Google has brought in some tools and features that will come in handy for teachers and students using Google Meet and Google Classroom. With uncertainty looming large over the COVID-19 pandemic, and schools still not reopening, institutes have resorted to Google Classroom, Google Meet, and other alternatives.

Google announced the virtual approach of going back to school with The Anywhere School bringing in 50 new features over Google Meet, Classroom, GSuite and other products.

Google highlighted new tools to help out students and teachers who use Google Classroom. These include:

To-do widget: To help instructors and students better discover and track their work in Classroom, the Classes page will soon have a to-do widget for students and a to-review widget for teachers.

Link-sharing: Formerly, it was only possible to share codes on Google classroom. With the link-sharing feature, teachers and moderators can share a link anywhere for students to join.

Originality reports checking plagiarism: Google has brought in originality reports to Classrooms and Meet to check for plagiarism in student’s assignments or homework. It has increased the number to five reports and unlimited reports for Enterprise users.

10 additional Indian languages: Google Classroom will soon be available in 10 additional Indian languages. Google Classroom will support over 54 languages globally with even more coming in the future.

Connectivity: Google noted that it will work for Classroom mobile apps to work in intermittent connectivity.

Student interaction data: Admins or teachers will be able to keep track of how much a student is interacting on Google classroom through student engagement metrics.

Google announced enhanced features that will roll out as early as September or October to assist students and teachers for Google Meet. Starting September, Google will bring in more control for moderators of Education meetings for managing their virtual classes on Google Meet. These controls include:

–Bringing in a setting that allows a teacher to join first.

–Prohibiting participants from joining a meeting if they have been ejected from a meeting or after they have been denied entry twice. The feature will launch later this month.

–End meetings for all participants when class is finished.

–Join requests can be accepted or rejected in bulk.

–Disable in-meeting chat and set restrictions on who can present during a meeting.

Moreover Google Meet will get new features for the interaction of students and teachers. In September features like larger tiled views with a 7×7 grid to fit 49 students on a screen at once, a collaborative whiteboard for students to share ideas are slated to come.

Google will also bring blur backgrounds, attendance recording, and breakout rooms in October. Other features aimed at coming later this year are hand-raising and Q and A features.