Works well for me as an independent study teacher who uses Google products extensively.

My Take

Google hangouts, while similar to Skype, work well for me as someone whose school uses Google products and apps extensively. I use Google hangouts in two ways, as an independent study teacher it is great to use for my virtual office hours and help my students with their various classes online. All of our students are required to have online access so I'm able to have this available as a tool for all of my students. It works pretty well for small groups too although my use with multiple students at once has been limited. I do hope to try holding small group meetings more as this school year goes on. Google hangouts has also worked well in collaborating with fellow teachers and is a great tool for online professional development.