Lifesaver Chrome Extensions (for a Teacher)

Published: 2023-12-18 10:46 AM

Category: Technology | Tags: teaching, edtech, tools, chrome, extensions

I'm procrastinating on finishing my final exam, so here are two Chrome extensions which make my life much, much easier.

1. Reader View for Chrome. This extension has been around since long before Chrome finally added a reader view but I still use it more than the native implementation. It strips images, adds, and CTA prompts from text and gives flexible formatting options. I can take an article and easily get down to a more readable piece of text to then use as a PDF or to print for students. It even includes options for adding multiple columns so a longer piece can be fit on to fewer sheets of paper. This is a great tool for any text, but in particular if you have students who are emerging/struggling readers or students who are English language learners.
2. uBlock Origin. As long as this is available, I will have it installed. I don't know why it isn't enabled automatically for students in Chromebook environments, but it should be. The readability of the Internet has degraded and will continue to, especially when the Manifest V3 update takes effect in March 2024. uBlock lets me share my screen with the class without worrying about ad content on web pages or on videos. I don't have to wonder if something awkard is going to come up and I know my browsing for school with minors won't be used by scummy ad-tech. When Chrome changes in 2024, I'm going to petition my IT department to let me use Firefox.