One issue with using Google Docs with students is remembering to set the viewing rights on a document. How many times have you linked students to a file in Google Docs only to hear a sea of voices exclaiming “We do not have permission!”
When you create a Google document the default viewing permissions are private. You have to click on the blue share button to change the sharing permissions. Something that is easily overlooked.
Google Classroom solves this problem by allowing the teacher to link to Google Docs from their school Google Drive account. The documents can be shared with students as “Students can view file.” This automatically ensures that all Google documents you share with students through Classroom will have viewing permissions.
No matter the sharing options you choose in Google Classroom you can be assured that the students will have access to the document so long as they are signed in with their school Google Apps account.
Any documents or files that students submit through Google Classroom automatically have sharing rights with the instructor. This eliminates the issue of trying to assess student work only to discover that the student forgot to share the document with you.
For more information about Google Classroom see: https://alicekeeler.com/classroom