Seeing google through the eyes of Turkish academicians

With its new variety of IT products and services created in the last decade for students, teachers and schools, Google has changed the face of education. Google technologies that can be used completely free of charge via a single account in any device offer innovative alternatives to meet the needs of education. These technologies also help continuously improve digital competencies of students and teachers. On the other hand, criticisms against the monopolization of the company as well as its privacy and transparency policies have been increasing. In the light of these developments, the current study aims to examine academicians' metaphorical perceptions related to Google. The study was designed based on metaphorical analysis as a method of qualitative research. The study group was comprised of academicians working at education faculties of four state universities located in the middle west of Turkey. The data were collected through a closed web-based questionnaire consisting of open-ended questions. Results revealed that large majority of the academicians have a positive perception of Google. A group of participants also views it as a threat. Results offer important insights about the academicians' perceptions of Google and how and why they make use of Google products.