Now, more than ever, teachers, professors, and other professionals are being encouraged to use digital tools. Increasing engagement within classrooms and lectures can be accomplished with digital tools, but there is a balance. Seeking out a tool that does not distract from learning while promoting effective conversations around a topic can be achieved with digital tools. Padlet has been an up and coming tool that various professions have used in classrooms, group activities, and lectures. The nature of Padlet allows it to be tailored to any subject or audience.
So, what is Padlet? The website defines itself as “beauty will save the work: make beautiful boards to collect, organize, and present anything. Used by over 30 million people worldwide. Get started for free.” (www.padlet.com). Upon entering the homepage, there are many options to create a product such as a timeline, map, presentation, Q&A, and many other creative projects. Those who are interested in using Padlet can access free templates that they can tailor to their needs that include; icebreakers, task management, announcements, and other great options.
Upon entering the site to make a product, you are required to make an account. For my purposes, I chose an educator account but there are other options such as personal and student use. There is an option for to create a premium account that can be purchased on a monthly basis. Educator accounts, which are free, allow for three different padlets to be created in a certain amount of time.
I have used the Q&A and discussion board templates in group activities and will show how those tools can be helpful for teachers or museum educators working with a group. To show the effectiveness and creativity that padlet involves, I will walk us through how to create a discussion board for a class/group activity.
To begin, you are prompted to create a discussion question, description, and the visual look of the board. After creating the board, students can create the beginnings of threads then freely reply to each other. Padlet provides tips for sharing with the group and the option for the creator to moderate the discussion.
There are many different options for posting beyond just standard text such as music, polls, videos, and images. These features put Padlet higher up on interactivity than a standard discussion board online. The visuals also look nice and organized, allowing the group to freely scroll through the board without clicking various links and getting lost in threads. Visualizations and organization make the board more accessible, in my opinion.
The above images show how discussions are added and the various options to create a post. I chose to display some of the newer features such as photos, a Spotify link, and a poll. I also showed a typical text post with replies to show how the board organizes itself based on different types of posts.
Clearly, I used a very generic question to display the features of Padlet for discussion boards, but the subject can be anything an educator or museum professional needs to add to their presentation or lesson plan. I have used a Padlet board in a presentation that allowed the group to ask the presenter questions in an organized manner. For educators in a classroom, this tool is great for homework assignments or group project peer reviewing. The features of Padlet are not limited to any one type of product and the website is extremely user friendly, I made that visually appealing board in less than five minutes.
Overall, Padlet is an effective tool for educators at any level or institution that promotes interactivity and creativity among groups. Have you ever used Padlet? If so, how? If not, could you see yourself trying it out in the future? Let me know!