Item: Google Forms
Rating: 10
Author: Michael Chow

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

When I first started to use Google Forms, it was used as a course evaluation. I had taught at a school using paper evaluations at the end of the course. But, as an instructor, I wanted an assessment during the course. Using Google Forms, I created a formative assessment to gauge student learning and provide ongoing changes to the course curriculum. I genuinely believe in doing this. I was able to adapt quickly and share constructive feedback with the students. Students were able to submit the forms as anonymous. Over time, I started to create online quizzes with Google Forms too. Not only does Google Forms collects the names and email addresses, but I can also set it up, where it would give the students the right or wrong answer, give them their final mark, and tell them the answer. My students loved it.

Pros and Cons

Create a survey with lots of different kinds of questions from short answers, radio boxes, multiple-choice, long answers check-boxes, drop-down menus.
You can distribute these surveys to anyone.
Analyze the data in the Google Forms app itself or in a spreadsheet.

Receive notification for submissions.
Ability to play a video and do other assessments or quizzes in the same question.
Templates need work compared to SurveyMonkey. Google Forms are plain.

Return on Investment

Awesome, it's free
No cost
Positive ROI

Alternatives Considered

SurveyMonkey

If I was basing the design element on a Google Forms vs their nearest competitor, SurveyMonkey, Hands down, SurveyMonkey has them beat. If I want something quick to load, I don't care about the design Google Forms is the way to go. The forms themselves aren't being sent outside of the class; if sent this outside of the program, SurveyMonkey would be more professional looking!

Key Insights

Do you think Google Forms delivers good value for the price?

Yes

Are you happy with Google Forms's feature set?

Yes

Did Google Forms live up to sales and marketing promises?

Yes

Did implementation of Google Forms go as expected?

Yes

Would you buy Google Forms again?

Yes

Other Software Used

Adobe Bridge, Adobe PhotoShop, Adobe Illustrator CC, Adobe InDesign, Adobe Acrobat Reader DC

Usability

Getting up to speed in Google Forms is relatively easy for me. Different settings and options set up course assessments to online quizzes easy to create, duplicate, and re-use repeatedly. By far, the learning curve was not steep at all compared to other online tools such as Survey Monkey.

One of the non-profit organizations I used to work at had to buy a pro version of Survey Monkey. I had created an exact sample of it in Google Forms, and they were shocked that not only was I able to re-create it in Google Forms, but I did it at a low cost. They have now switched from SurveyMonkey to Google Forms. And although the templates bite, not being professional, they were okay with that.

Support Rating

I never had a technical issue with Google Forms.

Likelihood to Recommend

Google Forms is great for educational purposes. With any academic school, the cost is a factor. Having the accessible version of Google Forms goes a long way for the educational institute and the students who may need to use it. Yes, students have access to Microsoft Forms, but when the program is over, students no longer have access to Microsoft; Google Forms and other applications within the Google suite are free for life.

Simple to Use. A 5 year old can create a form with this!

Overall Satisfaction with Google Forms