BENEFITS AND CHALLENGES OF GOOGLE SITE IN PROCESSING AND TEACHING

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Creating an e-portfolio, particularly in  Google Site has significantly contributed to my growth as a teacher and a digital content creator, enhanced both my technical and pedagogical skills. Through this transformative tool process , I have gained valuable insights into digital literacy, self-reflection, and professional development. This reflection outlines the benefits and challenges I encountered during the process, as well as the impact it has on my future teaching practices.

One of the most significant benefits I have gained from creating is the ease of use. The platform offers a user-friendly interface that does not require advanced technical knowledge, making it accessible for educators who may not have experience in website design. It offers drag-and-drop features, making it convenient to design web pages without requiring advanced coding skills. This allowed me to focus more on content creation rather than technical difficulties.

Additionally, the ability to integrate multimedia elements, such as images, audio, and videos, and interactive activities, I was able to create a more engaging learning environment that caters to diverse learning styles, motivation to learn. For example, I embedded YouTube videos explaining complex grammar points, which complemented the written explanations and provided students with additional support.

Futhermore, building the website improved my ability to organize information in a structured and visually appealing way. As I designed the pages, I learned how to categorize educational materials effectively, ensuring that users could navigate the site effortlessly. The platform allowed me to compile various resources, including lesson plans, videos, quizzes, and reading materials, into a single interactive space, multimodal format. Therefore, visual learners could engage with infographics, auditory learners could listen to audio explanations, and kinesthetic learners could interact with embedded quizzes. This not only enhances the learning aproaches for students but also streamlines lesson delivery, making it easier to manage content efficiently.

I strongly believe that the ideas of Google Site and multimodal composing will be highly useful in my teaching career. As a future English teacher, I intend to incorporate these techniques into my teaching practicum effectively. I plan to use this platform to design online courses, host discussion forums, and provide supplementary learning materials that will support students' English language development. Students can participate in projects, submit assignments, and reflect on their learning progress, fostering a more interactive and student-centered approach.

Despite the benefits, I encountered several challenges during the Google Site creation process. One of the main difficulties was designing an aesthetically pleasing and readable layout. Adjusting fonts, styles, and color contrasts to ensure accessibility was more challenging than I initially expected. I wanted to create a visually appealing website while also making sure that the text was easy to read, especially for students with visual impairments.

Another challenge was the lack of an in-built comment section in Google Sites. I wanted to add a feature where students could leave comments or ask questions directly on the webpage, but Google Sites does not provide a native commenting function.

To overcome these difficulties, I conducted research and explored alternative solutions. For the design challenges, I referred to online accessibility guidelines and used contrast checker tools to ensure readability. I also experimented with different font combinations and layouts to create a balanced and professional appearance.

For the commenting issue, I embedded a Google Form as a workaround, allowing students to submit questions and feedback, which I could review and address in a dedicated section of the site.

Overall, designing a Google Site was a valuable experience that enhanced my technological and instructional skills. It not only helped me understand the importance of digital tools in teaching but also prepared me to integrate multimodal elements into my future lessons effectively

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