The following is a guest post by Alex Bukeeva, an instructional design intern at Touro College. If you would like to submit a guest post, please contact us.
Padlet is an online bulletin board tool used by many – from parents to educators. There are multiple ways to use this wonderful tool; and today I am sharing some ideas that college and university educators can use in their online classrooms.
Padlet is …
… a virtual board, on which you post your material, ideas, notes, files, images, multimedia, etc.
… very easy and intuitive
… available on computers and smartphone (free and paid versions are available)
… can be embedded in websites, blogs (see below!), and multiple LMSs, including Canvas
Consider using Padlet for your online college or university classes. Here are some ideas:
1. Let students brainstorm on a topic or idea – create a Padlet board, share the link with your students and let them post their thoughts/ideas. Do it with their names on each post, or anonymously, depending on the activity.
2. Let students post questions on the board, and then ask volunteers to answer them in the comments section (can be turned on/off). You, as a moderator, can later make corrections and/or comments.
3. Let students collaborate on a project in groups. Assign a project per group, create boards (by the number of groups). Later, share the boards with the class and let groups criticize their peer’s projects – again, in the comments section or as a class discussion.
4. Get your students’ prior knowledge before your upcoming lesson – let them post what they already know about the particular topic. This will help you plan your lesson.
5. Use a Padlet board with your fellow professors – share your knowledge, ideas, or advice.
Possibilities of using Padlet are numerous, and once you start, you will get creative and have many more ideas of your own for your classroom and make it more engaging for your students. Don’t forget to share your ideas!
Alex Bukeeva currently teaches ESL to adult students. She is pursuing her MS in Instructional Design Degree at Touro Graduate School of Technology and practicing her new skills and knowledge as an intern for the Instructional Design team at Touro School of Online Education. She enjoys working with technology and likes to explore and implement new ways of helping students and instructors in achieving better results in their eLearning.
Reference herein to any specific commercial products, process, or service by trade name, trademark, manufacturer, or otherwise, does not constitute or imply an endorsement, recommendation, or favoring by Touro College.