.

• Help spread the word about our GEG to other educators.

• Offer to mentor new members.

Please don't hesitate to reach out! You can post your question in our Google Group,  email the GEG leaders, or just ask at our next event. We're here to help!