Google Docs for class projects

I think online collaborative programs like Google docs and spresent are amazing tools whose worth is only beginning to be realized in the Education world. This was the first time I was actually assigned to use Google docs for a class (I've only puttered around with it in the past for "fun" stuff like making vacation and party lists with friends) and it made me see how it can be a much more powerful collaborative tool than I had originally realized. While I share some of the reservations Farkas mentioned new users often feel of not wanting to change "other people's work", I think the open source movement is creating a new world where sharing and collaborative creating/editing are going to become more commonplace and accepted.

Maybe I've been one of the lucky ones but, for the most part, I feel that I've had rather forward-thinking professors in SCILS who pride themselves in keeping up with the latest technology and learning methods. Because of this, I feel they would accept (and possibly even require) the use of programs such as these for group projects.

Sadly, though, I don't think these tools would be welcomed in most K-12 settings. I'm sure many teachers (and awesome school librarians!) would see the potential and learning benefits of using them, but their principals/superintendents/boards of ed. wouldn't allow their use (mostly out of fear that they are "web 2.0" applications that cannot be controlled.)